How to sell your house privately in the UK (step by step)

Yes, you can sell your house privately in the UK, and it's perfectly legal. Nothing requires you to use an estate agent. You still need an EPC before you market the property (in England and Wales), a solicitor or licensed conveyancer for the legal work, and a way to reach buyers, which is the hard part because Rightmove only takes listings from agents. In return you save a fee that the HomeOwners Alliance puts at 1.42% including VAT on average.

This guide is written for England and Wales, with notes on Scotland and a short section for US readers selling without a realtor. It isn't legal or tax advice; your conveyancer is the person to check anything specific to your sale.

The short version

• Before marketing: get an EPC (England and Wales) or a Home Report (Scotland).
• Instruct a conveyancer early: they'll send you the TA6, TA10 and, for a leasehold, TA7 forms.
• Reach buyers: Rightmove and Zoopla need an agent, so private sellers use a fixed-fee online agent, smaller platforms, social media and a window poster.
• Do the viewings well: filter buyers first and show them the house online before they come.
• Tax: no Capital Gains Tax on your main home in most cases; Stamp Duty is the buyer's.

Step 1: get your EPC (or Home Report in Scotland)

GOV.UK is clear: "You must order an EPC for potential buyers and tenants before you market your property to sell or rent." An EPC is valid for 10 years, so check whether you already have one on the register. In England and Wales, adverts in commercial media also have to show the energy rating, which we cover in how to write a property listing.

In Scotland, most homes need a Home Report instead: a single survey and valuation, an energy report and a property questionnaire. You (or your agent) must give it to a buyer within nine days of them asking. Northern Ireland has its own process.

Step 2: instruct a solicitor or licensed conveyancer

You'd need one with an agent anyway. Instruct them early, because they'll start gathering title documents from HM Land Registry and send you the Law Society's transaction (TA) forms:

• TA6 property information form: boundaries, disputes, alterations and building work, guarantees, services, flooding and more.
• TA10 fittings and contents form: room by room, what's included, what's excluded and what's for sale separately. Once contracts are exchanged it's part of the deal, so be precise about the curtains, the fridge and the garden shed.
• TA7 leasehold information form: only for leasehold properties. Your managing agent or freeholder will also need to provide a leasehold pack, which can take weeks.

Answer these honestly and completely. Wrong answers can come back as a misrepresentation claim after completion.

Material information

Estate agents in England and Wales follow National Trading Standards guidance on material information: council tax band, price, tenure, property type, construction, utilities, broadband, mobile coverage, parking and more. That guidance is written for agents, but buyers and their conveyancers will ask for the same things. Putting them in your listing from day one saves weeks later.

Step 3: set a realistic price

Without an agent, nobody will tell you your house is worth less than you hope. Look at sold prices for similar homes nearby (HM Land Registry data is free on most portals), compare with what's on the market now and how long it's been there, and consider getting two or three agents' valuations even if you don't instruct them. Overpricing at the start is the most common reason a private sale stalls.

Step 4: reach buyers without Rightmove

Rightmove told Property Industry Eye that "all sellers must go through an estate agent" to advertise on it, and the HomeOwners Alliance warns that without an agent you can't market on Rightmove or Zoopla. Your options:

• A fixed-fee online agent. They list you on the main portals for a flat fee, often paid upfront whether or not you sell, and you can usually choose to do the viewings yourself. HOA's example is a £1,499 package with hosted viewings; basic packages cost less.
• Private-sale websites and local social media groups. Smaller audiences, but free or cheap.
• A poster in the window. Estate agent boards are for agents, but a well-designed poster in your front window still reaches people who already walk past and like the street. A QR code on it can take them straight to the photos or a tour, as in our guide to QR window cards.

Whatever you choose, the listing needs at least one photo of every room, a floor plan if you have one and, ideally, a tour people can walk through on their phone. You don't need a 360 camera for that; how to make a virtual tour with your phone explains the method.

Doing it with RoomTour

RoomTour is our iPhone app, and private sellers are one of the people we built it for:

1. In each room you take about 30 guided shots; the app shows one target at a time and stitches a 360° panorama on the phone.
2. You get an approximate floor plan of the layout (for orientation, not measuring).
3. You get a link for your listing and your replies, an embed code, and an A4 QR poster for the window (English with ?lang=en).
4. You can see how many times the tour has been opened.

It isn't integrated with any portal and it's iPhone-only. It's free for early users. Here's an example tour.

Step 5: viewings and staying safe

• Qualify buyers before you book. Ask whether they need a mortgage and have an agreement in principle, whether they have a house to sell and when they want to move.
• Send the tour first. People who still want to come after walking round online are much more likely to be serious.
• Batch viewings into one or two slots a week.
• Don't show the house alone, put away valuables and paperwork, and note each visitor's name and number.

Step 6: offers, sale agreed and completion

When you accept an offer, put it in writing and pass the buyer's details and their solicitor's to yours. In England and Wales a sale isn't binding until contracts are exchanged, so either side can still pull out before then. Ask for proof of funds or a mortgage agreement in principle before you take the house off the market.

Your conveyancer then answers the buyer's enquiries, agrees a completion date and, on completion day, receives the money, pays off your mortgage and transfers the title. You hand over the keys once completion is confirmed, not before.

Tax when you sell your home

If the house has been your only home and you've lived in it the whole time you've owned it, Private Residence Relief means "no tax to pay". It gets more complicated if you let part of it out, used part only for business, have grounds over 5,000 square metres or own more than one home. Stamp Duty Land Tax is the buyer's bill, not yours.

What you save, and when an agent is worth it

On the HOA's 2026 average of 1.42% including VAT, a £275,000 home costs about £3,900 in agent fees. Against that, a private seller pays for the EPC, perhaps an online agent package, and their own time on calls and viewings. Conveyancing costs the same either way.

An agent can earn the fee if you can't do viewings, live far from the property, are in a long chain, or are selling something unusual where local buyer lists matter. If you instruct one, read the contract for the tie-in period and any "ready, willing and able purchaser" clause before signing.

In the US: selling without a realtor (FSBO)

For sale by owner works on the same principles. You can list on Zillow as an owner, but those listings don't appear on the MLS and buyers have to change a filter to see them. FSBO is a small share of US sales: summaries of NAR's 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers put it at about 5%. Paperwork and disclosure forms vary by state, so use a real estate attorney or title company for the closing.

If you go private, here's how to show your home the way an agent would: sell your house without an estate agent, with a 360° tour.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sell my house privately in the UK?

Yes. No law requires you to use an estate agent. You need an EPC before you market the property in England and Wales (a Home Report in Scotland), and a solicitor or licensed conveyancer to handle the legal transfer.

What documents do I need to sell my house without an agent?

An EPC, proof of identity, your title details (your conveyancer gets these from HM Land Registry), and the Law Society forms your conveyancer sends you: the TA6 property information form, the TA10 fittings and contents form and, for a leasehold, the TA7. Add certificates for any building work, guarantees and warranties.

Can you list a house on Rightmove privately?

No. Rightmove has said that all sellers must go through an estate agent to advertise on it. The usual workaround is a fixed-fee online agent, which lists you on the portals while you do some or all of the viewings.

How much are estate agent fees in the UK?

The HomeOwners Alliance puts the 2026 average at 1.42% including VAT, with sole agency typically 1.2% to 1.8% inc VAT. On a £275,000 home the average works out at about £3,900.

Do I pay tax when I sell my house privately?

Usually not, if it's been your only home and you've lived in it the whole time you owned it: Private Residence Relief means no Capital Gains Tax. Stamp Duty is paid by the buyer, not the seller.