Struggling to sell your London home over the past few months and finding viewings have slowed down during the summer…then here’s our advice and recommendations as long-established, experienced estate agents operating across prime central and northwest London.

Realistically, summer is not the best season to sell your property – peak holiday months and school term dates restrict buyers’ activity. There’s a “selling window” of opportunity starting from early September that spans approximately three and a half months. It’s crucial to plan ahead to boost interest and attract homebuyers and maximise the chance of selling your property. Regardless of the current market’s challenges, the time to begin preparing to sell this autumn starts now. Here’s how to get started…

1. September Property Selling Reset

Some purchasers hold off from making offers in the summer, intentionally waiting to see if properties they are considering get reduced, or hoping that new listings will come to the market in September.
The upside is that autumn is one of the most active times of year for buyers wanting to get on with process of finding a suitable property. This is the season when they will start hunting for their next home with serious intent; driven by different motivators: moving before Christmas, new schools, or new jobs.

2. Refresh your property’s online description and brochure details

It may sound obvious, but buyers want well-prepared listings that describe the property clearly and highlight the features that a keen purchaser will take notice of. A fresh, concise description will always stand out better than long-winded waffle and the usual estate agent cliched adjectives. Give the property a new look with new photography, moving away from images that may have overexposed the property.

3. Make sure your estate agent understands how online searches work best

Assuming your estate agent has a clear grasp of SEO around online property searches, they will know that relisting or updating your property online can place it higher in search results, attracting new web traffic. They will understand how impactful ‘keywords’ can be for buyers searching online. Descriptions that mention for example: ‘school-catchment areas’, ‘outstanding schools in St John’s Wood NW8’, ‘walking distance of Hampstead High Street’, ‘seller’s flexibility on a timeframe to move’; practical features such as being ‘energy-efficient’, ‘low maintenance’, having ‘eco sustainable features’, offering ‘versatile accommodation to suit hybrid/home working’, are all more likely to garner a scroller’s attention, when they’re looking to buy their next home.

4. Online property pricing is a fine line

Again, if your estate agent is property portal savvy, they will know the significance of ensuring your property doesn’t get missed, but shows up in lower online search filters by pricing it fractionally under a round figure, for example not £3,000,000 but £2,950,000.

Bear in mind too, that property portals send an alert to buyers following your property when you reduce it by 5% or more. This is another way of gaining interest both from newly registered buyers, or tempting those who already like your property and have been watching it online over the summer.

5. Be guided by your estate agent on correct property pricing and current values

While there are agents out there who will quote data from Zoopla, the most trusted, qualified estate agent to provide an accurate and realistic valuation, will be one with strong local knowledge and knows every property on every road. An estate agent with decades of experience acting for clients, valuing and selling luxury properties in prime London neighbourhoods, will understand micro-markets, supply versus demand, price fluctuations, and buyers’ current cautiousness. Most importantly, they can gauge what buyers will be prepared to pay for your property in the current market.

6. Priced to sell strategy this autumn

There’s no getting away from the fact, that unrealistic pricing is one of the most frequent reasons properties don’t sell. Even the smallest mismatch between asking price and buyer expectations can result in not getting serious interest. Neither, sellers or buyers can afford to dwell on previous price highs; forget “what your property was worth”, to agree a deal now, means pricing in line with the present challenging market conditions.

Your estate agent should be aware of finding the local “sweet-spot” based on properties sold in the immediate area during the summer period. Agreeing to price yours slightly lower could entice buyers who have been watching and waiting to make a move and come in with an offer. Well-positioned properties priced to reflect the market now, will be far more likely to strike the right note with serious buyers and bring in respectable offers more quickly.

7. Consider what effect the October Budget might have in store for the property market

Andy Burnham has previously spoken out about making significant changes to the way we are taxed on our properties, mentioning abolishing Stamp Duty, changing Council Tax banding and introducing a Land Tax. At this point, we cannot predict what likely changes John Healey, the new Chancellor may introduce, that could impact homeowners and those looking to transact in the prime sector of the property market. No doubt, as the date of the budget on the 28 October 2026 approaches, the press will be making predictions and more will become clear via the media. Certainly, estate agents, property developers and those trying to buy, sell, or downsize will be listening out for anything that will either help or hinder their plans.

In a Nutshell…
Marc Schneiderman, Director, Arlington Residential has these top tips for a pressing the property sale button in September:

• If your property photos were taken back earlier in the year, your estate agent should arrange for new photography. Ideally, while the sun is still shining, especially if your property has lovely outdoor space or views, because everything looks better in the sunshine.
• Remove your property’s visibility – come off all portals and stop ‘actively’ marketing from now until the start of September.
• Reduce your asking price, which doesn’t need to be a major price reduction; it could just be a small ‘adjustment’. Tweaking the asking price slightly can make a big difference to online visibility and attract new serious interest.
• If time is of the essence and your circumstances dictate, you could rent your property, and wait and see how the sales market pans out.
• Consider changing your estate agent to benefit from a fresh approach.