How to sell an apartment yourself and quickly: step-by-step instructions

For those who want to sell an apartment without a realtor, we have collected all the tips on preparing an apartment for sale, a list of necessary documents, the nuances of completing the transaction and making payments in one place. Use our step-by-step instructions to help you sell your apartment on your own!

How to sell an apartment yourself: general rules

If you are planning to sell an apartment yourself, you must be prepared to spend time and money on it. With a realtor, the process will be faster, but for help in finding a buyer you will have to pay 10% of the transaction cost, depending on the region. It makes sense to contact real estate agencies if we are talking about selling a “complex” apartment - for example, located in another city, etc.

If you are selling a standard apartment and carefully follow the instructions, then there should not be any special problems.

Before selling you will need to do:

Collection of missing documents;
Conduct pre-sale preparation of the apartment;
Place advertisements for the sale of an apartment on relevant web sites;
Organize a viewing of the apartment for potential buyers;
Check buyers' documents;
Conclude preliminary and main agreements.

When selling an apartment on your own, you also need to take into account whether it was purchased with maternity capital or not, whether minors live in it, whether there is a mortgage encumbrance, etc.

What papers are needed to complete a purchase and sale transaction?

The set of documents consists of two parts:

Basic part - for any transaction the same set of papers is submitted, only the number of copies can change.
Additional documents are prepared in various variations, depending on the specifics of the transaction.

To avoid misunderstandings during a visit to the MFC or Rosreestr, it is better to discuss in advance with all participants in the transaction who will prepare what documents and take them to the transaction registration procedure.

Selling an apartment: where to start

Conventionally, the process of selling an apartment can be divided into two stages: preparatory and main.

What is needed to sell an apartment:

Determining the value of your apartment;
Decluttering, cleaning, emptying the apartment of things;
Cosmetic repairs - if necessary;
Collection of documents;
Placing advertisements and sales on thematic resources;
Showing the apartment to responding buyers.

The main stage of selling an apartment includes:

Drawing up a preliminary agreement and receiving a deposit;
Signing of the main agreement with subsequent registration;
Transfer of apartment and keys;
Receiving the remaining money;
Payment of tax duty.

Step-by-step instructions for selling an apartment without a realtor

Determining the value of your apartment.

There are two ways to go here:

Independently monitor prices for apartments in your area, comparing your apartment (footage, technical condition) with similar apartments. This way you can understand the average price on the market.
Order an apartment appraisal report (price from 2-3 thousand rubles), which will contain information about the market value and liquidation value of the property you own.

Do not forget that the price at which you are going to put the apartment up for sale must correspond to the market value. An inflated price will force potential buyers to consider more profitable offers, and accordingly, you will not be able to sell the apartment quickly.

When determining the cost of an apartment, we recommend taking into account the following parameters:

An area whose size is directly proportional to the price: more square footage means higher cost;
The number of rooms and their location relative to each other. Isolated rooms and separate bathrooms will have an advantageous effect on the price. But adjacent rooms and a combined bathroom will lower it. The same applies to storage rooms, laundry rooms - their presence or absence, as well as the condition of the balcony.
Number of storeys (the first and last ones are in less demand);
The presence or absence of repairs;
Location and infrastructure of the area. In cities with a population of over a million, apartments near transport interchanges and the metro are more highly valued. For families with children and the elderly, the close location of hospitals, pharmacies, parks, schools, kindergartens and playgrounds will be important.
General condition of the house. Thus, houses built half a century ago may have technical problems: leaking roofs, poor plumbing, etc. We would like to make special mention of houses that are classified as cultural heritage sites (cultural heritage sites). Selling them is much more difficult, despite the tempting idea of living in a cultural monument. Taxes and repair requirements are much higher here, making them less attractive to buyers.
Legal aspects: presence of encumbrances, unpaid utility debts, etc.

Pre-sale preparation of the apartment

Give your apartment a presentation! Carry out a general cleaning and get rid of unnecessary things that “eat up” square meters. This way you can show off the space and create a cozy atmosphere, which will make the apartment more attractive. If necessary, you can make cosmetic repairs, as well as bring windows, doors, electrical and plumbing into working condition. According to statistics, even if you spend 3% of the property value on renovations, you will sell the apartment for 7% more.

If there is no remedy at all, you can peel off the wallpaper and, at a minimum, wash the apartment of dust and dirt. Such an apartment can be put up for sale as prepared for renovation.

Also, the condition and appearance of the entrance, staircases, etc. may influence the purchase decision. Clean walls, free of graffiti, will at least make the entrance more attractive.

Collection of documents

Here is a list of necessary documents (and deadlines) that you will need when selling an apartment on your own. Please note that the list of documents when selling an apartment may have its own characteristics, for example, if you are selling an apartment purchased with maternity capital, with a mortgage, or if you have minor children.

Documents required immediately	Documents with a limited validity period that must be obtained before the transaction itself
Certificate of ownership of the apartment. If the property was purchased after the certificates were cancelled, you will need an agreement under which the property was transferred into ownership and an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate	Consent of the guardianship authorities to sell the apartment if the interests of the minor owner are affected
Passport or birth certificate for child owners under 14 years of age	Certificate form 9 (certificate of family composition, issued free of charge at the MFC)
Cadastral passport for an apartment (can be obtained from the MFC, Rosreestr or directly from the Cadastral Chamber)	Certificate of settlements with utility services or receipts for utility payments for recent months
Technical certificate
Certificate from the tax service confirming the absence of debts
Consent of the second spouse to the alienation of real estate

The basic part of the set of documents for registering a purchase and sale transaction:

Contract of sale. A minimum of 2 copies will be required, although it is ideal to make the number of copies equal to the number of sides plus one. If the contract is certified by a notary, then you need to take one original and one copy.
Identity cards (usually passports) of the parties to the transaction, if you will submit documents in person. If the transaction will be carried out by a trusted person, then an additional power of attorney in his name and his passport will be required.
A document confirming the seller’s ownership of the transaction object - an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate on the existence of the right, an agreement or other document on the purchase of an apartment with a registration mark from Rosreestr.
If the seller purchased the apartment during marriage, then the notarized consent of the spouse to complete the purchase and sale will be required. Exceptions are the presence of a prenuptial agreement, a general power of attorney, or full payment for an apartment under construction before marriage. Even if the marriage is dissolved, but there was no official division of property, consent will be required.
Applications for registration of purchase and sale do not need to be prepared in advance; completed forms will be issued by an employee of the MFC or Rosreestr. All that remains is to carefully check the correctness of filling and sign them.
Receipts for payment of the state duty for state registration of rights (individuals pay 2,000 rubles) are not necessary, but without payment the transaction will not be registered, and the receipt will allow Rosreestr employees to quickly find your payment and not confuse anything.
Documents confirming payment for the purchased property - depending on the payment terms specified in the contract.

What documents are needed to sell an apartment?

Basic list of documents for selling an apartment

USRN Help
Cadastral and technical passport
Extract from the personal account
Certificates about family composition
Preliminary purchase and sale agreement
Contract of sale
Apartment acceptance certificate

What documents does the buyer receive upon completion of the transaction?

After completing the transaction, the seller may need to:

copy of DDU;
real estate purchase and sale agreement;
a copy of the title document for the apartment.

In the primary real estate market, the buyer receives the following documents:

equity participation agreement (original), assignment of claims;
payment receipts;
act of acceptance and transfer;
EGRN extract.

The buyer of real estate on the secondary market remains with the following documents:

contract of sale;
USRN extract;
act of acceptance and transfer;
seller's receipt of money.

The documents provided will allow the buyer to receive a personal income tax refund due when purchasing a home; register property rights; register at your place of residence, re-register meters for gas, electricity, water; register your home for tax purposes.

To underestimate the stage of collecting documents means approaching the transaction “blindly”, naively trusting the participants in the real estate market. This is fraught with material losses. The buyer risks losing the property if it turns out that it was under arrest or pledged, distant relatives are entitled to it, or it is the subject of a legal dispute.

To prevent this, you need to find out: what documents should be required from the seller? What should you pay attention to? How can I find out if I have arrears for utilities? How to detect fake documents? Ask questions to a lawyer at ros-nasledstvo.ru and get a free consultation.

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Author of the article

Natalya Fomicheva

Website expert lawyer. 10 years of experience. Inheritance matters. Family disputes. Housing and land law.

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Posting an ad

We advise you to adhere to the following rules for posting and preparing an advertisement:

Shoot the apartment in the morning or afternoon in natural light. When shooting, emphasize the footage and the main advantages of the apartment. If there is a storage room, remove it. If the bathroom has new tiles and the pipes have been changed, this also deserves attention! Show the view from the window, the availability of parking, and a well-groomed local area.

When composing an advertisement, indicate the main parameters of the apartment, note the infrastructure (gardens, schools, hospitals, etc.). Make the ad as informative as possible so that the buyer does not have any questions.

Place an ad on several sites for the sale of housing. These can be both websites and groups on social networks, where it is possible to post your ad for free (or for a small price) and sell it.

Showing the apartment to potential buyers

Be polite and friendly - a pleasant impression, including from the owner, is conducive to making a purchase. During the conversation, find out for what purpose the apartment is being purchased. For those planning to rent out, a concession in the form of household appliances or furniture that you are willing to keep will be relevant. For those who are buying for themselves or loved ones, tell them in detail about the advantages of your particular apartment compared to similar ones for sale in the same area.

Transfer of money when buying an apartment. How does money transfer happen when buying an apartment?

Additional paperwork when refinancing a loan to purchase an apartment

It is not so rare that situations occur when the purchased apartment has an encumbrance. A classic example is refinancing a problem loan with another bank. In order for the borrower to get a new loan and repay the debt to the old lender, a new mortgage is issued on top of the old one. After the first loan is paid off, the old mortgage is removed and only the new one remains.

To register a new mortgage you will need:

Basic set of documents.
Additional paperwork when purchasing an apartment with a mortgage.
Written consent of the previous mortgagee (old bank) to impose an additional encumbrance - a new mortgage.

Main stages of selling an apartment

As we said above, the main stage of buying an apartment includes:

Signing a preliminary agreement or deposit agreement;
Signing the main purchase and sale agreement;
Its registration;
Receipt of the remaining amount.

Additional paperwork when purchasing a share in an apartment

The procedure is somewhat more complicated than when purchasing an entire apartment; preparatory work is required.

It is not enough just to sign a purchase and sale agreement; it must be certified by a notary.
Written refusal of the owners of other shares of the apartment to purchase (original and copy). The document must indicate the cadastral number of the apartment, the price proposed by the owner and the payment procedure.

Owners of other shares of the apartment have a pre-emptive right to purchase the share that is the subject of the transaction. Therefore, the seller must, before selling his share to a third party, offer in writing to buy this living space to other co-owners of the apartment. He is obliged to offer conditions no worse than those on which he will actually sell his share to a third party.

If the co-owners refuse to give a written answer, then you can do without it - it is enough to provide evidence that they were offered to buy the share. It is best to send the notification through a notary, especially since the purchase and sale agreement will also have to be notarized. You can send an offer to buy a share without a notary, by mail with notification and an inventory of the investment, but this method can lead to legal disputes. If there is no response to an offer to buy a share within 30 days, this is considered a refusal.

Preliminary purchase and sale agreement/deposit agreement

If you are selling an apartment yourself, you will need to conclude either a preliminary agreement or a purchase and sale agreement. Both are designed to record the buyer’s intentions – to buy, and the seller’s – to sell. During these agreements, the buyer pays a portion of the cost of the apartment, and the seller removes all advertisements for sale from web sites and stops showing the apartment to other potential buyers. Contracts are needed to give time to both the seller and the buyer to collect the missing documents, with a short validity period (therefore they are collected immediately before the transaction itself).

What is the difference between a preliminary purchase and sale agreement and a deposit agreement?

Preliminary agreement for the purchase and sale of an apartment	Deposit agreement for the purchase and sale of an apartment
If the security is an advance payment, then if the parties refuse to conclude the transaction, the entire amount must be returned to the buyer. The contract may contain a clause according to which, if the seller refuses to sell, he will return the amount transferred to him as an advance, with accrued interest (from the moment of receipt until the moment of return)	If the transaction does not take place due to the fault of the buyer, the deposit amount remains with the seller. If the transaction is not concluded due to the fault of the seller, he is obliged to return the deposit amount to the buyer in double amount.

The preliminary agreement includes the following points (they will also be duplicated in the main agreement):

The cost of the apartment and its main characteristics (footage, address, number of floors, etc.);
Payment procedure (one time, in parts, etc.);
Who pays and for what during the purchase and sale of an apartment (payment for notary services, renting a safe deposit box, etc.), as well as the responsibility of each party in case of refusal of obligations;
Deadlines - when the seller vacates the apartment and removes it from the register, as well as the terms within which the transaction will be finally completed, the money will be transferred, and the seller will hand over the keys to the apartment.

Payments for an apartment

When paying in cash. One of the most reliable ways to transfer money is a safe deposit box. It is rented by the buyer for the period within which registration actions must be completed (approximately 10-14 days). The money is placed in a safe deposit box in the presence of bank employees, the package containing the payment is sealed and sealed. After registering the transaction in Rosreestr, both parties receive a registration agreement and an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate confirming the transaction. Based on these documents and the apartment acceptance certificate, the seller will receive the money deposited in the locker.
For non-cash payments, a letter of credit and a payment order are used. If a buyer purchases your apartment with a mortgage, then non-cash payments are also used here. The bank transfers money to the seller’s personal account after registering the transfer of ownership (agreement).

Additional paperwork when purchasing an apartment with a mortgage

The paperwork will mainly be handled by the bank's legal department; the buyer will, rather, be required to exercise control. A typical purchase and sale transaction in connection with mortgage financing is carried out simultaneously with the conclusion of the loan (mortgage) agreement. Therefore, two transactions will have to be registered in Rosreestr at once:

Transfer of ownership to a new owner (individual). The basic set of documents and the kit when purchasing an apartment in a new building, described earlier, will be useful.
Restriction of the rights of the newly created owner to the apartment. Housing becomes the subject of collateral (collateral) for a mortgage loan.

The set of documentation will be supplemented with papers for registering mortgage obligations:

Power of attorney of the bank representative and his passport.
A document confirming payment of the state duty for registering an encumbrance in the amount of 1000 rubles for an individual (not to be confused with the state duty for transfer of ownership).
Registration statements from each party to the mortgage transaction will need to be carefully reviewed and signed.
Mortgage agreement – mortgage.
Loan agreement.
Notarized consent of the spouse to pledge common property.

Transferring an apartment and receiving money

After registering the transaction, the buyer receives a registered agreement and an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate, indicating that an entry has been made in the register. The seller is given only his copy of the contract. The next stage is the transfer of the apartment and the execution of the transfer and acceptance certificate. It is drawn up in two copies, and if the buyer attracts borrowed funds - in 3 (+1 for the bank). Based on the registered agreement and the transfer and acceptance certificate, the bank gives the seller access to the money. This concludes the transaction for the independent sale of the apartment! Congratulations!

Text: Daria Morozova

How and where does the transaction take place?

Registration of real estate transactions is carried out by Rosreestr, or rather its local branch. It is there that the collection, processing and storage of data on real estate rights in the region is carried out. Registration is also carried out there.

You can also complete a transaction to purchase an apartment at the “My Documents” MFC. The center's employees themselves hand over the papers to the Rosreestr office, pick them up and give them to the applicants themselves. In Moscow, since 2014, only the MFC has been involved in registering such transactions.

The employee of the institution who accepted the documents issues a receipt of their receipt with a complete list, date of receipt, and case number. You can use this number to track the progress of your registration.

The standard registration period is 10-12 days. But sometimes registration is suspended or even terminated. This can be caused by both technical problems and incorrect paperwork.

Text: Elizaveta Kobrina, Natalya Petrakova