How much should I sell my house for?

When valuing a property, whether you are looking to buy or sell, it can be hugely beneficial to discover the selling price of similar properties in the same area. These can then be used as a reference in deciding a suitable asking price, or in making a competitive bid.

The process was once a combination of guesswork and footwork - scouring estate agent's ads for any properties nearby and then trying to decide how appropriate the the information was to your situation, but recent changes at the Land Registry have changed all that.

You can now use a number of websites to find out the exact selling price of any property that is identifiable by an address. Records are currently available for sales during the past five or six years.

You could use this information as a reference point, as mentioned earlier, or even to find out the previous selling price of the property you're interested in.

The facility is available at each of the following websites:

  • www.landreg.gov.uk/online

    The Land Registry's own site provides particularly detailed reports on properties, including the last recorded selling price plus claims, rights and encumbrances on the title. The cost is currently £2 per search and the service is only available from 7am to midnight on weekdays.

  • www.ourproperty.co.uk

    This site has been attracting a lot of press attention lately. Just provide the address or postcode you're interested in and you'll get a list of properties in the area that have been sold over the last few years. The first 20 title searches are currently free.

  • www.nethouseprices.com

    This simple-to-use site requires no registration and has recently been updated to offer UK property prices free of charge. It can occasionally be slow to return results.

  • www.mouseprice.com

    Mouseprice currently charge 95p per search, with a minimum order of two searches. They do offer extra facilities to those who register, however, including the ability to search by price.

  • www.myhouseprice.com

    Another paid-for service, charging £1 per search with a minimum order of two. This site offers a great 'search by map' facility, allowing you to navigate across a map of the UK and physically locate the property you're interested in.