Seller’s Guide

A successful sale should fit your next move as well as your financial plans. Before your home goes on the market, decide when you would like to sell, how much you need to have available afterwards and when you can hand over the property.

Once your priorities are clear, you can assess an offer by its price, payment arrangements and handover date. This is the first step in our guide to selling a home in Bodrum and Milas.

Before committing to a firm timetable, check ownership, title records and occupation arrangements. Allow time to resolve any outstanding matters.

Start with your reason for selling

Write your main reason in a sentence. ‘I need the proceeds for my next purchase’ is more useful than ‘I would like a good price’, because it identifies both a budget and a dependency.

For example, an owner selling a holiday home in Gümüşlük may have flexibility over handover. A family selling their main home in Gündoğan will also need somewhere to live and a workable moving date.

If there are several owners, agree your priorities together before the listing goes live. Differences over price, timing or included furniture are easier to address before negotiations begin.

Separate the dates that matter

• Ready for marketing: when the property, photographs and information will be prepared.
• Title transfer and payment: when you hope to complete the official transfer and have access to the proceeds.
• Handover: when you can vacate the property, if agreed, and give the buyer the keys.

These are planning targets, rather than guaranteed sale dates. Allow time for enquiries, viewings, negotiations, document checks and the buyer’s funding arrangements. Identify which deadlines are fixed and where you could be flexible.

Plan your next purchase alongside the sale

If you intend to sell in Yalıkavak and buy in Ortakent, compare the two payment schedules. When will the proceeds from your existing home be available? When must you pay for the next property? Can you move directly between them?

A gap between the dates may mean temporary accommodation, storage or a second move. Include those costs before committing to a new purchase that depends on an unconfirmed sale. Discuss any funding gap with your bank and advisers.

Work with the amount you will actually receive

The agreed sale price is not the same as your available budget. Mortgage repayment, selling costs and any tax reserve can reduce the amount you have left. Our guide to calculating your net sale proceeds explains how to build that budget.

Set a preferred outcome, then identify the minimum amount and timing your next plan requires. Your personal budget matters, but it does not establish the market value of the property. Arrange a separate pricing assessment to choose a realistic asking price.

Use your priorities when offers arrive

A buyer offering a quick handover may suit a vacant holiday home but create extra costs for an owner who still needs to move. A higher offer with an uncertain payment date may be difficult if your next purchase has a firm deadline.

Compare each proposal with the same set of priorities. Keep the funding position, anticipated payment date and handover terms alongside the price. You can follow our guide to comparing offers when negotiations begin.

Prepare a one-page brief for your agent

• Why are you selling?
• What is your preferred timetable, and which dates are fixed?
• How much do you need after costs and any debt repayment?
• Is another purchase dependent on this sale?
• When can you hand over the property?
• What can you change if the timetable slips?

Share the brief when you choose your estate agent. Update it if your circumstances change, so that pricing advice, viewings and negotiations continue to reflect the same plan.

Once you have clarified your priorities, the next step is to check your title deed and property records. For the full process, from preparing your home to handing over the keys, see our Bodrum and Milas seller’s guide.