When it comes to selling a lot or land, the best step to take is equipping yourself with a professional and reputable real estate expert, as it can be quite challenging to perform the task on your own. Since the Barbados real estate market is booming, have you considered marketing your property with one of the top and best agents on the island? With over 18 years of working experience in the real estate business, Junior Sparks is well connected with potential buyers, agents, builders, developers, and investors throughout the industry. 

Also, Junior Sparks has been featured in not only one, but two episodes of HGTV's House Hunters International. This means that you have the opportunity to market your property with a brand that is well known internationally. It doesn't matter what property you want to market: a residential lot, a few acres of agricultural land, or even commercial land, Global Estate Agency is there through the whole process, as the agency has sold many types of land over the last 18 years.

In this article, we cover all you need to know about the process of making sure you have all the relevant documents to transfer ownership of your land, listing your land with an agent, and marketing to have the deal closed.

Documents

Selling your property and having the title successfully transferred to a new owner requires a couple of documents to be made available. You will need;

• Original Certificate of Title or Conveyance
• Plot Plan of Less Than 20 Years Old
• Covenants
• Recent Land Tax Bill and Receipt

Ensure that all these documents are easily accessible, as they would be required before proceeding with a sale.

Hire A Real Estate Agent

When it comes to selecting which particular agent to market and sell your property, online listings are an essential part of any marketing strategy. Before making your decision on which real estate agent to hire, here are certain things to take note of: 

• The real estate agent must have a Barbados real estate license
• Must be a member of the Barbados Estate Agent and Valuers Association (BEAVA). By doing so, you are able to confirm that you are dealing with an expert that adheres to the code of ethics.
• Must have an updated direct website with recent reviews from clients and show what listings the agent has sold recently.
• Have a massive and active social media following.
• A company or agent with both local and international marketing reach, as well as high-quality for-sale signage.

The standard real estate commission fee is 5% plus plus 17.5% VAT. Then you will be required to sign a listing agreement agreeing to the brokerage terms and conditions between the agent and yourself.

Have Your Land Ready

Just as curb appeal is quite important when selling a house, the same goes when selling land. You would be required to clear the plot, making sure it is clean in order for potential buyers to be able to tour the area. Other key points to keep in mind:

• Ensure that all land marks are visible. In cases where they are not quite visible, have a land surveyor check and replace them.
• Check for any encroachments, as this holds up sales transactions.
• Test holes will be dug based on the buyer's request through your agent, as this is to check the depth of the land from the top surface to hit rocks for foundation.

Following these key points will help you understand what needs to be done during the process of selling the land.

Set The Sale Price Carefully

Due to the fact that the Barbados real estate market has been booming lately and buyers are becoming more savvy than ever before, it is essential that your land sale price is quite competitive and not overpriced. Although the land tax department have provided a suggested value for your land. However, it all depends on the market value at the end of the day. What price are buyers in the current market willing to pay for your property?

One of the things expected of your agent is to check the sale comps over the last 6 months to a year in order to provide you with a suggested sale price. Setting an extremely high price wouldn't get any activity on the property, and the longer the land stays on the market without being sold, potential buyers will tend to think there is a negative issue with the land.

Marketing And Showing The Land

After your property goes live on the market, ensure that you go through your agent's marketing mediums to confirm that quality photos are being used and that the description explains the land and location appropriately. Also, a "for sale" sign should be installed on the property, as not all potential buyers would come from online searches; some might prefer to just drive through the neighborhoods and developments.

Accepting An Offer And The Legal Process

When the marketing plan has been successful, and you receive an offer that you are willing to accept, your agent will then send the buyer an offer and acceptance form to sign, after which you will complete the seller's side of the form. In cases where the buyer is purchasing the plot with all cash, your agent will go ahead and send out a memo of sale document to your attorney and the buyer's attorney in order to get the legal process started.

In situations where the buyer is getting financial assistance from a lender, the lender will request a valuation report. The value of the land must come back at the agreed purchase price or at a higher price, after which the lender will proceed with approving the buyer's land loan.

Conclusion

After following the whole procedure, it usually takes about 3 months for the transaction to be completed from the date the sale agreement is executed, as long as there are no unforeseen circumstances. However, some sale transactions might go over this time frame for various reasons.