Most discounts when selling a house are not born in the negotiation: they are born from what the buyer discovers after becoming interested. Preparing the sale means closing those surprises before they have a price.
Get the paperwork in order first
This is the most delayed step in sales and the cheapest to fix. Check the land registry record (caderneta predial) and the registry certificate (certidão de teor), verify that the registered area and layout match what exists, and locate the use licence and a valid energy certificate. A discrepancy between reality and the register discovered in the week of the promissory contract can cost months — or the deal.
Repair what shows, decide on what does not
Dripping taps, ageing silicone, visible damp and stiff locks tell the buyer the house has not been maintained, at a low repair cost with a disproportionate effect. Major works — a new kitchen, new bathrooms — are rarely fully recovered in the price. The practical rule: fix cheap visible defects; disclose transparently what was left undone.
A price with a basis, not a margin for haggling
An inflated asking price does not protect the negotiation; it filters out the right buyers and lengthens the selling time, and a property long on the market ends up devalued in everyone's eyes. Anchoring the price in a technical valuation or in real comparables from recent sales gives the seller a defensible position, not a fantasy.
Honest photography and presentation
Daylight photographs, tidy rooms and angles that show the floor plan attract viewings. Misleading photographs attract viewings that do not buy and wear the listing out.
Before you list
- Confirm the land registry record, registry certificate and use licence.
- Obtain or renew the energy certificate.
- Fix small visible defects: damp, silicone, taps, doors.
- Resolve discrepancies between the register and reality before listing.
- Set the price based on comparable sales, not on expectation.