Now in our 30th Year, because it works!
Recognize that the successful sale of your home depends on you. You must coordinate the process and see it through.
When selling by owner, you don't have to leave the house because an agent wants to show it, or clean it every morning before leaving "just in case". You know when people are coming, and can prepare accordingly. When a buyer makes an offer, there's not all that frustrating back-and-forth telephone tag between agents to reach an agreement. Your negotiating can be done in minutes, and end with a contract acceptable to both buyer and seller.
You know your home best. The schools, the neighborhood, what is special about the area and the house, as well as other details about the property. A well-maintained, fairly priced home virtually sells itself; your role is simply to provide additional information.
Nobody is going to tell you what to do. You can advertise where and how you want to, schedule showings when it is convenient for you, talk directly with prospective buyers yourself and even take your house off the market for a while if you can't find your next home. You are not obligated to a 3, 6, or 12 month contract... you make your own rules.
Obviously, this is the main reason that most FSBO home sellers are selling their home. You can save up to 7% commission by doing it yourself. On a $200,000 home, you may save up to $14,000. Here is another way of looking at it. Let’s say your home will sell for $200,000, and you owe $144,000 on the mortgage, leaving $56,000 in equity. If you pay $14,000 in real estate commissions, you have lost 25% of your equity! Sell it yourself… and you'll save a very large portion of your equity.
If you list your home at a full commission with a real estate agent, you will probably inflate the asking price to cover the cost of the commission. Four to five months later, you will come to the painful realization that no one is going to buy your home at that price, and you'll end up reducing the price (or accepting an offer) equal to the original amount you would have asked, if selling by owner. Do it right the first time, and avoid taking the loss.
Because you meet the prospective buyers, you have a much better idea how interested people are, what they like about the home, how serious they are about buying, and what their time frame and situation is. The direct feedback is easier to live with instead of wondering how things are going, or worse, why no one has made an offer yet.
"If you can sell your own car, you can sell your own home... it's that simple," said one of our home sellers. And he is right, once you find a buyer... lenders, lawyers, or title companies take over guiding you through the process.
Establishing the correct sales price for your home is the most important step in selling your own property. You should begin by making a few phone calls.
Determine the asking price of similar homes in your area which are currently on the market, and find out how long they have been on the market. Also, find out the actual selling price of similar homes that have recently sold in your area. Many cities have companies that provide this service, usually called a "market analysis" or "comparable sales report"; it is an inexpensive way to get started. Many sellers will interview Realtors just to get opinions.
Now that you have an idea of value, hire a real estate appraiser. The cost of a third party professional opinion is money well spent, it is an accurate assessment of the market value of your home and excludes the emotion and wishful thinking of the home seller. Also, the appraisal can be a valuable marketing tool when buyers begin to question the sales price on the home. Buyers are aware; they have been looking and generally know what a property is worth. Buyers will not make an offer on an overpriced home. An appraisal takes the guesswork out of it for everyone.
Overpricing means you will spend time, money and effort and get nothing for it... except discouraged. It’s a given that your home will sit there, unsold, all because you did not establish a fair market price. Don’t forget that selling your own home gives you a tremendous pricing advantage.
More than likely the homes the appraiser used as comparables, and even the ones you have investigated, probably involved the costs of a real estate agent. In other words, even though a house sold for $200,000, the home seller netted $10,000 to $14,000 less because real estate commissions were paid. You can now price your appraised $200,000 home for $195,000, and probably sell it faster. More importantly, you'll walk away from the closing with more money because of the competitive price.
First and foremost, have a professional, easy-to-read yard sign. The sign should clearly say that the home is For Sale By Owner and should have the owner's phone number in large bold print. The sign should also say that the home is shown "by appointment only." There are many reasons for this. You should always be prepared for a showing and setting appointments is the only way to be properly prepared. Some buyers find a home simply by riding around in the neighborhood where they would like to live. Many homes are sold as a result of signage alone and its value should not be underestimated.
These are a must. They should be in a tube or box attached to your yard sign for prospective buyers driving in the area, as well as being available inside the home. Providing these can substantially eliminate unnecessary phone calls. Information sheets are inexpensive but vital. They should provide photographs and a complete description of the home.
Advertising your home on the Internet in today’s world is a necessity. Save 6 provides top-tier search engine placement, as well as automatic daily uploads of all listings to many other leading real estate websites. Save 6 provides easy-to-follow instructions and tips for each stage of the selling, and buying process.
This type of marketing can be very successful for a builder with a new subdivision but with existing, owner-occupied homes, it is questionable. If a prospect has driven by the home, viewed an Internet ad, or seen the home in a FSBO publication, chances are they would prefer a private tour. They already know the price and the amenities of the home. Now, they want to ask questions and get detailed responses. Also, private showings allow the seller to ask questions of your prospective buyer that you probably would not ask during an Open House. Last but not least, you can lose control in an Open House if too many people show up and start heading in different directions. Obtaining feedback is an important goal of an Open House.
It is interesting that throughout the country, Open Houses are viewed differently. In some major Midwest cities, for example, Open Houses are expected if you are going to sell but in similar size cities in the South, having an Open House is the exception rather than the rule. Therefore, you may need to adjust your marketing strategy to local custom. If having an Open House is expected in your market, then by all means do it.
A potential buyer should have a good first impression of your home. Chipped exterior paint, loose gutters, overgrown shrubs and lawn, marred interior walls, cluttered closets and counters, and stained or dirty carpets are simply unacceptable to home buyers. These are all examples of problems that are easily resolved with very little expense. The objective should be to get your home in good condition with minimal expense. Make the decision of what must be replaced or repaired and get it done. Think about painting some, or the entire interior. Fresh paint is clean, and clean is essential. Clutter must be eliminated because clutter, whether it is in the closet, on the counters or on the walls, closes-in space and will make any area appear smaller. In some situations, it can be advisable to even remove some furniture. The feeling someone should have when they enter your home is that it is well maintained, spacious and clean.
Staging, a term used in real estate, is the act of preparing a home before it is put on the market. The goal is to maximize attractive features and minimize flaws in your home. Your home will appear more attractive, both inside and outside to potential buyers through staging. Staging includes removing clutter, cleaning, rearranging furniture, and depersonalizing a home. A staged home tends to sell more quickly and for a higher price. You can either hire a professional stager or do some staging yourself.
Getting your home ready to market does not mean renovating. In fact, it is probably the worst thing you can do because most likely, you will not recoup your expenses. If you decide that remodeling a certain area of the home is absolutely necessary to achieve a sale, then make sure the job conforms to the home and the neighborhood... in other words, do not over-remodel. Homes that overachieve in their neighborhoods often under-perform on the resale market.
Save 6, Inc 7600-G Lindbergh Drive, Suite 1, Gaitherburg, MD 20879