FOR SALE BY OWNER

  Some sellers try placing their home for sale themselves as an alternative to using a REALTOR®.  This method is known as a For Sale By Owner, or FSBO for short.  A belief that they can save the 6-8% brokerage fee that many real estate companies charge to list and sell their home is typically the fuel behind this attempt.  Many sellers either don't have the equity in their home or enough in savings to cover the added cost of using the professional services of a REALTOR® at a 6-8% fee.  Putting a sign in their yard and saving that fee seems like a great choice.

    There are a few things to consider before placing your home as a FSBO:

• Buyers believe that the 6-8% you are saving can be used by them to reduce their offering price.
• Will you have the time to show your home to everyone that calls?  How comfortable are you with strangers entering your home?  What if they can only see it at a time you are at work or away from your home?
• How will you market your home?  Just a sign?  Flyers?  Newspaper?  Internet?  How will potential buyers know how to find info about your home? 
• Are you aware of the required State disclosures you must provide a buyer?
• A buyer that is represented by a REALTOR® may ask if you will co-op with them.  If you do, that agent will be working for the buyer and will typically ask for a 3% commission be paid by you to them at closing.

    If a buyer is using an agent and you agree to their fee of 3% - you have so far done all the work and have only saved about 3-4%.  The buyer has everyone working on their behalf to protect their best interest - the agent, lender, appraiser, attorney and closing company.  WHO IS WORKING FOR YOU to protect YOUR best interest?  Is that small savings really worth it now?

   The good news is that for about the same amount you would be paying that co-op agent, you can have a Client's Choice Realty agent work for you to get your home sold.  Your home will be marketed on the Internet using several sites and will be placed in front of every real estate agent using the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).  The MLS allows other agents to view your homes information and provide that info to their buyers. 

    Here are some FSBO statistics for you to review that was taken from the National Association of REALTORS® website: 

FSBOs accounted for 9% of home sales in 2010. The typical FSBO home sold for $140,000 compared to $199,300 for agent-assisted home sales.

FSBO Methods Used to Market Home:

• Listing on Internet . . . 27%
• For-sale-by-owner Web site . . . 11%
• Yard sign . . . 46%
• Friends/neighbors . . . 39%
• Newspaper ad . . . 12%
• Open house . . . 14%

Most Difficult Tasks for FSBO Sellers:

• Getting the right price . . . 23%
• Preparing/fixing up home for sale: 18%
• Selling within the planned length of time: 14%
• Having enough time to devote to all aspects of the sale: 13%
• Understanding and performing paperwork: 10%

    Still have questions? Call or email us to discuss options for your unique situation.    937-528-1928