AV Real Estate Online - For Sale By Owner page

The following are a few tips entitled,
"How to Privately Sell in 60 Days or Less."
It was made available by Diana Blum of Re/Max All-Pro.

Yard Sign: Have a yard sign that looks neat and easy to read.

Advertising: Advertise at least 3-4 times a week, rotating your ad to keep it interesting. Refrain from telling the whole story in any ad.

Flyers: They aren't necessary but if you do use one be sure that your information (sq. footage for example) is accurate. Keep it simple but do try and have a professional look to this flyer. Color photos preferred.

Open Houses: They are a must for a private seller. Advertise it heavily for several days running. Make it an event.

Appraisal: If you aren't absolutely sure about your price you could be thousands of dollars ahead to have a formal appraisal done.

Price: If your price isn't within 5% of your market value, you will have difficulty closing a buyer. Buyers tend to shy away from a home they feel is over priced rather than taking the gamble of offering what they think is the value and risk insulting you.

Transfer Disclosure: Called TDS14. This is a mandatory disclosure form and your buyer, likely, he knows it. Don't close escrow without it.

Escrow: There are several fine Escrow Companies in this area, it pays to research them before you sell to compare rates and services.

Termite Inspection: The new lender will insist that you furnish a clear termite report. If you suspect you are going to have problems getting a clear report, have one done before you sell and then pay the small fee to have them re-do it later.

Home Inspection: There are several contractors locally who do this and more and more buyers are having it done. There is one company that takes photos of everything, critical, in the report. If you need a list just call me for their phone numbers. The cost is approx. $175.00 and the buyer typically pays for this.

Home Protection Plan: Buyers expect this to be a part of what a seller furnishes in the sale. This could be the best $300 you ever spent

Roof Certification/Pool Certification: Your buyer, and the new lender, will often want you to certify these systems before close of escrow. Prices vary, so shop around ahead of time to be prepared.

Buyers Pre qualification: It is a great idea to get acquainted with a local lender who can advise you and be available to do credit checks.

Other homes up for sale: It is very important that you see as many of them as possible during the weeks preceding your marketing so that you know your market as well as the buying public.

The following (based on National Association of Realtors Home buying and Selling Process Survey) are the 12 issues that will challenge you the most:

1) Lack of knowledge about pricing.

2) Absence of someone to talk to encourage you to be objective about the condition & price of your home.

3) Improvement costs, to enhance the property to sell, may be spent needlessly, on the wrong items.

4) Due to the lack negotiation skills, the private seller may turn down a good offer and discover it out too late to recover the sale.

5) The parties, both buyer and seller, may not know how to research financial institutions to get both the best terms and honest service.

6) Inexperience in handling objections.

7) Lack of advertising experience and exposure.

8) Rearranging schedules and vacations to accommodate marketing can put a strain on family life.

9) No one to answer the phone. (Electronic devises are not always used by prospective purchasers.)

10) Uncertainty about how to handle contracts and other forms necessary to sell the home.

11) Concerns about whether you are attracting qualified buyers.

12) Due to lack of information about market trends, private sellers panic and drop their price unnecessarily low to sell.

13) Fears about asking qualifying questions of prospective buyers.

Some prospects will never go to a Private Seller. I have studied this, over the years, and I have come to the conclusion that this is due to fear and lack of trust. This fear shows itself in many forms.

1. Fear that you are hiding something and that's why you are not using a professional.

2. Afraid that you know more than they do about real estate and that you will take advantage of them.

3. Buyers don't trust even their lender to be on their Side because they see the lender as not wanting to loan them the money.

4. Friends tell them "buyer beware."

Who sells By Owner?

Here are the results of my own personal survey regarding Private Selling:

1) Someone who has a lot of time to market their home and just wants to "Try it for a while" on their own. 17%

2) Someone who has little or no equity and feels that they have no choice but to market privately. 25%

3) The person that wants to save money in selling costs, namely Brokerage fees. 46%

4) Someone who has had a difficult experience with sales representatives of some kind (car, real estate, etc.) in the past. 12%

The process of selling anything is relatively easy, you just have to put yourself in your buyers shoes and ask yourself 1) how would I FEEL in this situation 2) what would I DO in this situation 3) what would I EXPECT in this situation. Easy. All people really want to be treated respectfully and honestly. You can put to rest a lot of the buyers fears if you follow this plan of action.

I do hope this is helpful. Please don't hesitate to call on me for a complete Market Study for you.

Your Re/Max Representative,

Diana Blum

Note: all information is believed to be true and correct, but can not be guaranteed.