Selling home by Owner

From the desk of Scott Cully, Real Estate Investor University, 06/09/2009

If you want to sell your home or land on the market, the first question that normally occurs is, should I do it by myself as a FSBO (for sale buy owner) or put a realtor in charge instead?

The possibilitys to sell a house as an FSBO are better than ever right now.Why? Sure there have been much better times to sell a house then to do it now, but the people who buy are more and more interested in buying houses from 4 sale by owner people like you and me. So the chances are that you might get a better deal by just doing it by yourself.

 

So, how are you going to market it so that it gets maximum exposure to potential buyers to actually sell?

 

 

1. Put a sign in your garden: Property For Sale By Owner!

Ok, in some parts of the country, the real estate market is so hot that you have to do no more than buy a ‘for sale by owner’ sign at the nearest home depot. Then simply put it in a prominent position on the front of your house. Nobody knows, and the next person to just drive by could be the one to purchase your house for sale by owner right away.

 

In other areas, much more marketing is needed, but a ‘forsale by owner’ sign is a good place to start. Directional signs (’home for sale’ or ‘property for sale by owner’ with an arrow) at intersections that are leading the way to your house are useful, too, if your location lends itself to that.

 

2. The good old Classified Ads

A classified ad in your local newspaper is a good idea and is generally less expensive then you might think (5-30$).  A short ad repeated a number of times is going to be more effective than a long ad run once.

 

3.  Look for Magazines & Community Publications

Another simple and easy way is to check the cost of putting an ad in ‘For Sale By Owner’ type magazines & community publications. Most communities have such magazines and you don’t have to be a realtor to buy an ad.

 

4. What about Bulletin Boards/Posters?

Are there bulletin boards where you work? In neighborhood shops and restaurants, pubs? At your church? Any place you, or members of your family, frequent that has something like a bulletin board is a good place to post little notes of your property’s availability. I strongly recommend the use of a digital camera and a computer. That way you are able to do a one-page poster with several photos of your house, a description and contact information. Consider having tear-off strips at the bottom with your phone number repeated on each strip.

 

 

5. Another good one are Brochures

Brochures or one-page flyers can also be a useful method for marketing your home. You can use the same one you made for the bulletin boards or you can expand on it a bit more. Use more photos, have captions under them identifying the rooms, garden areas, community club, pool (if you have one) and other benefits of your for sell by owner property.

 

There are several things you can do to get your brochures in front of the public. You can buy a brochure holder (typically, a plastic box with a hinged lid on a stick which gets ‘planted’ in the ground near the curb in front of your home) from the hardware store. Plant it in a prominent place in front of your home and keep it stocked with brochures.

 

And if some of your neighbours pick up some of your hard "art work"? Great, maybe the have freinds or even family members who could be interested.

 

Also keep a supply of brochures in your home to give to prospective buyers who come to look at it. People looking for a new home usually look at a more than one property, and can get overwhelmed with too many properties. ‘Is this the one with the built-in book cases or was it the one across town?’ The house whose best features go with them via a brochure with color photos and salient information is memorable. Buyers tend to write contract offers on properties they remember and can visualize.

 

Consider taking your brochures everywhere with you. If you meet friends or collegues, just hand one out and ask them if they know someone who could be interested in a new house. Just ask the people around you. Sometimes it is this one person which makes the difference.

 

 

 

6. Always an option, Open Houses

That brings up the notion of ‘Open Houses.’ In many areas, sales frequently take place because of an Open House attended by potential buyers. If you are in a location with good traffic, chances are, that an open house can be an excellent tool. You can promote it in all the ways, of the venues we’ve discussed above if you want to. A good idea could be to put some balloons filled up with helium a tie them up on your 4 sale by owner sign.

 

7. And that’s for sure, you have to check out the Internet

There are multiple sites on the internet where FSBOs may list their properties for sale. Some of these permit sellers to include photos, information about ‘Open Houses’ they’re holding, etc. Prices for this service varies. Try fsboamerica.org or go and google some out.

 

Whether you use a realtor or sell your home on your own, marketing it is going to be the key to getting a quick sale. For sell by owner - It takes some time and access to a few tools, but most sellers can put together a successful marketing program.

 

You can find an in depth help and Step-by-Step guide here.

For further reference please watch the video in the upper right sidebar.

 

I’m sure you’ll find all the tips & tricks I’ve provided here very useful.

Wishing you all the success with your house selling efforts. To the top!

Kind Regards,

Scott Cully

Real Estate Investor University

 

 

 

Selling your home by owner - If your FSBO home buyer is wowed at the first sight of your house, it is very likely that he or she is already forming ideas of buying your home.  

10 For Sell By Owner Selling Tips - Selling your home and not getting the right calls from prospective buyers is an obvious indication that there is something wrong with your property marketing approach.

Attracting Potential Buyers of FSBO During the Cold Season - For sale by owner transactions are not very marketable during the winter season.

Guerrilla Marketing for the FSBO seller - Some of the following advice has helped FSBO sellers get their homes sold faster and for a higher amount. These methods require very little money in your part and are very easy to place into practice.

Let’s play the "Let’s say" game with house sale by owner - Let’s say that you have a listing and you’ve been having open houses.

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