How to for sale by owner: Tips For selling house quickly by
owners
Before deciding to put your house in the market, there are
few things owners selling without an agent need to do to make the process
successful. There are many sellers that are successfully in selling their homes
without an agent, but doing due diligence upfront goes a long way to make that
happen.
- Price: Most houses will sell when they’re priced appropriately.
The price of a house is not determined by what a seller wants to get for it,
what a seller thinks its worth, or what a seller must net at closing. Rather,
the price is determined by what a buyer is willing to pay for it. This is a
free market and buyers determine what they will pay for a house based on what
the market can bear. With this in mind, FSBO (For Sale by Owner) sellers need
to very accurately price a house for sale. Pricing too high will scare the
buyers away and the high house price will help sell other houses in the
neighborhood. Pricing a house is not an exact science but using professional judgment
based on years of experience, I can say that many factors go into pricing a
house. Online home valuations can be very inaccurate, as much as 30-40% off. Using
a local Realtor to get appropriate pricing is one of the best ways to go. Realtors have access to homes recently sold
in the neighborhood, the starting price, price history, the final sales price
and the concession to buyer. These and other factors can determine the price of
a house.
- Condition: Next to pricing is assessing the condition of
the house. Buyers are coming in looking for move-in ready homes. Buyers are also
looking for model-like homes and are comparing FSBO homes with others they are viewing.
A recent survey of buyers stated that home buyers search for 10 weeks and view up
to 10 homes before making a decision. It is very important that FSBO sellers
make their house attractive and welcoming to buyers. There are few things that
will add value to a house and make it sell quickly. Condition goes a long way
to attract the right buyers. Some buyers make the decision to consider a house simply from the exterior view. Others, just from the pictures on line. Making conspicuous
repairs before putting a house in the market will pay off in the long run.
- Ease of Showing: The price is right, the condition is
good, but buyers are unable to schedule appointment to view the house. Not
making the showing easy for buyers will make a house stay on the market for a
long time. FSBO sellers need to understand that it is not about their schedule
but about the schedule of the buyers. Holding open houses on only on weekends does
not guarantee buyers will show up nor will it get the house sold. Do open housesell houses? Open house is just one of the tools to get buyers to view a house. However, making it easy to show during
the day, or late in the evening with less restriction will make a house
attractive to buyers that have different schedules and needs. As Realtors we
advise our sellers to make showing very easy for buyers by installing an electronic lockbox so that other agents will
have access to the house. We also use a showing service to schedule showing
online and offline. Through the system, agents can call a designated phone
number or go online to schedule appointment. What this does is make it easy to
follow up with agents that are showing the house. Getting feedback is also very
important during home selling. Sometimes buyers have questions, answering them
quickly could result in a contract.
Showing restrictions will impede a quick sale, FSBO sellers should
definitely consider flexible showing schedule.
- Pre-qualify buyers: Price is good, condition is great,
buyers can view home easily, but what type of buyers are coming to view the
house? There are many different types
of buyers, but attracting the right and qualified buyers is key in getting
house sold. A tip for sellers selling homes by themselves: make sure only qualified
buyers are viewing your house. When
sellers are selling by themselves, many kinds of 'buyers' will contact them,
some want to do rent to own, some want to do lease with option to buy, some
don't have the means of buying and some
are investors looking for a good deal. How do sellers by owner determine who is
qualified to buy a house? Before making the appointment and before negotiating
or answering questions about the house- first ask the buyers if they are pre-approved
for a mortgage. Request a copy of the pre-approval letter and contact the
lender to make sure the buyer is actually qualified. When Realtors work with
buyers in home search, one of the first conditions before viewing homes is for
the buyer to get a mortgage pre-approval from a lender. There are many types of
''pre-approvals''. Some lenders will provide a pre-approval based on what the
buyer filled out on the application. Others will provide a pre-approval based
on not only what they filled out but also on the documents provided to support
the information. As a rule, the lenders that we use do not provide a pre-
approval without first getting all the documents and verifying the information
provided on the application. Due to the various types of pre-approvals, many
loans can fall apart because the lender did not have a true picture of the
buyer. Asking the right questions goes a long way to make sure a pre-approval
is worth the paper its printed on.
Disclosures: For Sale by Owners
should be ready to disclose any know defects to buyers, this is the law in Maryland and it makes
for smooth transaction. Some required disclosures in State of Maryland include lead paint disclosures,
general property disclosures, home owner’s association disclosure and others that
are specific to each county. Lenders also require home owner’s disclosures to
make sure a particular townhouse or condo is approved. My team provides blank
copies of disclosures and other necessary forms to owners. Download our For Sale by Owner home selling guide to get more information.
These are just few tips that can help homeowners sellingwithout an agent sell successfully. Keji
& Associates team of agents at Fairfax Realty provide free no obligation
services to homeowners. We also provide home valuations, and free guide to get
house ready for sale. Contact us for a personalized home valuations @ 301 -613-2043 or via email.
Keji & Associates of Fairfax Realty is a team of
licensed agents working daily to get homes sold for our clients in Bowie, Upper
Marlboro, Fort Washington and other parts of the metro
area. We delight our clients by delivering
world class service every step of the way and we strive to create a
win-win situation this is all part of
our values and beliefs. Contact us @ 301-613-2043 , email
keji@metrohomesrealty.com or visit our website . www.metrohomesrealty.com
Keji Ogunleye , Associate Broker - Licensed in Maryland & Virginia,
Fairfax Realty,
Inc 301-613-2043,