Tips for Selling Your Home Yourself
Selling a home without representation can be a challenge,
to which many past sellers will admit.
Obviously the thought of not paying a sales commission represents a substantial savings to any seller. Due to all the issues involved in the process, selling a home on one's own can be time consuming and challenging, to which any home sellers will confess. Ask any seller who has sold or attempted to sell a home on their own without representation, and they will tell you, from the moment the For Sale Sign was installed in the front yard, the phone started ringing. Unfortunate as it is, the majority of the calls where not from prospective buyers, they where from real estate agents wanting to list the property.
The big secret is to get it right the first time by being prepared. If you're not, the selling time of your home may be much longer than you expect because you are not attracting and getting offers from qualified buyers. This can be a point where many homeowners become frustrated and consider giving up their dream of selling their home themselves. It should be known there are sellers who accomplish selling their own homes with success and you can be one of them.
This article has been prepared to help home sellers understand the elements involved so they can sell their homes quickly and for the most amount of profit. To help get them prepared The Crown Team has provided the following suggestions that are critical to a successful sale and should be considered before the decision is made as to whether or not this is the right approach for them.
Get Your Home Ready For Sale
First impressions are crucial. Insure your home makes a positive impression by carefully going over all details and viewing the home through the buyer's eyes. Don’t overlook repairs and fix-ups, as your prospective buyers won’t. One of your biggest jobs is to ensure that your home stands out against the competition.
Price it Right
Setting the correct asking price is crucial. Setting your price too high can be as devastating as setting it too low. Home prices are determined by market value and fluctuations within the market, not by emotional or by what you feel the home might be worth. To establish an accurate price for your home or what is known as market value, objectively compare the location, features, and condition of all similar homes in your neighborhood and other similar neighborhoods which have sold within the past few months. It is also important to be familiar with the terms of each potential sale as they can have a defined effect on the final price. Terms can be as important as price in any market. Pending sales can also give you a good example of what price it took to attract an offer. Keep in mind some pending sales do not close and therefore do not establish a market value until they do.
When you have established a market value you will need to make an adjustment for what your final price may actually be, based on the average of the difference between asking prices and closed sales prices. Markets will vary usually somewhere between a plus or minus of 0% to 5%. Once you have established your final selling price, create a budget for your estimated selling expenses. Then prepare a net proceeds sheet to determine your estimate of what you will receive from the proceeds of the sale. Buyers may request a similar analysis of their costs as well.
An interesting fact: Your homes market value is the same regardless of who sells it, you or an agent. A real estate agents commission is a service provided fee that has no correlation to your homes market value.
Assemble All Necessary Paperwork And Documents
Daunting as it may be, there are many mandated legal documents, contracts and forms which you must assemble, complete, and understand. A partial checklist of forms required for prospective buyers and for legal documentation is as follows:
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Loan Payoff
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Loan Application
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Fully Executed Contract
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Property Profile Fact Sheet and Plot Plan
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Buyer’s Cost Sheet
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Closing Statement
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Personal Property Disclosure
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Natural Hazards Disclosure
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Transfer Disclosure Statement
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FIRPTA Statement
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Any Exclusion List
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Property Inspections (termite, septic etc. required by lenders)
Market Your Home Effectively
Important as the For Sale Sign is, you will also need to find effective ways to tell the world your home is for sale. The more people you reach the better your chances are of getting the home sold and within your time frames. Local buyers can be reached easily by advertising in the newspaper, although they are only a small segment of your potential market. To include the many buyers who are already working with a Realtor, locate as many top agents in your market as possible, to see if any of their buyers are looking for what your home has to offer. Offer the agent the going rate in commission if they bring a qualified buyer that purchases your home. Relocation buyers are also an important target, you should create an advertising strategy to reach these people as well. You need to be very service minded towards your prospective buyers and make it easy for pre-qualified buyers to view your home. Have someone available to answer the phone or pick up messages and return calls promptly and be ready to give qualified prospects a tour of your home as soon as possible.
Stay Objective When Working With Buyers
Keep your emotion out of sight when your working with a prospective buyer. Put yourself in the buyers place and address their comments and questions with a positive approach. If you receive negative comments try and balance them by pointing out the positives...do not become defensive in any case.
Get To Know Your Buyer
Your goal is to determine what the buyer’s motivation is. Know your buyer; their needs, objectives, capability and concerns. Does the buyer have the cash or capacity to borrow enough to pay your price? Do they need to move quickly? Knowing this type of information will give you the ability to negotiate successfully because you know what you will need to do in order to get what you want.
Pre-Qualify Buyers
Most real estate agents require some sort of loan approval or confirmation from a lender before they will show a buyer property. Don’t waste your time working with buyers who can not afford your home. Research their ability and talk with the lender.
Negotiations
There is a multitude of detail to be resolved before a sale can be considered at hand. Some of the major selling negotiation points are: price, time, terms, seller inspections, buyer concerns and inspections, possession date and penalties. Be sure you fully understand any contract you use or have drawn up so you can explain details and the ins and outs to the buyer. You may need to make some changes to the contract without creating a legal land mind. We recommend any contract you use be thoroughly examined by a real estate attorney. Some real estate brokers will be willing to help you with this too.
Don’t Move Before You Sell
If you move out before you sell you’re telling any prospective buyer that you have a new place to live and may have two payments and are motivated to sell fast. This can give potential buyers an advantage when it comes to negotiating... It may end up costing you. Many studies have proven that it is more difficult to sell a house that is empty. In most cases they simply are not as appealing.
Know Why You're Selling and Keep it to Yourself
The reverse of knowing your buyer is understanding yourself. Different goals will present different strategies. Your motivation will determine what is more important to you: the amount of your net proceeds, the amount of time it will take to sell and close or a combination of both. Your primary reason for selling will affect everything you do including your price to how much time, effort and money you will invest in getting your home ready. Most home sellers who choose to sell without representation do so to save money by not paying a real estate commission. In these cases money is most likely the primary reason. Keep in mind that any reason you have for selling is very important to keep to yourself and not share with the buyer. If asked by the buyer, why are your selling, politely say, your housing requirements have changed.
Closing Considerations:
1. What kind of offers will you receive as a For Sale by Owner.
A lot of speculators, investors, and buyers who look for owners selling on there own are looking for a bargain. The low offers from these buyers will often result in less in the long run. Is this net price higher than the price an experienced agent could net for you minus the commission?
2. Be prepared with your marketing materials, negotiations,
evaluations, showings, and all legalities.
3. Carefully consider your costs to effectively market your home
and acquire all necessary items including the sign, advertising,
your time and materials.
Questions about High Desert Real Estate?
Ask us or Call The Crown Team at 866-612-8975
