For Sale By Owner "Help Kit"
Presented By 1st Class Real Estate
Selling a home on your own can be tough, but we certainly understand why you would want to. Most people think that sellers try and sell on their own in order to avoid paying real estate commissions. However, according to a study done by NAR (National Association of Realtors) the number one reason why sellers choose to sell their home on their own, over hiring a Realtor, is that they believe they can do just as good of a job, or even a better job than a Realtor.
Whether your reasoning is the first, second, or you have your own reasoning, we are here to help!
We help home owners sell their homes on their own all of the time and in this article we are going to go over a few of the most important things you can be doing to accomplish your goal. The goal of selling your home without having to hire a Realtor.
Although I am an agent myself, I am not here to ask or beg for your business. Everything in this article is solely to help you sell your home on your own. I hope you find this information very helpful and I wish you the best of luck!
Checklist
Writing Effective Ads
Tips on how to make the phone ring with more buyer calls. Like supply and demand, the more buyers you have for something, the more it could sell for.
Answering Inquiries
Tips on how to convert ad calls, sign calls and internet inquiries into showings.
Preparing Your Home For Showing And Sale
Tips on how to present your home in the best light to prospective buyers, and information to have ready to answer buyer questions.
Pricing Strategy Analysis
A series of questions designed to help you arrive at an attractive market price.
Open Houses
Getting lots of buyers to your home all at one time and in a short period of time.
Vendors to Call
A list of who you will need to call to complete a sale and what each vendor does for you.
Caveats
A list of things to look out for to avoid legal entanglements.
Writing Effective Ads
There are a couple of very effective ways to market your home. One way, which is free, is to put an ad of Facebook Marketplace. Marketplace is where the most eyeballs are when it comes to selling something. We sell homes and pick up new buyers from marketplace every single day. Another great way is to run a paid facebook ad. This is how we sell lots of homes. The only downside to this is you have to have a business page or group page in order to run an ad. Luckily it's very easy to start up a group page through Facebook. Just start one up and name it the address of your house.
1. List all of the best features of your home and pick the top 5.
2. Use an attention-getting opening statement about the home.
3. Less is more. Include some facts about the house (bedrooms, baths, price, etc.) but keep it brief.
4. Use words that appeal to all of the senses.
5. Focus your copy on the items on your top 5 list.
6. Avoid exaggerating the features of your home that you like best, as they may not be the features the buyer likes best.
7. Include your name, phone number, and email address.
8. Use photos to show the best feature of the house vs. the standard front shot.
9. End with a call to action: “For a private showing, call 555-1234 today.” Maybe put text if you'd rather not answer phone calls all day.
10. Here's a basic template we use. CANVA MARKETPLACE TEMPLATE
Answering Inquiries
1. To generate more inquiries, don’t put everything about your property in the ad. This gives the reader a reason to call and find out more.
2. Remember your objective in handling inquiries is to cause the caller to want to see the house. You can’t sell a house over the phone.
3. If you are running an ad in the paper, make sure you are available to handle inquiries during peak response times, especially evening and weekends. Always put your phone number on your yard sign, so that drive-by shoppers know how to contact you for showings. If you are running an ad on the Internet, respond to email inquiries with an invitation to call for a showing appointment.
4. Always thank the person for calling about your house. It’s a polite and friendly way to start a conversation.
5. Always trade names with the caller, and ask for their phone number, so that you have a record of who inquired for follow up.
6. The caller will usually ask you questions about your house right at the beginning of the call. Always give a direct answer to a direct question and then, to keep the conversation going, ask a probing question of your own.
Example:
Q: How many bedrooms does your house have?
A: We have three bedrooms. How many were you looking for?
7. Invite questions from the caller by asking, “What can I tell you about the house?”
8. Before agreeing to an appointment for a showing, always ask the caller, “Have you been pre-qualified by a lender in my price range?” This will avoid getting tied up in a contract with a buyer who cannot afford your home.
9. Before agreeing to a showing, always ask the caller if they have to sell their present home first in order to buy yours. Studies show that 7 out of 10 buyers are really lookers who cannot buy until their home is sold, and their home isn’t even on the market yet.
10. While you're on the phone with them, ask them if they're working with an agent. It's ok if they are but one, if they are their agent will have to have you sign a specific document, two you'll know if you'll be paying any commissions or not, and three if they do have a home to sell and aren't working with an agent it's going to be a very tough transaction.
Preparing Your Home For Showing And Sale
- Secure all necessary legal documents and use them to protect yourself from fraud.
- Both the purchase and lender will require satisfactory proof that you have a good title to the property.
- Buyers and lenders will want a satisfactory survey including all easements, rights of way and encroachments.
- Take down family photos. Buyers like to picture themselves there
- Remove deer/animal heads from the walls before pictures are taken and showings happen.
- Have all warranties on roof and appliances available.
- Check your property with a critical eye. Buyers will look for faults which could cost them money to remedy.
- Clean up, fix up and paint. You have only one chance to make a good first impression, so lavish time, money and energy on curb appeal.
- Rearrange the furniture to create the most open space. If you have too much furniture, remove some and store it. No clutter!
- Keep the house immaculate at all times, since showings are not scheduled events. Remember that you are competing against professionally decorated builder’s model homes. Pay particular attention to the bathrooms and the kitchen. In the bathrooms, towels should be fresh and clean, sinks and baths scrubbed, and the floor freshly cleaned. In the kitchen, make sure all dishes are put away and countertops and sinks cleaned.
- Turn off the TV. Play soft music. Build a fire in the fireplace. Open the shades and turn on the lights. Check the thermostat to make sure that the house is at a comfortable temperature.
- Keep children and pets out of the way during showings.
- Get every buyer’s name and phone number for follow up. Almost no one buys a home on the first visit.
- Give all family members assigned jobs in advance that will go into action when a short-notice showing is scheduled. Everyone must know their duties and carry them out, so that you don't end up banging into one another trying to get everything done quickly.
- Open every window covering. All drapes, curtains and blinds should be positioned to let in maximum light. Buyers like a house to be "light and bright," so accommodate them! Turn on as many lights as possible.
- Make sure the house smells good. Baking cookies, often recommended, may be overdoing it, but pet odors, smoke, or greasy cooking odors definitely will not work! Air out the house just before the scheduled showing, but close the windows (unless it is a perfect day) before they arrive.
Pricing Strategy Analysis
when it comes to pricing your home there are several factors that come into play. For most For Sale By Owners this is where they miss the mark the most. Most will over price their home and it just sits on the market and never sells. The only thing you're doing by overpricing your home is helping all of the other homes around you sell. Overpricing your home by as little as 2-5% can make a huge difference. I've also seen FSBO's underprice their home by as much as $200,000 and not know it.
Remember every other home around you that is for sale is your competition. Everyone looking at your home is probably also looking at theirs, so your home has to be nicer, less expensive or both.
Here a few things to consider when pricing your home:
- Only use comps that are .25 miles or closer to your home
- Only use comps that have the same number of bedrooms and baths, if possible.
- Only use comps that are the same type of building style as yours. Ranch, 2 story, brick, vinyl siding, garage etc.
- School districts can play a major role in pricing as well
- What updates does your home have or not have over your competitors, including roof, HVAC, A/C etc.
Open Houses
One of the most frustrating things, in my opinion, for selling your home on your own would be the time it takes to do all of the showings. One way to reduce this is to do an Open House. This way you can just let everyone know that your home will be available to see on this day from this time to this time. That way everyone can plan accordingly and it gives potential buyers a little bit of urgency to see the home if they're truly interested. Plus, instead of having to have your home ready all day everyday for showings, you just have to spend the morning of the Open House getting your home ready.
If you don't wan't to do an Open House, call us WE'D LOVE TO! No charge or obligation to you at all. We hold Open Houses all of the time for FSBO's. If a buyer comes in that wants to buy your home we will happily give them over to you. No commissions paid, you can have them. There's no catch. The reason we do this is say 50 people come through the Open House, chances are your home will only work for 1 or 2 of them, we'll take the other 48 to 49 of them and convert them to be our clients.
Here are some tips to get more people into your Open Houses:
- Put your home on Zillow with the Open House date and time
- Run a paid Facebook Ad for the Open House
- Run a free ad on Facebook Marketplace
- Put out Open House signs all around the neighborhood and area. The more the better. ( We use anywhere from 50-100)
- Mail out Open House flyers to the closest 500 neighbors
Vendors to Call
Home Inspections
- It could be good to get your home inspected first so that you don't have any surprises and you can fix anything needed before hand. The cost is generally $450-$550 but buyers like to see this so that they don't have to do it. Not necessary but when selling on your home could make the process a lot smoother. We have tried several different companies and have found Pillar to Post Chad Borah team to be the best. Our customers love them!
PILLAR TO POST CHAD BORAH TEAM
Home Warranty Companies
- This is something that is also not necessary but could be a huge help for a couple of reasons. One buyers like seeing that the home they're buying comes with a Home Warranty, for peace of mind. Another reason Home Warranties can be good for sellers is that if you get a home warranty before you do your inspections, the home warranty will cover anything that comes up during inspections that the warranty covers. Below is a link to who we use and have without a doubt been the best in the business.
CHOICE HOME WARRANTY - DAVID SPECTOR
Title Companies
- In the state of Missouri you have to use a title company, even if selling on your own, to close on a real estate transaction. For most of our closing we use Continental Title. The closer we use is out of Festus, however they have locations all over the St. Louis Metro area to meet your needs. You can close at any of them.
Appraisers
- If you aren't confident on what you should price your home at or if you'd just like to know exactly what an appraiser is going to appraise it at, just call an appraiser to come out. Unless paying cash, the buyer is going to have it appraised as well, but for peace of mind in knowing you're pricing your home correctly this could help.
Mortgage Companies
- If you're planning on buying a home after you sell be sure and check with a mortgage lender to see how much you'll qualify for and that you will qualify. I had a FSBO call me not long ago who was under contract on his home but wanted to use our services to buy. After speaking with a mortgage lender they were not going to be able to qualify for a mortgage even after the sale of their home. That person then had to rent for a year before being able to buy their next home. Just check first to be safe before selling your home. Paige Ringkamp with USA Mortgage is who I personally use, as well as send all of our clients to.
Termite Companies
- If you know of any termites or termite damage to your home it's better to get that taken care of before you list your home for sale. Home inspectors will always find termites so it's better not to scare off any potential buyers after going under contract. It's a pretty common and cheap fix for termite maintenance.
Repair Contractors
General repairs
- Ryan James - 314-220-1817
Painting
HVAC Repair & Maintenance
- Luke - 314-605-6456
Plumbing
- Drew - 314-609-8574
For the House
Lawn Care
- Brian Brosius - 314-835-8606
Interior Cleaning
- Dani 314-717-9966
CAVEATS (How Not To Get Sued)
Seller’s Disclosure completed correctly (I'll provide a copy below)
Lead Based Paint disclosure completed correctly ( I'll proved a copy below)
Properly fill out the sales contract ( I'll provide a copy below)
Use the services of a reputable title/mortgage/escrow company
Order Occupancy Permit if applicable
Pull all permits if necessary
Follow all rules for signage and marketing
Make clear in writing what is and is not included
Maintain consistent/regular communication with all parties involved
Avoid discrimination
Make an inspection mandatory
Invest in a home warranty
Document all communication in writing
Keep all documents
Printable Links to Items Needed
- MISSOURI SALES CONTRACT
- SELLERS DISCLOSURE FORM
- LEAD BASED PAINT DISCLOSURE FORM
- OPEN HOUSE/GUEST REGISTRY
Conclusion
FSBO Facts
- Only 8% of For Sale By Owner homes ever sell.
- For Sale By Owner homes have an average sale price of 87% of asking price.
- Of the 8% that do sell they take on average 120 days to go under contract.
The recommendations and checklists in the program are the result of years of experience helping owners sell and move. I offer it to you based on my Core Value of "Get by Giving." Studies show that 92% of FSBO's end up having to hire a real estate professional.
I figure if I give you something of value, you may REMEMBER ME WHEN THE TIME COMES. WE WOULD LOVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO INTERVIEW FOR THE JOB!
The information in this For Sale By Owner "Help Kit" is designed to assure a quick and successful sale of your home. There is no cost or obligation to you.
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