I recently did a listing presentation for a couple who had been trying to sell their home on their own for almost a year, then decided to bring in an agent. They live out of the area and trying to handle the sale on their own was a hassle, even though they have been successful with other homes in the past. And in this market the limited advertising they did was not doing the trick. AND the house was really over-priced.

I dogged these people for 6 months, sending them market data and updates, suggestions for marketing the home, and more. So I was very pleased to be asked to come in to talk with them (as one of 3 agents they were interviewing, for 30 minutes each).

The presentation, though brief, went well and we had a good conversation. They had some great questions, too. The house has its challenges, as it needs some updating, but the bones are good and the floor plan offers a number of possibilities.

A few days later Mrs. Seller called me, as I requested, to let me know that they had decided on another agent (as it turns out, someone they have known for a number of years) but they had really liked me and my approach and style. There was no negative feedback - they only chose this person because of the relationship. They will keep me in mind if things do not work out.

I told them I really hoped the house sold for them, even though that would mean I would not be their listing agent.

Sure, I would have liked to have had the listing, but I was pleased to be part of the process, and the feedback I got was very positive. So I feel that I still won, in the end. I wish them luck!

This is the last in this series of issues that all sellers thinking of brokering their homes themselves should review, and CAREFULLY consider. If you are dead-set on forging ahead on your own, good luck!  And don't hesitate to ask me for help and advice, as I will be happy to support your efforts with suggestions.

Read Part 1,  Part 2,  Part 3  and Part 4 here.

 Price Setting - this is probably the MOST CRITICAL task at hand, even for those working with a broker. There is so much competition, and unless you are in a seller's market (and few are), pricing is going to determine IF you sell, and WHEN. Setting the market price is not easy, even for professionals with lots of knowledge and experience. The KEY POINT to remember, if you remember nothing else, is that the market sets the price, not you the seller, nor any agent. No matter what you think it is worth, the market, and a willing and able buyer who wants YOUR house, will determine what it sells for. So, how ARE you going to set your price? Do you know what other homes have sold for in your area? Do you know where your competitors are priced? Keep in mind that buyers who look at homes for sale by UNREPRESENTED SELLERS are looking for a deal. Since you are not paying a commission to a listing agent, they will look for this additional discount when they make an offer, at a minimum...and it will typically be a low-ball offer to begin with.

 Friendly, neighborly advice - I can't tell you how many times I have heard that a seller's friends, family or neighbors gave them advice on pricing and how to sell the home themselves. Are these people experts on pricing and selling? Can they really be objective and tell you what the truth is about your home and it's salability? Do they know any more about the actual market conditions than you do? Or do they just read the papers and watch TV like you do? Keep in mind these people, while good intentioned, have no vested interest in your home selling - only YOU do (and an agent who is listing your home if you go that route). Just because your neighbor, who has the same house, got $X for his home 6 months ago does NOT mean you will now, with the changes that the market has seen. Be careful about the friendly, neighborly advice you get! And what you listen to. Your friends and neighbors aren't selling...YOU ARE!

 Competition - this is another critical issue. Do you KNOW who your competition is? And why they are your competition? Not just on your street but in the larger neighborhood and community? Do you know the details of other properties on the market that will be compared to your home (amenities, age, size, bedrooms, interior and exterior condition, pricing, seller concessions)? How can you insure that YOUR home is not the one that makes the competition a better value? Part of this is pricing, but there are other factors as well. What can you do to be sure YOUR home comes across as the best buy, not your neighbor's?

The value of a REALTOR is that YOU do not have these issues to worry about, at least not directly. For more information on how a REALTOR can add value to your transaction, visit my website.

Here are some more issues to seriously consider if you are thinking of selling your home by yourself. Part of the value of a REALTOR is that you do not have to worry about these things.

 Exposure - This is a buyer's market, for most parts of the country. In order to sell a home quickly and for top dollar, it is CRITICAL to have maximum exposure in the marketplace because there is so much competition. Some neighborhoods have more than 10 homes for buyers to choose from. How will YOU get the exposure you need? And do you know what your target market is? You can't put your home on the MLS with out the aid of an agent (even one that does this for a fee and provides no other services (some areas have an MLS of thousands of agents). You also can't get your home on Realtor.com, probably the most widely used site for home searching by buyers. how many people are actually going to drive by your For Sale By Owner sign? How will the market know your place if even for sale? There are websites that cater to FSBOs, but many others that only list properties to agents - so you are limiting your Internet exposure (and 80% of buyers these days search on the web for their new homes).

 Qualifying Buyers - Do you know how to determine is a buyer is qualified to purchase your property? What questions do you need to ask? How do you know they are qualified buyers and have the financial wherewithal to meet the mortgage approval criteria? Are you actually comfortable quizzing prospective buyers on their financial status? Do you really want to show you home to a buyer who can't afford it but is having fun dreaming? Or checking out your decorating sense?

 Staging your Home - Is your home really ready to show buyers? Do you know how to create an atmosphere that will encourage buyers to envision themselves living there? What mood does your home convey to people walking up to the front door, or even driving by? Do you know what amenities buyers are searching for and how you can make sure buyers are aware of these things in YOUR home? Are there some design or functional faux pas in your home that needs to be taken care of, and do you know what this is?

I hope you find this helpful in your thinking. Please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.

Here are some more issues to ponder if you are seriously considering trying to sell your home by yourself:

Read Part 1 and Part 2 here.

 Marketing - are you a marketing expert? Do you have a digital camera so you can take lots of high-quality photos? Having lots of photos is important, as buyers always want to see photos of homes in listings and property flyers. Do you know how to do a virtual tour (again, buyers like to see this sort of technology and it will provide a competitive edge) and how much are you willing to spend on this? Do you know how to format a quality property flyer that will showcase the features of your home and include photos? You will also need to think about advertising, both in print as well as the Internet. What publications are you going to use and why? How much money do you have to spend on advertising (a small ad with a photo can cost several hundred dollars, or more)? What websites are you planning to use to advertise your property? If you are going to be offering a commission to a licensed buyer agent who brings in a qualified buyer, how are you going to get the word out to the real estate community? In summary, with the competition in this market, how are you going to maximize your exposure in order to capture the interest of buyers in the target market?

 Open Houses - are you going to run an open house? Do you know how to set up and advertise an effective open house? Do you have the time (at least 2-3 hours on the weekend or during the week) you can set aside to sit the open house (not counting prep time)? If the house does not sell you may want to hold multiple open houses - do you have this kind of time? When buyers arrive, how are you going to manage the open houses? What questions can you safely ask? How do you avoid turning a buyer off to your home? How will you qualify prospective buyers that come by? What about the lookers? How re you going to follow-up with all the attendees and do you have the time to do this?

Stay tuned for my my last 2 posts on this topic in the next day or so. Enjoy the rest of your Holiday Weekend!

Are you considering selling your home as a For-Sale-By-Owner (FSBO)? Here are some things to consider before jumping in with both feet. If you have decided to use a REALTOR, this will show you more about the value a REALTOR brings to the transaction.

 Lack of Representation - FSBO means that you are not working with a licensed real estate agent, thus you are UNREPRESENTED (it is becoming more common now to refer to FSBOs as unrepresented sellers). There are some significant implications:

• Perhaps the biggest is that you have no one to protect your real estate interests and apprise you of the legal obligations and the regulations impacting a sale. How do you know you are doing what you are required by law to do?
• If a buyer comes to you and does not have an agent, there is no one to represent the transaction at all, and to protect YOUR interests rather than the buyer's.
• Some buyers will not want to work with a FSBO simply because they know there is no real estate representation

 Financial - repeated studies and surveys show that, nationally, homes sold by FSBO sell for 10 - 15% LESS than those sold through a REALTOR (in some areas it can be higher or lower). So even if you pay a commission of 4 - 6% (they are negotiable), you still come out ahead. on a $500K house that is $20,000 - $55,000 more money in your pocket (depending on the commission that was negotiated)  - not to be sneezed at.

Since you are relocating, unless you are in a hot seller's market, TIME is your biggest enemy. Selling by yourself can work against you - more on that subject soon.

If you are interested in some information on what a FSBO is (in case you don't know), I just posted an FAQ on my First Time Buyer Central blog.

If you are thinking of selling your home and considering doing it without representation, I will be posting some information on this topic in the next day or two.