Stucky Requests Some FSBO Help

The For Sale sign was put in the front yard today. Here it is;

 

It’s been a good 15 years since I sold my last house.  Believe it or not, I sold my homes simply by putting a  “For Sale By Owner” on the lawn, and a classified ad in the newspaper.

Much has changed since.

Yes, I can google things myself.  Been doing that yesterday and this morning. But, dahum, there are so many internet FSBO sites!!

So, if you have some experience with these websites, good or bad, and can provide some recommendations, that would be great.  Not only the websites, but other “general” comments about your FSBO experience would be great also.

TIA !!!!!!!!

 

Author: Stucky

I'm right, you're wrong. Deal with it.

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bb

Why are you selling your house ? How much you asking. How much are the property taxes per year?What are the maintenance requirements ? Are you willing to do any seller financing ?.

REMEMBER you live in New Jersey. Why would anybody in their right mind want to live there? You could turn it into a section 8 apartments then charge the government 2000 amonth for each apartment. Damn Stucky do I have do all the thinking.
If all else fails ask lipoh . He will know what you should do.(seriously )

Realestatepup
Realestatepup

Stuck: I sell realestate, as you know. For you, I would recommend contacting a local “entry only” service that charges a flat fee (and you can negotiate that fee) and they will put it on the local MLS. This, in turn, will disseminate your listing to literally thousands of sites, and it will even show up on Realtor.com.
Most buyers, in my experience, do not take FSBO’s seriously. There are several reasons for this:
1. Buyers don’t like to deal directly with an owner. It makes them uncomfortable, and they won’t really be comfortable looking at the house with you there. They generally don’t want to insult an owner, so don’t ask all the questions they normally would
2. Buyers are afraid they will get “ripped off” by a FSBO. They think there’s some shady reason you won’t list with an agent.
You will also miss out on the hundreds of buyers agents out there who are showing properties. If you are on the MLS via an entry-only listing, you will show up to those agents, and in turn show up on their buyer’s radar via the automated emails the agent sends.
To be on the MLS, you do need to offer a buyer’s agent compensation. You can offer whatever you want, but to get someone serious, I recommend at least 2%. This will save you 2-3% by not listing with a seller’s agent.
The benefits of a buyer’s agent:
He or she will make sure the buyer is adequately pre-approved and can actually buy the house. He/she will be in communication with the buyer’s bank and attorney and coordinate home inspection, walk-through’s, etc.
He/she will make sure you provide the right seller’s disclosures for your state. Each state has it’s own requirements, but if your house was built prior to 1978 you must, by law, provide a “lead paint” disclosure form. These are usually state-specific too.
I would recommend hiring a licensed home inspector to go through the house prior to listing it. The inspector can head off any potential problems that may come up, and reduce the likelihood the buyers will negotiate for money off or credits at closing. Buyers ALWAYS tack a bigger price tag on things than they actually warrant.
HIRE A PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER. I cannot overstate this enough. The majority of buyers start their search on the web, and you only get ONE chance to make a first impression. I always use one for my regular sales, and it definitely makes a difference in market time and sale price.
You should plan on spending about 750-1000 on your closing attorney. States differ on the sales paperwork, escrow requirements, etc. and you don’t want to screw up the deposit money or the offer paperwork and end up in court. Not worth it.
Get rid of clutter, heavy drapes, and dark paint. Landscape everything nice for good “curb appeal”
Make sure any appliances that are staying are in good working order. Clean the oven. Women open this. Men do not.
Clean your fireplace and chimney if you have one.
Hope this helps, and good luck with your sale!

Guy
Guy

Our neighbors for the past 10+ years recently moved away. They put their house on the market for a price we weren’t expecting them to get, considering it’s condition. It was off the market in less than a month, bought by a company that refurbishes and flips houses. The house wasn’t in bad condition, but also it wasn’t pristine. Most of the buying seems to come from flippers and hedge funds looking to rent them out. While some of the bigger ones have gotten out of the market the past few years, I have seen lots of Berkshire Hathaway signs along the road. You may want to try reaching out to the real estate branches of some of those hedge funds. If you live in a very high income area, then you may want to consider finding a way to reach out to foreign buyers.

Now is a good time to sell though, before the big market crash. If you can’t get it done in the next few months then you may want to consider sitting on it for a few years, as I expect house prices to fall.

SSS

Good advice from Realestatepup. May I add ………….

Hire an expert for advice on how to professionally stage your home. This will MORE than cover Realestate’s advice to “Get rid of clutter, heavy drapes, and dark paint. Landscape everything nice for good curb appeal.”

Rise Up
Rise Up

I just sold a condo with no real estate person involved. No fuss, no muss, no fee.

Rich
Rich

I agree with realestatepup, pay the fee and get it into the MLS. Agree to pay the average buyers’ agent commission, or even bump it up by half a percent to be more competitive. I have sold, by owner, over 150 houses and lots, but I will never again, because of the Dodd-Frank QM provision, carry a mortgage for an owner-occupant buyer. Also, if you overprice your house, and you are lucky enough to get someone to pay that high price, good luck getting an appraiser to come in where you want him to Appraisers have too much to lose by coming in over value.

Some states are title company states, and you don’t need a lawyer. In my state, a closing attorney is necessary, but all the seller pays for is deed prep and some of the recording fees. I’m not sure where realestatepup came up with $700 to $1,000 in attorneys fees, but every state is different.

Advertise your house on Craigslist. It’s a long shot, but it’s free. If you’re good with social media, send out photos and a write-up to all the realtors you can. You can get their contact info from the MLS and by checking out their agency’s website. Also talk to your neighbors, because they sometimes know someone who wants to move to your hood.

Remember, you and the buyer’s agent are really on the same team. He/she wants to get paid and so do you. Don’t get into a pissing match with an agent. Also, be sure to get a lender qualification letter, or proof of funds, with the contract from the buyer.

And Stucky, don’t get into a political debate with anyone who wants to buy, or wants to help you sell, your house. Who knows, maybe your neighbors will get together to buy your house, if you promise to move out of state.

kokoda
kokoda

Rich…your last paragraph was precious.

I sold 2 houses without any type of agent or real estate office. Just dumb luck. A neighbor (Dentist) who knew everybody, bought one of the houses to fix up and the second was someone that same Dentist knew that wanted to live in that town. Both houses were close to the center of town.

Both were cash deals. Just went thru a lawlerly closing.

Westcoaster
Westcoaster

Stucky you don’t need “professional” real estate help; most of these guys are lazy fucks who’ve been riding the gravy train for their 6% now for years. Just take some decent photos of your house and put it on Zillow.
Another thing I swear by is to purchase a small St. Joseph statue and bury it upside down in the front yard. I’ve done it and it works although I don’t know how; I sold my house in about 3 weeks.

Wip
Wip

Stucky,

If I lived in NJ I’d create a virtual tour for you.

http://m26.siteground.biz/~homeseye/test/staging/new/tour/index.php?tour=17

kokoda
kokoda

“To you folks, you get a ONE YEAR EXEMPTION from any Stucky insults, name-calling, beatdowns, etc.”

Is that like a New Year’s resolution. giving up alcohol, cigs, or to be specific, masturbation?

HA !!! Never Happen. Some one (of us) will make a comment that has you frothing at the mouth and in a lobotomized fit you will stomp on our face (in a reply).

Gryffyn
Gryffyn

2006, and the Florida real estate is sky high. My wife and I decided to sell our second home, a cute little duplex in a great neighborhood, to our neighbors. FSBO.
A professional couple with two kids. Good people. We have agreed on the price and they want to close before leaving on an extended trip to Spain, where the husband will be teaching for a semester.
They meet a hotshot young realtor at a party who offers to serve as their consultant. Next thing we know they are asking for concessions and things are getting complicated. They want to pay half up front and the balance over 5 years, and rent to students or perhaps tear the place down before it is paid for. We ask a friend who is a real estate lawyer to represent us. She warns us of the pitfalls of their new demands. She meets with the realtor “consultant” who is a condescending little prick and he announces that he is going on vacation and that we need to agree to the their demands and get all the paperwork ready before he leaves. Otherwise we will have to start over with a new contract at some indefinite date. Meanwhile I am driving the 900 miles to FL with my pickup truck and trailer to get the place ready for the closing. My wife calls me on the road when I am in South Carolina and after she tells me what is happening we decide to cancel the sale.
It was a done deal until the buyers brought in the jerky little realtor.

kokoda
kokoda

stucky….I gave you a thumbs up for the great reply.

bb

Stucky , a whole year no insults ,name calling or beatdowns.This is going to be fun.

Anonymous
Anonymous

Find buyer pay realtor 100 bucks cash to walk you through contract. I did, easy peas.

Wip
Wip

@Stucky

It looks like you got a good photographer.

Maybe you will share the photos?

Guy
Guy

Best of luck. Houses are always big investments. I hope you get what you put into it, and more.

SSS

“Thanks to ALL for taking the time to help out. Really appreciated. To you folks, you get a ONE YEAR EXEMPTION from any Stucky insults, name-calling, beatdowns, etc.”
—-Stucky

Ten bucks says that promise has a shelf life of less than a week.

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Realestatepup
Realestatepup

Stuck…haven’t been on TBP for a few days, missed some of the follow up here, but that photographer looks awesome!
And I’m sure you already figured it out, but yes, that flat fee service includes the MLS.
As to some other comments about nasty real estate agents getting involved…yep, it happens. There are some names that come up in my world that I just cringe to see. They make the transaction more complicated, nasty, and drawn out. They do their buyers no favors and waste my time.
FYI, selling real estate is about the people (at least it is for me). A good buyers agent (or seller’s agent for that matter), KNOWS the client. One persons paradise is another’s dump. Some people (and this is mostly men) make the sale more about the price than anything else, and once you understand that, you will be able to successfully negotiate a deal. Men are competitive by nature, and mostly want what they perceive to be a “good deal”, they want bragging rights that they got the price down, etc. I have had buyers stick on $40. That’s right folks, FORTY DOLLARS.
Oh well.
anyway, keep me posted I am really interested to see how you make out!

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