10 Things Every For Sale By Owner Should Know

Have you noticed all of the Robert J Fischer Team with Keller Williams Realty signs around your neighborhood? Our team is the top listing team in the Round Rock/Austin area and as a result, we have the largest buying pool in the area. Every day we are looking for buyers for our listings and we make it our mission to know about all of the available inventory in the area. Selling a house is difficult, full-time task. Here are 10 things that any for sale by owner (FSBO) trying to sell their house should take under consideration:

1. Serious buyers only shop "For Sale By Owner" (FSBOs) to save money

Think about it... why would a buyer that has thousands of amazing homes to look at right in front of them to take the time to look at the potential of one or two homes not in the main store? They would only do that to find a steal of a deal. Are you wanting to give your home away?

2. Law of Supply and Demand

It is a fact that a good REALTOR can drive more traffic to a listing, thus causing a higher demand. The higher the demand, the higher the price.

3. Marketing Services

When you hire a REALTOR, you're getting a full service marketing company with a further reach than a seller has on their own. The biggest companies know that the more exposure (i.e marketing) you have of a commodity, the more prospective buyers. More buyers create a higher demand, which increases the commodity's value and thereby causes it to sell at a higher cost. A top REALTOR has advanced marketing services, strategies, advertising tactics that FSBOs do not.

4. 3rd Part Negotiating is proven to save time and, most importantly, money

All top companies, organizations, and brand names use a 3rd party negotiator to represent them to maximize how much they profit. A 3rd party negotiator provides you with:

• More time to think through major decisions, so you have less of a chance of making a choice you may regret.
• A way to hide your natural "poker tales" since you won't be communicating directly with the buyers.
• Council when needed. Most everyone in the middle of a high price negotiation - even the President - listens to council. The best hire the best to represent them. 

5. Builder Theory - Why and How are they successful?

• Builders spend money to make money. They spend over $100,000 to stage and design model homes in addition to spending hundreds of thousands of dollars advertising their products online, in magazines, to REALTORS, etc.
• Builders use incentives to attract buyers - Builders always pay commissions to REALTORS and often give huge bonuses to drive traffic. Plus, they will often pay the buyer closing costs and provide other financial incentives to buyers. 
• Builders use REALTORS - Even with spending hundreds of thousands of dollars, over 80% of their business still comes from REALTORS and most of their homes do get listed through a REALTOR.

6. For Sale By Owners as perceived as difficult to deal with and not as accessible as homes being sold by a REALTOR

• When buyers are ready, they're ready to buy now and seeing homes must fit into their schedule. Most FSBOs are extremely tough to see showings revolving around the seller's schedule rather than the buyer's.
• Most FSBOs do not know the ins and outs of a transaction, making deals more difficult.
• Transactions involving a FSBO have a larger chance of leading to a lawsuit due to the seller not having an expert guiding them on real estate laws.
• FSBOs are emotionally involved with the sale of the product without a third party buffer, so communication is tougher.

7. It's less safe to list on your own

FSBOs can often be targets for criminal activity without a REALTOR making sure only qualified buyers are let into the house. FSBOs are not only letting in unqualified people into their homes, but people that may or may not be safe to let into your home. When a REALTOR shows your house, at least you know they are licensed with the Board of Realtors® and their finger prints are on file with the state. Most REALTORS only show homes to buyers who are prequalified to purchase and are on file. Our integrated lockbox system tracks everyone that enters the home.

8. The longer it takes to sell, the more you stand to lose

Even if you aren't personally in a rush, the longer it takes to sell your home, the more time you will spend on the house, the more utilities you'll pay, and the more chances something could go wrong with the house that has to be fixed. Something could go wrong with the local housing market, making your house sell for less and the longer people see that FOR SALE sign in your front yard, the more they'll think it's not worth the asking price or that something is wrong with it.

9. This is NOT your full-time job

Doesn't one of your largest financial assets deserve full-time attention, knowledge, marketing, etc.? Selling one of your most important assets is serious business. Is 'trying' to sell it yourself a wise decision or does it not make more sense to go with someone who sells over 200 homes a year? A good REALTOR will work to get your home sold all day every day, taking away some of the stress of the home selling process off your shoulders.

10. If you went to court, would you represent yourself as your own attorney?

Do you know how many changing laws there are in real estate every day? Do you know what paperwork needs to be done to legally sell a home? What if you make one mistake? A good REALTOR can not only sell your house faster and for more money, but they can help make sure you follow the real estate law and know your rights. You need to know the laws on option check timing, T-47s, Seller's Disclosures, earnest money rules, and more. 

Selling a home is a stressful process full of paperwork, negotiations, and emotional decisions. Don't you deserve to have an expert on your side to handle the day-to-day dealings of selling your home so that you can focus on the important decisions?

Choose the Robert J Fischer team, the top Keller Williams Realty team in Williamson County, as the team to get your home sold for the most amount of money, in the fastest time, with the best terms, and doing it the right way.