For Sale by Owner

[dawgball]

My wife and I are planning on moving after our baby is born. We need to sell our condo in Atlanta. Does anyone have experience with selling a property by owner? Any suggestions on what books to get, etc.

I can give details if that would help. What I need is advice on how to write the description when advertising. What to point out, what not to point out, where the best places to advertise are, etc.

Realtors charge between 7-8% in Atlanta. **** that! That would mean about $12-14,000 in their pocket. I am willing to do the leg work for that kind of dough.

We have several months, so we can wait until Spring (I hear that is a better time to sell). If the right price is offered earlier, we have arrangements to bridge until the baby arrives.

Thanks in advance.

 

[rrc]

So far have been fortunate enough...

So far have been fortunate enough...

to sell two properties on my own. A condo and a town house in Chicago. Both times ran ads about every week or so in the Chicago Tribune Fri/Sat/Sun papers. Got many inquiries thru that. Also had open houses every week-end usually on Sat or Sun. Both properties were sold within a month. The condo was in a highrise so we had signs posted within the building and ended up selling to another owner in the building. The townhouse had a lot of foot traffic on a daily basis and that drew a lot of people. Be prepared for a lot of strokes and people that are just plain nosy.
One last thing to consider if the process goes on a bit too long. Let all the brokers in your area know that you'll give them half their commission if they bring you a buyer, would wait several months before resorting that option. Also when selling by owner you will have tons of realtors vying for your listing because "it's very very difficult to sell by owner."
With a desirable property and some patience it's truly no big deal. Good luck.

 

[rrc]

If you have your original listing sheet...

If you have your original listing sheet...

update it with current real estate taxes and have that ready for potential buyers. Also a year's worth of utilty bills will be something buyers will want to see.

 

[dawgball]

Thanks, rrc.

I live right in the heart of Atlanta, so I don't think it will be a hard sell. We are also the lowest price (by $17,000) unit in our complex.

Do you have other information that I should have handy like the listing sheet original listing sheet and utilities?

Are there any good listing websites? I have found several, but I hate to pull the trigger on something like this without talking to others first.

 

[rrc]

If you're the lowest price by $17,000 make sure you don't undersell yourselves

I did not use any of the FSOB sites. The Journal Constitution should be all you need.

We gave potential buyers the updated listing sheet with the aforementioned info and that was all it took. Good luck!

Might want to add any assessment (sp?) info you have available and how much you cond assoc. has in reserve.

 

[rrc]

Should read condo assoc.

Should read condo assoc.

.

 

[HighRoller]

www.buyowner.com have had several friends in Florida use them and they are outstanding ! One fee....help with title work and all !

GL!

 

[dawgball]

Thanks again, guys.

This is where I am in my thought process. Our condo was appraised at $175,000 approximately 6 months ago. Property value has increased dramatically here because we bought the place when the complex was incomplete. We need approximately $150,000 in our pocket after taxes, fees, etc. for the house that we want to purchase in Nashville. Now let's just say that a realtor could find someone to pay $175,000. (Understand that it is an "IF") Subtract their 7% out and we end up with $162,750 before taxes. The $175,000 is $15,000 less than the cheapest, brand-new 1 BR 1 BA units. Our unit is 2 BR 1 BA and built last year. I think I can do better than the $162,750 on my own.

Basically, if I ask the appraised value I have a lot of room to negotiate. I think at $170,000 the place would be on the market less than a couple of months. At $165,000 I don't think it would last a month.

I don't want to pay a realtor that much money. It doesn't seem right.



HighRoller--I read on Clark Howard's (nationwide consumer sdvocate) website the buyowner.com was a rip-off. It is interesting to hear your friends had a good experience with them. I would like to hear more if you know more.

 

[loungelizard]

As a Realtor I will say this, be very careful, I know you think Realtors are a waste of your money, but this is lawsuit crazy society in which we live, people who sell properties on their own need to be very careful to disclose any and all info on property and be as honest as humanly possible to avoid litigation, you think Realtors are expensive, you ought to see what lawyers make in real estate litigations. One note, I have a cousin in Kansas City who wanted to sell her home buy owner, well long story short, she couldn't sell it, listed it with a Realtor, sold it for more than she ever imagined she would get, keep this in mind Realtors are a network, once your property hits the MLS system you have just hired (in the Atlanta area) thousands of Realtors one of which will have a buyer for your property, my advice call a Realtor, tell em what you want in your pocket at closing, let them do the work for you, at least you will get a honest opinion of your homes worth. Good luck in whatever you do, but don't ever think Realtors aren't worth the money.

LL

 

[dawgball]

LL--Thanks for your opinion. I don't think Realtors are a waste of money, though. I just think they charge WAY too much. It will cost me between $12-14,000 to sell it through a Realtor.

In certain situations, I would go with a Realtor.

That is good marketing for a Realtor, though.

 

[in2fitness]

Have you considered using a discount real estate broker like Assist-2-Sell?
They give you the option of placing your home in the MLS system for a lower commission. The following is from their website:

FACTS ABOUT ASSIST-2-SELL
We'll sell your home for only $2995!
This low flat fee stays the same regardless of the selling price.
We advertise your home.
We show your home to buyers.
We arrange for other agents to show your home.
We arrange all inspections.
We pre-qualify Buyers.
WE DO EVERYTHING! "FULL SERVICE WITH $AVINGS"

 

[dawgball]

Great info, fitness.

I just got off the phone with the local guy here in Atlanta. This is definitely an option that I am considering.

I will be posting my experiences with this throughout the process.

 

[skulldog]

Assist to sell is a joke:moon: I've been a broker for over 16 years and remember this you get what you pay for w/them.

Dawg, I don't blame you or anyone else who tries to save some$$$, hell I do it all the time. If you use Assist to sell they are the only co that is going to show your property, unless your contract states their is a fee for a co-broke on top of the 2995.

If you decide to go it alone, they place it on every free FOSBO website on the web, if it's as good a deal as you say, then have an open house for 2 hours on sat & Sun and place as many directional arrows as possible, advertise in the OPEN HOUSE SECTION OF THE NEWSPAPER BOTH DAYS. I would also advertise it everyday the week before the open house and when they call you, tell them that the first showings will be @ the open house(s), it creates urgency when they get there is a crowd

The majority of the calls are going to come from brokers looking to list the property, becauseif you don't list, you don't last. I would tell them that they are more than welcome to come to the open house w/THEIR clients and that they can add their BUYER AGENT FEE on top of the sales price, should their buyer want it.
I wouldn't discourage them from showing your property because 7 out of 10 fsbo's end using a broker to sell their house, just be upfront.

7& 8% commissions are insane!!!:nono: I wouldn't pay that either!! I've never charged anyone 8% and only a handful of times I can remember charging 7, because the market might have been depressed, etc, but not in this market. We charge 5% and if I sell my own listing directly to a buyer, then SOMETIMES I'll reduce it to 4%, depending on the situation.

I agree 100% w/all LL,most people think you just pop an ad in the rag and collect the $$, I wish it was that easy.

Dawg- You need to hire a GOOD R.E. Attorney once an offer is presented to you, whether presented to you by a broker or the consumer, which would take some of the liability off your shoulders( make sure you have one when you buy as well)

If you still are going to sell it on your own, prepare an indepth brouchure, with room sizes, utilities bills, condo fee and what that covers, % of units that are owner occupied, etc.

last but not least, when you do your open house MAKE SURE ALL YOUR VALUABLES ARE LOCKED AWAY, YOUR HOME W/OR W/OUT YOUR WIFE, DO NOT HAVE YOUR WIFE EVER SHOW YOUR HOME WHEN YOUR NOT THERE, TOO MAY NUTS OUT THERE.


GL and keep us posted

 

[loungelizard]

and of course, the day of the open house, have your wife bake a pie or loaf of bread, do not i repeat do not use candles, unless they all smell the same (been to so many open houses where they burn a different scented candle in each room, ends up smelling like a French whorehouse) and from a showing standpoint, whenever possible stand in a corner, if you are in the middle of the room, it cuts the room in half to the eye and makes appear much smaller. Good Luck, if you decide to use a Realtor, let me or skulldog know, we can find you one and get a referral to boot

LL

 

[Mags]

My house

My house

I sold my house in Milw this summer... tried by owner for a month - open house and advertising for a month... lot of looks, but no offers...

Went with a discount realtor - BuyersVantage - house was sold in 6 days. Got my asking price (which was higher with the Realtor than it was when I was selling on my own). Got to choose the closing date I wanted. Everything went perfectly for me.

Cost me 3.1% of selling price. Didn't have to spend any money on advertising, etc. Didn't have to be home for open houses.

The key thing a realtor does is get you in MLS and also offering a co-broke for the selling agent. That is something that is invaluable.

I can't see paying a full service broker 7% if you can pay 3% for a discount broker.

I would never try to sell myself again - besides the potential legal issues, it is very time consuming.