For Sale By Owner - Yes You Can
Author: Connie Sanders
Need to sell your home? In today's market "for sale by owner"
may be the best way to sell. Trust me, it doesn't take a rocket
scientist to be successful at selling your own home. The
information in this article may provide you with in-site you may
not have had before. You can do it yourself!
Prepare your home for buyers. New paint helps and is not
expensive. Make sure it is clean, clean, clean. Most important
and most over looked by sellers, you need to get rid of the
clutter, inside and out. Less is more! Rent a storage facility
or have a garage sale but get rid of the clutter. Less furniture
makes a room look larger. Over stuffed closest are a real turn
off to buyers who ALL want plenty of storage space. Get rid of
all the nick knacks.
We all know how important curb appeal is. Get those yards
cleaned up, front and back! Remember, an appraisal has pictures
of the back yard as well as the front. I know this sounds silly
but a junky back yard tells an underwriter a lot about your
home's interior and maintenance routine. A buyer may over look
it but the appraiser and lender do not.
Next, get a home inspection performed. An inspector will check
the structure and systems in your home. He may find things you
are not aware of. It is better to find and repair these issues
before the buyer's inspector does.
Make sure you price it right. Spend the money to get a
professional appraisal performed by a HUD approved appraiser. Do
not rely on a real estate agent's market analysis. These are
seldom accurate and many times an agent will just blow smoke by
telling you what they think you want to hear.
Go sit down with your local mortgage broker. He has a wealth of
knowledge you need to take advantage of. Most mortgage brokers
have free FSBO programs that will help you immensely. It is
important that you know what your costs will be based on the
type of loan the buyer acquires. Did you know that a VA loan
could cost you much more in closing costs PLUS home repairs that
probably are not required by other loans? Will your home qualify
for a FHA loan without making very costly repairs? If you are on
a tight budget and need every possible dime out of the sale of
your home you may want to negotiate in the contract that the
buyer gets conventional financing.
A mortgage broker will also teach you the critical areas you
need to watch in the sales contract. He may even provide you
with blank contracts and other state mandatory disclosures
required when you sell your home. Most brokers will even create
your home flyer and more important, your financing options
flyer. Perspective buyers want to know two things: how much will
my payments be, and how much money do I need to pay down plus
closing cost.
You should list your home on a "For Sale By Owner" web site. I
want to caution you here. A lot of these sites try to charge you
a lot of money for things that do not/will not help sell your
home. Homebuyers DO NOT spend hours searching "For Sale By
Owner" web sites. They work with real estate agents, read the
papers, and drive on the streets in the neighborhoods they want
to live in.
The advantage you get by listing your home on the Internet is
that you put the URL in your newspaper ads, your flyers, and on
your yard sign. Then when a buyer drives by your house or sees
your ad they can go on the Internet and see pictures, amenities,
and the price. If your house fits their needs and their budget,
they will call you. If not, it is less of a bother for you. It
can be very frustrating to let lookey-loo's in your home week
after week. Don't you really only want truly interested buyers
at your door? There are many free FSBO websites on the net.
Check it out.
With all this said, the rest is just common sense. You Can Sell
It Yourself!
About The Author: Connie Sanders has a deep concern for the
consumer in the real estate market. She created
http://www.mortgageunderwriter
http://www.fsbobasics.com, both free sites, to help educate
consumers new to the real estate market.
