Should You Consider Selling A House On Your Own?
Lately, the usual methods sellers have used to sell house now don't seem to be working as well as they used to work in the past
. Have you been wondering what has changed? Doesn't it seem like we should just get back to the way things used to work? I'm sharing some ideas that have worked for me, for years in the past and also now, in the present real estate market.
Basically, you need to understand that you are in charge. I mean you, as the seller. You are the person in charge of everything it takes to sell house now. Of course you can pay other people to help you sell your house, but you really need to feel the weight of the job because it is actually your own responsibility. Honestly, what I'm sharing here, the crucial attitude of ownership on the part of the seller, was not popular in the past.
As I'm sure you know, sellers usually just picked up the phone and called a real estate agent to list a house for sale. And they had a confident expectation that the local multiple listing service would cause buyers to appear, as if by magic. The general assumption was that listing agents and agents representing buyers would do everything, and a seller's life would not be interrupted much at all. Sellers expected to go on with their daily lives without thinking about their sale or consciously, proactively participating in the marketing of their houses at all.
Needless to say, that situation is gone for good. Homeowners cannot think that the job of selling a house can be delegated 100% to an agent, an attorney or other professional because the internet has changed everything. Buyers have access to much more information online, especially because they are constantly connected. They are no longer dependent on an agent to bring homes to their attention. Their smart phones and digital tablet devices probably get used even more than their computers, and that fact has changed the way houses are sold forever.
So, now you can see why your participation, as the seller, is more important than ever. Naturally, you can hire other people to help you market and sell your house. You can retain agents, attorneys, and even representatives of title companies to do the tasks that require professional skills and knowledge. But in reality, you have everything you need to find a buyer on your own. But you have to stay focused on finding your buyer, and make a commitment to invest some time and attention every day to sell house now.
Owning the responsibility for your sale is the main difference between the way real estate transactions were handled in the past and the way they are handled in the present market to achieve a successful closing. Times and circumstances have changed, and we have to change with them.
Over the years I've been investing in single family homes, I've actually lost track of how many houses I've bought and sold. But I had to learn how to sell house quickly so that I could earn a living, and that's how I became an expert on the subject.
It was not hard to begin taking responsibility for marketing my own houses for sale. That is a logical part of the business of being a real estate investor. However, sellers who own one house, their personal residence, are in a completely different situation than my own business experience. Homeowners tend to rely heavily on real estate agents to find their buyers, which is only natural. The agents excel at negotiating and closing sale transactions, so finding a buyer is just one of the many tasks they undertake for a seller.
Previously, homeowners didn't usually feel obligated to help their agents in the process of finding buyers. They didn't see the need to invest any effort on a daily basis if an agent was on duty. Consequently, sellers didn't have the need to learn how to sell house quickly as I have had to learn.
But now everything is different. Since buyers are very self-contained and doing so much of their own searching online, I believe that every seller has an obligation to learn how to sell house quickly, just to stay in the game. I'm saying that every seller today can still choose to list with an agent and assume the agent will take care of everything, to find a buyer and to close the transaction. But it's a lot safer to assume that an agent will simply conduct the usual tasks necessary to list on the multiple listing service, and rely on other licensed agents to bring in some buyers. Any agent with quite a few listings can only devote a percentage of his or her attention to each of those listings on a daily basis. It's safe to say that your house will not receive your agent's undivided attention, which is a realistic expectation to keep in mind.
Now you can see why I suggest that sellers shoulder some of the tasks related to finding a buyer. Getting personally involved is the primary difference between my behavior as an investor compared to homeowners who are not investors. I get busy and post classified ads on craigslist, and I make a point to get in touch with other property owners and business owners in the neighborhood where my house is located. I also mail postcards to owners in the neighborhood, and I always schedule and hold my own open houses. This list gives you examples of my suggestion for sellers to be "pro-active." It means that I am not waiting around for someone else to look for buyers for my house, but assuming some responsibility for finding my buyer myself.
I frequently list my houses for sale with realtors, but quite often I do not. Because I am a real estate investor, I often have more than one house for sale at a time, which has given me a lot of experience with the home selling process. If I'm selling my house without a realtor, I understand that the project will take up some of my own time. To help me accomplish all the necessary work, I now have a team of assistants helping me sell my houses, but that's not the subject of this article. It is not written for other investors with a team; it is for sellers who own and want to sell their own home.
I suggest you think about selling your house the way I think about selling mine. Selling my house without a realtor is a job, and that's how I see it. If you also assume that you have a job to do and you are the one who is responsible for committing to that job part of each day, the process becomes easier. Looking at it that way, seeing the sale of your house as a part-time job, then all the required tasks won't seem so overwhelming.
Having a clear understanding that you are actually taking on another job, and taking it seriously, you should be inspired to get organized. Make a list to keep handy and check it daily, or more often, whenever possible. List the tasks to do every day, and to stay focused on the job. I've noticed that professionals use checklists to stay on track with marketing and closing transactions, so the idea will work for you, too. Achieving success starts at the very beginning for every seller.
This is a basic list as an example, to get you started and help you stay focused on making a sale. When I am selling my house without a realtor, there are specific tasks I put on my list: finding a buyer; getting a sales agreement and keeping it handy; getting any other local, county and state forms required for a sale; taking photos of the interior and exterior of the house; writing a classified ad to post with photos online; posting the ad on craigslist and ebay classifieds; getting in touch with neighbors and neighboring business owners in order to let them know that my house is for sale; and placing a classified ad in the local newspaper and weekly shoppers. Following this list will give you a good start on your new job.
by: Stevenelson Weber
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