Serving Buyers and Sellers in Virginia and Washington, DC

Helpful Tips on Selling Your Own Home

Enclosed are some tips and suggestions you may find helping in selling your home on your own as well as other information you may find of value if you are considering listing your home with a Realtor.

If you have any questions regarding the enclosed information or if you would like a no obligation presentation on how our Weichert office and I can help you maximize the value of your home, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

I will follow up with you occasionally to see if I can assist you in any way.

Open House Tips
Safety is Essential
Are You Really Prepared to Sell Your Own Home?
A Few More Helpful Facts about selling your own home
Advantages of Using a Professional Real Estate Agent

Open House Tips

Write an effective Open House ad with clear directions.

Call your local newspapers classified department at least two weeks in advance to order your Open House ad.

Make sure your house is “market ready,” inside and out.

Safety First! Keep stairways clear. Avoid possible injuries and litigation.

Make Closets Look Bigger! Neat, well ordered closets show that space is ample.

Have your Open House no longer than four hours. This reduces wear and tear on you and increases the odds of people visiting simultaneously.

Have a “Guest Registration book for visitors to sign.

Secure at least three and preferably five open house directional signs to lead prospective buyers from all major intersections to your house.

Place a large, professional sign in a highly visible spot in front of your home.

Leave space for visitors to park.

Turn on all lights and open all drapes.

Escort all prospects through your home. Put all valuables in a safe place.

Safety is Essential

Do not put a FOR SALE BY OWNER sign on your property. This invites strangers to come to your door at any time and relaxes the natural vigilance of your neighbors regarding strangers on your property.

If someone calls on your ad, get their name and phone number. Tell them you will call them right back. This will enable you to verify that they have given you a correct phone number.

Try to get as much information about the caller as you can before giving out your address.

Never show your home alone.

Discuss the situation with your children. Be sure they understand that they should not let strangers into your home. Alert babysitters as well.

If your home has a burglar alarm, do not demonstrate its workings, power source locations or cut off switches.

After showing people through your property, recheck all locks on windows and cellar entries. It only takes a second for someone to unfasten them.

Are You Really Prepared to Sell Your Own Home?

Key Questions to Consider

Do you know what similar homes in your neighborhood have sold for in the past six months? (Asking price is not a reliable indicator)

Are you aware of the Federal and State laws and disclosures that you must follow as a For Sale By Owner?

Do you know who is a serious home purchaser and who is just serious about finding out what you have in your home?

Are you capable of qualifying a VA/FHA purchaser? A conventional purchase?

What do you do if your home does not appraise for the price that you have sold it for?

Drawbacks to Consider

You only have one property to show, whereas a Realtor has many properties to show in the marketplace where homes are bought by comparison.

The buyer will not share their financial situation with you, so you may waste time showing your home to people who are not in a position to purchase it. Working with a Realtor ensures that only qualified buyers are shown your home.

The average owner overprices their home and may accept a price below market value. Overpriced homes tend to sit on the market, losing value if buyers expect a problem. A Realtor will price your home to sell quickly at fair market value.

Well meaning friends may give you conflicting suggestions, whereas a Realtor has facts at hand and professional experience.

You may make expensive and unnecessary improvements to your property. A Realtor will advise you on how to spend the least money necessary to maximize the value of your home.

The direct buyer will not share likes and dislikes with someone they may have to negotiate with. To the contrary, buyers will communicate their feelings about a property to a Realtor.

You can’t follow up with the buyer. They’ll think you’re anxious to sell. However, following up with customers is a normal part of a Realtors responsibility when selling a home.

It’s difficult for you to be objective in negotiations with the buyer. Realtors are trained to be objective and to move both parties toward a mutually beneficial conclusion.

You may accept an insincere offer and then spend months in litigation to free your property just to put it back on the market. A Realtor is experienced in recognizing trouble and acting quickly in the best interest of their client.

A Few More Helpful Facts about selling your own home

On the average, owners NET 3% to 5% less when selling their own homes. That’s 3% to 5% less than selling through a Realtor and paying the commission!

Owners accept less when selling their own homes because direct buyers expect and intend to pay less.

Owners pay for all advertising and its easy to spend at least 1% of your sale price on advertising.

It usually takes owners longer to get a sale, resulting in extra taxes, interest, utility bills, insurance costs or additional travel and hotel expenses/apartment rents.

Owners usually pay higher attorney fees, even if the sales don’t go through. When you sell your own home, an attorney must do your paperwork, and they will invoice you accordingly. When your home is sold through a Realtor, an attorney checks our work, saving your money.

Advantages of Using a Professional Real Estate Agent

A Realtor . . .

Will help you net more money

Helps protect your family’s safety

Pays for advertising, marketing, and Open Houses

Will save you time by holding Open Houses for you

Can qualify the buyer financially and emotionally before showing your home

Will enlist the assistance of all Realtors in your market area to sell your home

Can offer a homeowner’s warranty to reduce risk

Knows how to show a home professionally

Can help you avoid possible lawsuits

Is trained to negotiate, overcome objections, and bring parties to agreement

Ensures all critical paperwork is handled

Selling your home should not be stressful, but there are a thousand things that can go wrong if you’re not working with a quality agent whose integrity and expertise you can trust. Give me a call and let me explain how I can guarantee that you’ll meet your closing date, or answer any other questions that you may have about selling your home.