The FSBO's greatest advantage is simplicity. There are fewer people involved in the transaction and therefore fewer chances for misunderstandings to occur. Buyers and Sellers get to talk directly to each other instead of thru intermediaries so things happen quickly and there are fewer chances for misteaks to occur.

Capitalize on this simplicity and keep everything connected to the transaction as simple and well spelled out as possible.

All of the following information & more is spelled out in much greater detail in the First Aid Kit you get with our iPLUS packages, but here are a few simple highlights.

Make it easy:

• for Buyers to find your house

• to get information about the house

• to contact you. Be easily reachable day and night. (especially during working hours)

• to talk to you during and after the showing

• & definitely make it easy to write the Purchase Agreement!!!

To give you a good example of a FSBO's advantage let me tell you a little story about what happened when the FSBO Registry was looking for new office space.

We considered 4 locations. At 2 of the locations we were dealing directly with the owner and in less than a day we found out whether a deal could be made. At the other 2 locations we had to go thru an Agent. With an Agent it took 15 days at one location to get a sense of the situation and 30 days at the other. To be fair, we eventually made a deal at one of the locations that was listed with an Agent, but it was IN SPITE OF the Agent.

I finally had to locate the Seller and talk to him directly to make it happen. We cut the Agent out and inside of an hour we had the contracts signed and delivered. It seems the Agent (when he actually contacted the owner) was misunderstanding and misinterpreting every question and concern we had. After a 5 minute conversation with the Seller we were able to put together a deal that could & should have happened 30 days before. It reminded me of that old game that you may know as GOSSIP or TELEPHONE. You know the one - you whisper a secret in the first person's ear and they pass it down to the next person. After it has gone thru a line of people you compare the original secret with the final version. The results can be quite comical (in that setting).

We almost couldn't make a deal work with only one person between us and the Seller and yet the typical residential real estate transaction has 2! What do you think the odds are the Buyer and Seller in the typical transaction ever have a clear picture of what each other wants and needs? This usually, and quite unnecessarily I might add, introduces a large measure of uncertainty and fear (and sleepless nights) to the transaction.

You can simplify the sale process even further if you also eliminate the offer/counter offer process and the uncertainty of pricing by having a Mortgage Appraisal done before you put your home on the market.

top

Keep the process as simple as you can make it. Here are a few tips to help you take advantage of your ability to simplify things for the Buyer:

Make it easy to view your house by holding it open periodically, Put an OPEN Come In sign on the door when your house is open so people will understand it is OK to come on in.

Always have plenty of Sales Graphic hand outs available so Buyers can more easily remember your house. Our Sales Graphics include much more information than normal because Buyers tell us you can't tell them too much about your house or have too many pictures. A thorough Graphic will save you a lot of useless calls and make the phone ring more productively. Make sure your Graphics are available on your yard sign at all times. If Buyers get out of the car and run up to the sign only to discover the graphic box is empty they get mad and cross your home off their list.

Place post-it notes around the house with answers to the most asked questions such as average utility costs, nearby schools, etc.

Plan ahead. Read and re-read the First Aid Kit we give you and call to ask any procedural questions ahead of time so that you appear confident in front of the Buyers.

top

The one thing you don't want to simplify too much is entry into your house.

Have a sign-in log and appear interested in the people as they enter. This will not only help scare away any "bad guys" because they are afraid you might remember them, but it will also make you appear more interested to the legitimate Buyers. Clearly indicate with your body language that the price of admission into your HOME is a name and phone number. Be"nice" (whatever that is) and not "brusque" so the Buyers will feel comfortable talking to you.

We go into much more detail about the "bad guys" in the First Aid Kit, but let me say that we have never had anyone have a "bad guy" issue. I don't know if that is because we are doing such a good job or that there aren't that many "bad guys" out there.

Our Lending Partners will be happy to follow up with all the names on the sign-in sheets for you. They will use the excuse of offering the Buyer a discount on their credit reports while offering to give them procedural and qualification info to get them relaxed and talking. This lets us find out if people have the capacity and desire to buy your house. Then the Lending Partners will ask what the Buyers thought about your home and encourage the people to revisit. We have found that if we can get the people to visit a 2nd time your house goes into the "I'm interested" category.

Copyright 1984- 2005©
David Bennett

This site is for the sole usage of EZ-FSBO & the FSBO REGISTRYcustomers and is intended for viewing only. It may not be copied or replicated. It may not be used in any way or in any media without author's express written consent.

Corporate Headquaters
1551 E. Spring Valley Rd. Suite #161
Richardson, Texas 75081

(972) 699-3726

mail