Are you a (Fiz-Bo)? Selling Your House Yourself.
For sale by owner, often referred to as (Fiz-Bo) if you are into that whole industry terminology thing.
Selling your house yourself does take a little more courage and often times previous home buying and selling experience; but it can be done! According to the National Association of Realtors, FSBO’s accounted for only 7% of all real estate transactions in 2018. And for most, a yard sign was as technical as they got when promoting their house.
If you choose to sell your house yourself and go the open market route, then listing and marketing the property will be solely your responsibility. In some cases you can get an agent to list the property on the MLS (Multiple Listing Service). This will improve the visibility of your property and get it in front of other agents. There is usually a small fee for this service, typically $500. If you can avoid the 6% commission that comes when using a broker then it’s well worth the investment. You can find additional information on FSBO here.
There are many online websites that support homeowners who want to sell their house themselves. Remember, you get what you pay for; free isn’t always better.
Real estate agents take much of the work out of selling a house. They provide advice for staging a home so it shows well. They take care of arranging the listing, taking photographs of the house and prepare all the paperwork. Most real estate agencies use listing services that set up showings and coordinate with buyers and sellers appointments. Really, there’s a lot that agents do to earn their commissions.
Get yourself into the right mindset!
If you are going to sell your house yourself, you need to put yourself in the mindset of an agent. Don’t think that just listing your house with a few well taken photographs will get the job done. Remember, you are going to be competing with the best in every market. There is so much “marketing noise” and clutter that you will have to navigate in order to get your house in front of the right buyer.
The right buyer is one that will not only make you an offer but will pay the most for your house. It’s worth the time it takes to read a few articles or guides, like this one, to get it right. If you make a mistake you could end up loosing more money than you would have spent using a broker from the beginning.
Something else to keep in mind, some brokers will be hesitant to work with FSBO’s due in part to their lack of knowledge and experience but also the uncertainty that comes with an “self-marketed” listing. This is more the case in hotter markets where listings are far and wide, and an agent can be somewhat selective of the clients they take on or the houses they show their clients.
If you need to sell your Indianapolis house fast for cash and want to avoid all the headaches that go along with selling a house yourself, then consider selling your house direct to a real estate investor like Ittenbach Capital.