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Market Conditions
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Written by Alana Kanter, ForSaleByOwner.com
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Why sell your house by owner? Because of the thousands of dollars you can save by avoiding costly real estate agent commissions. Let’s say that your home is listed for $300,000 and you paid out a 6% commission once it was sold. That equals $18,000! Ask yourself, do real estate agents deliver $18,000 in value? The simple answer is no. Want to successfully sell without an agent? Here is a recap of some of the extra work that you need to do to put that extra money in your pocket: Education. Before putting their homes on the market, savvy home sellers take the time to learn everything they can about the entire real estate process, from start to finish. This includes studying up on the state of the housing market, as well as becoming familiar with state and local real estate laws. Marketing. ‘For Sale By Owner’ home sellers are solely responsible for marketing their homes. This involves managing their online listing, promoting the property on Craigslist every 7 days and frequently sharing the listing with Facebook friends. Spreading the word is imperative for a swift home sale. Responsiveness. Home sellers must find the time to promptly respond to all inquiries about their home, whether it is via phone call or email. A timely reply means that the ‘by owner’ property won’t be eliminated from buyers’ consideration set due to lack of response. Availability. Being dedicated to selling a home means sellers are available for showings 7 days a week. This flexibility entails holding showings before, during and after work hours. Homeowners need their homes to be accessible, not around their own schedules, but per the buyers’ schedules. Organization. There are many details that a home seller is accountable for when selling a home by owner. This includes, but is not limited to, keeping track of potential buyers contact information, staying on top of local home sales’ activity and collecting key documents such as title, survey, mortgage and insurance paperwork. So, with all of the work listed above, why would anyone choose to sell their house by owner? Smart homeowners know that they can recoup up to 6% of the lost equity in their home by selling it without a real estate agent. Now, the difficult part is deciding what to do with all of that money that you’ve saved. |
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Mortgage
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Written by Mary Ellen Podmolik, Chicago Tribune
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Check your credit report and start digging for documents. A handshake, broad smile and verbal income estimate no longer will yield a mortgage but lenders still are looking for more than a few good borrowers. |
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Marketing Your Home
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Written by Alana Kanter
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Has the hot summer weather cooled off the interest in your home? There are many easy things that you can do to garner attention and excitement for your property year- round. Read on for some must-dos when it comes to showing and marketing your home, as well as some creative tactics for generating sizzle.
Showing Your Home:- Establish A Sense of Urgency. If a lot of potential buyers have toured your home and come back for repeat showings, let other buyers know about it. You want your property to appear in high demand, creating a sense of urgency for buyers to make an offer.
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The Basics
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Written by Joanne Cleaver
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Selling your home is a big task. Agents don’t make it easier. In fact, you are bound to be disappointed when an agent fails to deliver on her big promises to take care of every detail and sell your house for top dollar. Your house is likely your biggest asset. You are more invested in the outcome than any agent could be. You will want to be engaged at every step, from preparing it for sale, to pricing, to negotiating, and finally, in closing. Here are the key steps for selling on your own or with an agent. You’ll see that either way, you do most of the work. Taking on the few additional tasks of directly listing and showing the house can save you thousands of dollars. ForSaleByOwner sets you up for success with how-to’s, legal forms, referrals to professionals, and other tools that you need to sell your house.
Use this checklist to organize your homeselling plan and to identify the resources and tools you need to assemble. |
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Press Coverage
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Written by MainStreet.com
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MainStreet.com featured ForSaleByOwner.com in a slide show published on August 5, 2010, about home improvements that don't really add value. Here are the two tips with our advice: Illegal Repairs
Even those intent on living in their home forever need to make sure their upgrades are installed legally. Many major renovations require permits from your state due to the safety risks involved. Marston recommends contacting your local Building Inspections Department before completing any major renovations to ensure proper permits are obtained and you understand the safety codes thoroughly.
Muddling
“Chances are illegal improvements will be flagged by a buyer's home inspector or appraiser,” Joanne Cleaver, Senior Content Provider for ForSaleByOwner.com, says. “Then you not only pay municipal fines to get after-the-fact permits and inspections, but you've destroyed the trust your buyer has in the house—and in anything you say about the house.”
Home improvements should be in tune with your neighborhood, but they also need to fit the style of your own abode as well. For example, if you own a ranch house, don’t install an ornate iron doorway trimmed with gold leafing. Combining two discordant styles is what Marston calls “muddling,” and it may make prospective buyers pass on your listing.
“Never make upgrades just for bragging rights,” Cleaver says, referring to those coveted granite countertops. “If [they] make the rest of the kitchen look tired and shabby, better spend the money on new appliances that add flash and functionality.” |
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Pricing
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Written by Mary Ellen Podmolik, Chicago Tribune
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In a declining market where the most recent comparable sales may be a distressed sale a few blocks away, appraisers are finding themselves on the hot seat about their work.
Fannie Mae just issued new requirements to help clarify single-family home appraisals, since it identified some issues in "post-purchase reviews of mortgage loan files." Simply put, what Fannie's June 30 selling guide updates mean is the agency didn't like the looks of the some of the appraisals on mortgage loans sold to it by lenders.
One concern often voiced by real estate agents is how appraisers are being selected and whether lenders are hiring competent, as opposed to cheap, practitioners. Fannie's new language says appraisers must have the "requisite knowledge" as well as experience and the right data to competently perform an appraisal. The lender, Fannie said, is ultimately responsible for hiring qualified appraisers.
Appraisal reports must also contain more pictures, including interior photographs of a home's kitchen, all bathrooms, the main living area, any examples of physical deterioration and examples of recent updates like remodeling or renovation projects.
Another issue addressed is the use of short sales and foreclosures as comparable sales. If a distressed property is used, the appraiser has to "identify and consider" all differences, including any stigma that may be associated with a foreclosure, for example.
Another change, and this one is a biggie, is designed to rein in lenders who are decreasing a home's market value from an appraiser's opinion based on a loan underwriter or automated valuation methods, a practice that can quickly kill a deal.
"The changes are merited; we needed to do something," said Alex Chaparro, a local real estate agent and national chairman of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals. "You have a lot of first-time buyers who are losing deals, and they don't understand why."
Fannie Mae says lenders must raise concerns about market value with the appraiser who did the report, and if that doesn't do it, they have to get another appraisal before deciding whether to underwrite the loan.
What does it all mean? It means more work for appraisers and lenders, but the goal is more accurate appraisal reports and greater likelihood that good transactions will be underwritten.
"It's nothing more than Fannie trying to tighten the ship up," said Jim Blaydes, the governmental relations head of the Appraisal Institute's Chicago chapter. "When something's different or unique, explain to me why. Appraisers are going to have to explain themselves a little more. You're going to have to be able to write persuasively to support your opinion."
If history is any indicator, Freddie Mac is not far behind with similar revisions.
This story was first published on July 16, 2010 by the Chicago Tribune. |
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Selling a Condo FSBO
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Written by Joanne Cleaver
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 From eleven stories up, Sebastian Bochenok has a 180-degree view of the competition.
Hundreds of brick townhouses surround his highrise condo in Chicago’s South Loop. Four blocks east, Lake Michigan is a blue blur. That view won’t change, as much of this new neighborhood has been developed in the past decade. There’s not any land left for a scenery-blocking tower to rise between his two-bedroom unit and the horizon.
To the north, a grove of shiny, smooth towers reflect the passing clouds. To the south are trendy lofts reclaimed from industrial buildings that once formed the backbone of Chicago’s industrial past.
The South Loop rode the crest of the national real estate boom. The thousands of condo and townhouse units visible from Bochenok’s window didn’t exist a decade ago. Now, in sync with the national real estate bust, South Loop sales volume and prices have dropped dramatically. Prices are 25% lower now than they were in mid-2009, according to Zillow. Too many units, too few buyers, and shifting loan requirements have all undermined demand.
Selling by owner offers some surprising advantages for beleaguered condo owners.
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