WHY YOU SHOULDN'T SELL ON YOUR OWN!!! 1. DO YOU REALLY KNOW WHAT YOUR PROPERTY IS WORTH IN TODAY’S MARKET? DID YOU PRICE IT TOO HIGH AND THEREFORE YOU’LL DISCOURAGE POTENTIAL BUYERS OR TOO LOW AND YOU MIGHT LOOSE PART OF YOUR EQUITY? - Real Estate prices are NEVER fixed.
- What homeowners PAID ORIGINALLY for the home is not relevant to the LIST price!
- Nobody wants to work with an unreasonable seller, and the quickest tip-off that a seller is unreasonable is PRICING YOUR HOME TOO HIGH!
- Sometimes for a QUICK SALE, a homeowner will PRICE A HOME TOO LOW.
2. CAN YOU SHOW OTHER HOUSES AS COMPARABLES? - You ought to have a CMA (comparable market analysis) of the area.
- Even having a good CMA of the area MIGHT NOT BE ENOUGH , since buyers will want to see OTHER HOMES in order to properly evaluate yours. If you aren’t paying a commission, WHO IS GOING TO SHOW THE HOMES to the buyer?
3. ARE YOU AVAILABLE TO PROSPECTS ON A FULL TIME BASIS UNTIL THE HOUSE IS SOLD? - Many buyers CAN’T or WON’T have the patience to wait to see your home when you’re available, meaning weekends or after dark.
- Can you leave work to show a home to a potential buyer? (Will your boss understand that you have another FULL-TIME JOB – SELLING YOUR HOME?)
- Only 50% or buyers use NEWSPAPERS.
- Over 82% of buyers use a REALTOR.
- Can you NETWORK with REAL ESTATE AGENTS in your area to find a buyer for your home? (they use MLS !!!)
- What about ONLINE services? ( CAN you PUT your house on the INTERNET? – Over 35% of buyers, and the number is growing, look for homes on the Internet)
4. ARE YOU AVAILABLE TO PROSPECTS ON A FULL TIME BASIS UNTIL THE HOUSE IS SOLD? - The chances of finding a buyer with the SAME TASTES and APPRECIATION for your home as you have are SLIM TO NONE! (You can bet that the first words out of a buyer’s mouth is what they would change if the house were theirs).
- - The buyers will find all the small repairs that you always meant to do and will draw
attention to every door that stick, the missing screen, the broken tile in the bathroom, the stains on the carpet, the paint colors you have chosen, and will draw every one of these items to your attention, criticizing and discounting the home you love before your very eyes. CAN YOU KEEP SMILING? - A BUYER TYPICALLY WILL JUDGE FLAWS MORE HARSHLY THAN A SELLER!
5. CAN YOU CALL A PROSPECT BACK WITHOUT PLACING YOURSELF IN A POOR BARGANING POSITION? - Do you know WHAT TO SAY, WHAT NOT TO SAY , and WHAT QUESTIONS TO ASK?
- How do you know this is a QUALIFIED BUYER and not someone who simply wants to GAIN entry to your home?
- How much should you REVEAL?
- DO you know how to QUALIFY a buyer? Do you know how to NEGOTIATE?
6. ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH ALL THE FINANCING POSSIBILITIES TO GUARANTEE THESALE? DO YOU HAVE THE SOURCES OF FINANCING?
- Do you know where to send the buyers if they require financing?
- Do you know whether to send them to a DIRECT LENDER or a MORTGAGE BROKER and WHY?
- Do you know what kind of CREDIT they have?
- Can they AFFORD the home?
- Do you know how to PREVENT TYING UP YOUR HOME IN A CONTRACT with someone who CAN’T AFFORD THE HOME, WASTING PRECIOUS MARKETING TIME AND PERHAPS LOOSING THE INTEREST OF OTHER MORE QUALIFIED BUYERS?
7. DO YOU REALLY HAVE TIME TO HANDLE ALL THE DETAILS? - You MUST handle ALL the repairs, the presentation of your home, paperwork,
negotiations, other interested buyers, plus maybe your moving preparations. - You MUST become EXPERT in Real Estate Contracts and their LEGAL responsibilities.
- Do you know your LIABILITIES?
- Are you familiar with DISCLOSURES?
- Are you confident that you know enough about the Real Estate transaction to follow through WITHOUT PROFESSIONAL ADVICE?
- Are your READY to show your home multiple times to the same buyer before a contract is signed?
- Do you have ALL the contract forms?
- The bottom line is that you’ll have to perform the REALTOR’S JOB, and provide the services a REALTOR would provide to BOTH the BUYER and SELLER. IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT?
THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT HOMES SOLD WITH A REALTOR AVERAGE 10% MORE THAN SIMILAR OWNER SOLD HOMES, MORE THAN PAYING FOR THE COMMISSION AND WITH A LITTLE LEFT OVER. ALSO LISTINGS IN THE MULTIPLE LISTING SERVICE ARE SOLD MUCH, MUCH QUICKER. AND, DON’T FORGET, IT IS TOUGHER THAN YOU THINK TO DO IT YOURSELF!!! 
|