Spotting a For Sale By Owner sign instantly evokes a challenging thought-stream! Having sold a home privately, before making Real Estate a career, I understand the for sale by owner mentality.
It is a frustrating process to sell a home privately, and yet so many Joe Public attempt it based on a misconception that there is a high success rate in doing so. This misconception is formed by the Private Seller companies themselves.
Have you actually researched the status of homes advertised as 'sold' on the FSBO websites? I have.
You see, regardless of 'how' the home is sold, these companies will advertise as 'sold', thus giving the impression to other potential FSBO customers that this system is a no-brainer. Fact of the matter is, more than 80% of the homes you see listed as 'sold', were in fact sold by a Real Estate Agent.
We know this because our transactions are logged into our Real Estate computer system with our Real Estate Board, and shows if we have listed the subject property, and found its buyer.
It is almost painful to watch the Private Seller go through the long drawn out process of finally getting their home sold. I was one of the 'lucky' ones when I sold mine. It was in a low price range, and I was smart enough to place an ad in the correct newspaper. Mine sold in 10 days, but what an overwhelming experience it was!
I see one particular FSBO on my drive into the office each day. Over the course of 7 months the 'for sale' sign has gone from being a home made painted thing, to a small FSBO company sign, to a very large billboard type FSBO company sign. Probably thinking that 'bigger is better', when in fact this just shows desperation and stubbornness.
For me, it's like watching someone trying to do electrical work on their home when they are not a trained electrician. It makes me feel that I want to take that screwdriver out of their hand, and do it myself!
I want to 'help' private sellers sell their homes because it is more frustrating for me to just watch them painfully fail at something that, at least 80% of them, shouldn't even be attempting to do.
For 'us' in Real Estate, the FSBO is merely a hindrance...a brick wall that has been put up by 'do-it-yourselfers' and the companies who take advantage of them. It is something that is here to stay, because of the public misconception of the success rate, even though more than 80% of Private Sellers eventually turn to a Real Estate Agent to finally get the job done!
So here is my mission....
I will help the FSBO sell their home in any way possible, and within my legal boundaries. If they turn out to be one of the majority, and realize that they need full Real Estate services, then I will list their home. I will get the job done, and I will also represent the Seller in finding their new home.
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