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12 Key Questions for All Home Sellers

THINKING ABOUT SELLING YOUR HOME?

I'm sure you realize there's more to selling your home than putting a sign in the yard and showing off your home improvements to eager buyers. Just to make sure you have all your bases covered, here are twelve questions to ask yourself before you decide to sell without a real estate agent:

1. What are your specific measurable goals? Be sure to write them down and prioritize them.

2. What is today's interest rate for a home like yours? Estimate the likely house payment for your home so you can qualify prospective buyers before allowing them into your home.

3. Name at least ten factors that could affect the sale of your home? Highlight/circle five that you CAN control.

4. What price and terms will give you a competitive edge in the marketplace? Know the addresses, prices and terms of homes currently on the market and the five most recent sales near your home; evaluate market trends for 3-6 months in your area.

5. What will your bottom line be after the payoff and all selling expenses are paid? Remember to add interest in arrears to your mortgage payoff amount.

6. What five factors must you address to prepare your home for showing and selling? If you need help from professional contractors, be sure to make arrangements well in advance of putting your property on the market.

7. How will buyers gain access to your property when you are not home? Buyers want to see your home at THEIR convenience, not yours.

B. How will qualified buyers know your home is for sale? Name at least ten methods of gaining exposure for your home? Highlight/circle those you plan to implement and establish a marketing budget.

9. Who will handle incoming buyer inquiries? Showings? Follow-up? Negotiating? Have security safeguards in place when showing your home to strangers.

10. Name at least ten conditions that must be satisfied between contract and settlement. Finding a buyer is only the beginning, so try to anticipate problems before they arise. Getting your sale to settlement is the real challenge of any home sale.

11. Name five essential steps you will address to prepare your home for sale. Delegate assignments to family members for last-minute preparations prior to showings.

12. How does the Federal Fair Housing Act affect you and your home sale? Know the seven protected classes and which housing is covered under the Act. (Be aware that Fair Housing "testers" sometimes masquerade as prospective home buyers to catch violators.)

BONUS QUESTION:

If your home does not sell in the first thirty days, will you cancel your plans and stay in your current home? If "not selling" is an option, determine your Plan B in advance. If you must sell, lower pricing is your likely solution.

sign

SCORING:

If you answer fewer than 8 - You need professional help!
If you answer 9-11 - You're ready to get started, but you need Margaret's help
If you answer all 12 - You're a real estate pro! Have you ever considered a career in real estate?

Woda's Words of Wisdom is a series based on these 12 questions. Look for it at FocusOnCrofton.com and Localism.com.

Posted by Margaret Woda, Maryland Real Estate on 09/09/2007 10:04 PM

Comments (24)

crofton real estate, margaret woda, remax vision, fsbo, for sale by owner, fair housing laws

Originally posted at: Fort Meade - USNA - Andrews AFB: 12 Key Questions for All Home Sellers

24 Comments on 12 Key Questions for All Home Sellers

SEP

2007

Wow Margaret...I'm taking you on my next FSBO listing appointment :) Great list that I'm sure will be referenced by many.

5 and bookmarked. You always have great tips and info that I will surely keep in mind for me too!

Margaret -- I love this post. Many have written on this topic, but I really like your approach! Hope all is going well.

SEP

2007

Lisa - i don't go over these questions on an appointment. I provide them to prospective home sellers as a service, to help evaluate whether they're qualified to sell their own home. No one knows the answer to that better than them!

Sally - It's a helpful mailout or handout to anyone having difficulty selling "by owner"

Joan - Most home sellers who go over this list find they're not as well-prepared to sell their own home as they thought.

Thank you all for your comments!

Very nicely put, really gets them thinking.Yet another thoughtful post! Thanks!

Excellant, excellant information. I know most FSBO have a brother thats a lawyer and can do the contract for them, but they really don't think of all the details.

Michael, Thank you. I hope you can use some of this.

Bob, You're right, most people have no clue what REALLY goes into a real estate transaction. Perhaps if they sit down and try to answer these questions they'll begin to get some idea.

Hey, if selling a houset was easy, we wouldn't get paid so much for doing it!

Margaret, This is a great list that you have put together. Give yourself a pat on the back!

Patricia. I know that... you know that... most ActiveRainers know that... Hopefully this lists will help sellers to know that, too.

David and Kristin - Thanks for the compliment, and congratulations on making the 20,000 point milestone!

Margaret, Thanks for the congratulations. Thanks also for the kind words about us on our blog. Much appreciated!!

Margaret, This is a fantiastic list to be used as a guide for sellers. I rated it 5, which, according to your scoring grid, means that you need professional help. :-) NOT!

Margaret- High 5 from me, featured and bookmarked. What a fantastic post, the best one that I have ever seen on FSBO questions! I am so impressed. May I borrow this list? It is even good for anyone considering selling so that they can begin to know your value. You could send this ahead of a listing appt, rename it, and ask them to fill it our before you get there. They would have a renewed respect for a real estate agent after going through this list. And I LOVE the dog carrying your sign! Katerina

SEP

2007

Wow you never cease to amaze me with your wonderful posts. This is fabulous information to provide to the FSBO. Thank you for sharing.

David and Kristin, You're welcome. Well deserved!

Rolando, I came up with this several years ago, and just polished it up a bit for ActiveRain. It has gotten a few listings for me over the years.

Katerina, Yes, thanks for asking. If you'd like an answer chart, let me know and I'll email it to you.

Julie, Thank you, it makes a good "first" handout to FSBO's. One of the owners usually has grave reservations about going FSBO, and this gives him or her ammunition to plead the case for listing.

Katerina- I would love it. We don't work the FSBO market but I think it would be great to tweak it for our expired market. Yes, please email the answers! I am surprised this post did not get featured. Thanks, Katerina

SEP

2007

Will do so tomorrow. (Me too!)

SEP

2007

Margaret, somehow I missed this when you first posted it. Thanks for mentioning it in your comments this morning. What a terrific resource of questions. I bookmarked it for reference, and I too would love your "answer chart."

OCT

2007

oh my gosh! You did a great job on this post. I've bookmarked it and I rate it a 5. And let me know if you are available to go with me on my next "FSBO door knocking" outting!

Excellent advice. You gave quite a bit of thought to this, and I learned something. I rated you a 5 because you earned it.

OCT

2007

Brian - I'm going to post the answers as stand-alone blogs for localism. If you just can't stand the suspense, they're at the bottom of a pdf article on the same topic on my website (under the seller's tab).

Rosemary - Without ever saying "There's a lot of work that I do for you, when you sell your home" - this list says it all for you. Thanks for the 5!

Patsy - Thanks for the 5 this is probably one of the top 5 "Woda originals" I ever created. A very effective tool!

This was a great tip. I also will give you a 5 rating. Thanks for sharing this will me.

OCT

2007

Great, great, great post Margaret. Absolutely rated a 5!

Thanks, Ricki - this is a great tool for prospective sellers. The questions seem relatively straightforward and easy but it's a real eye-opener when they sit down to go through this. I don't know if you noticed that #1 has a link - I decided to make these questions into a series of blogs, and that's the first installment.

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