In Georgia it is law. It is the sellers choice period. It may be where you are too. It is odd but happens sellers do not want signs. Check your laws. You may not have "options" if the seller balks

Tell them you will be their SECRET AGENT since its a SECRET their home is for sale. :)   At our office we receive countless calls a day on homes for sale due to a sign in the front yard.. these are clients that are looking and searching for a home the old fashioned way, driving around neighborhoods they want to live in..  I have sold many homes this year to people who called in from a sign in a front yard.

It is their option - but every time I come across it I can never figure it out - it is a wacky mindset. In this market, if you are not doing every single thing you can to market it, you might as well keep it.

I can understand why a seller does not want that big sign in their yard. I think they don't want attraction to themselves, and in some cases it could be a security issue. There may be nosy neighbors who get involved and all sorts of things. If this was 5 years ago I would tell you to tell them the stats about how people find homes for sale, and how many potential home buyers find their home by driving around, and how many they would miss.

However, that said, it is 2007 and I am not sold that they will lose out on buyers now since most of the ones I know find their homes on the internet, not driving around. I think that you will miss the exposure more than they will. If they are comfortable without a sign, and know they are not fooling the neighbors as realtor after realtor shows up to see the home, then I would leave them alone for the first month. If, after the first month, your showings are down or your calls down, then I would revisit it with them. Let them decide based on how much activity they are getting is a better idea than you deciding against what they want.

Just this morning I am having this conversation with a client who prefers not to have a sign installed.  The obviousl arguments aside, many are simply not ready for the attention and get over it once they start to experience life in a listed property.  While they feel like a fish in a fish bowl at first, after the first few days they have gotten used to the sign being in the yard.  I encourage them to have a sign but share that we can certainly be flexible. 

Our listing agreements provide a space for the seller to determine whether or not they will allow a sign in the yard, and it must be initialed by the seller.  Since most buyers are brought by other agents, I'm not sure of the real impact on the number of showings.

There are certainly two sides to it - but I do know one thing for sure - I get calls off my signs - and I have had two closings in the last 180 days because people saw the sign and called and on the house - and bought the house.

I understand both sides of the coin.  in a divorce, they do not want the neighbors to know, and maybe with the importance of the internet, it is not important.  BUT it is important to have it if they allow it.

If they want you to sell their house, they should remove all roadblocks.  Not having a sign is definately a roadblock.

Would they like to have a sign out front and deal with that, or would they like to have their house on the market longer, and sell at a lower price as a result?

Because I research the source of all traffic, I can tell you the one of the highest sources of all traffic and sales is yard signs.......but it is the seller's choice in Georgia.......

Maureen,

With the degree that the Internet  exposes our listings (and thank you for that) any reason that the Seller may have for NOT wanting the sign can be overcome.

I'm wondering if we are seeing more people react negatively to yard signs because of the foreclosure or short sales market.  Perhaps if they are having mortgage problems they may feel "exposed" with a sign in the yard... better than their name in the newspaper when it goes to foreclosure if it doesn't sell in time. 

In time a reluctant seller may develop more trust in his relationship with the agent and allow the sign to go up.  If at first they don't want a sign, they may change their minds if they are not getting many showings. 

I haven't had that experience yet, but I'm glad you wrote this post so I will have given it some thought if or when it does come up in the future.  Thanks!

I agree that the sign is important.  Most buyers do shop on the internet, but we put flyer holders on the signs and there are a number of people who still drive around in neighborhoods that they are interested in living in, picking up flyers and calling from the signs.  These buyers are usually unrepresented so if they call off the sign, you have a potential buyer for a home, and if you can sell your own listing, why not? 

The neighbors aren't going to know why they are selling; just because the sign goes up, you can always make up an excuse to tell nosy neighbors.

I agree it should be their choice. I really believe that they will miss potential buyers by not having one.

I believe the seller should have that choice. We also have some Town Home subdivisions that prohibit signs. You can market a little more in other areas to compensate for the missing sign.

Seems to me the one very important part of this is being missed. IF you signed a listing agreement with the seller before this was discussed, then your CLIENT has the say. If you will not take a listing if there is no yard sign....move on.

For most of us that have been in the business over 2 years, we will acknowledge that, in only a VERY FEW cases, the listing agent will not also produce the buyer. Without the MLS as a tool, if ALL we had were yard signs, we would not survive for long.

A sign is a definite advantage, but it is not the only tool you have to use.

You are obligated to educate your seller on the advantages of your services, as well as the other tools you will use. If they chose not to use one of your tools, it should be their choice using an informed decision process.

If, in your case, yard signs are your most productive tool and a seller does not want one, maybe you turn down the listing.

I try to understand their why.  After we discuss the pros and cons, I ask them if we can post the sign in 2 weeks.  By then, most folks will know its for sale anyway.  People can google the address now, so no harm done. They usually, agree.

I can understand some people not wanting  a sign, but it does limit their exposure. Plus, it can make the house harder to find for agents newer to the business or to agents expanding their area.

Everyone has given such great feedback and point of views. I must say I am totally impressed with the response I have gotten on this current thread.

The current sellers who have had a little hesitation about the lawn sign is simply because there are 3 homes on their street (this is a very long street) that are for sale as a short sale. They think that this will pull them into the loop and the other neighbors will think they are in this same boat. it is the fear of the current situation that has them gun shy about a sign.

I was able to talk them into the sign- this was before we signed contracts. We actually have the showing deferred until open house and we agreed not to post the sign until the "grand opening". Once Open house day has arrived, the sign will be put in the ground.

I do A LOT of Internet marketing so I do not rely on the signs- never have and never will. I am not one to sit back and wait for opportunity to find me- rather i search and find it and make it happen!! I can understand that the current market has caused unusual fear in many sellers. Some have jumped the gun to remove off the market early because "it's been on too long" or the sign issues- either way the drop of the market has sellers acting out of the normal.

Hi Maureen:  I wonder how much longer it takes on average for a home without a for sale sign in the front yard to sell.  I would guess that as long as you make it extremely clear to the seller that not having a sign will probably make the sale take longer, and will probably cause it to sell for less, than I guess it would be ok.  In general, though, I think not having a sign takes away one of the bigger sources of prospects... the "drive-by's."  Take care, stay warm...