FSBO--Are Your Emotions Getting in the Way of Your Sale?

When it comes time to sell a house, many of us consider doing it ourselves. After all, who knows and appreciates our home better than the person who has been tending it all these years?

There are many technical reasons that I would encourage you to seek the professional guidance of a Realtor® (pricing, preparation, safety, marketing just to name a few), but there are a couple of emotional reasons, too.

1. No one, least of all a buyer, cares how much money you need to get out of the transaction
2. It is very difficult to be objective about your own home
3. Your rationale for pricing may not be based on the latest data
   
4. Your rationale for pricing may be influenced by your emotions
5. You are likely to be focused on what is next (which is why you are focused on the money you must get out of your house) rather than the task of selling your home...and it may cloud your judgement with regard to offers
   

Much of what we, as Realtors®, do is educate our clients about buyer expectations, market activity, competitive pricing, home sale preparation. We coach them about how to successfully schedule and handle showing appointments. We discuss buyer expectations and handle many of the details associated with selling a property. We advise them about the pros and cons of an offer and how an offer that might not appear to be perfect might actually help a seller to meet most of their objectives.

There is no doubt that someone who takes the time to learn the process can muddle through. But just 'getting it done' does not fulfill most seller's objectives.  Without a doubt, most sellers are trying to get the most money in the least amount of time. But there are also very important details of any contract that have a signifcant impact on how happy you are with the 'deal.' Having a non-emotional party involoved in the transaction can help the sellers maintain perspective when things get challenging.

If you are planning to sell your home yourself, I wish you luck. Just keep in mind that the process of selling your home involves much more than just a series of steps.  There are many tasks in life that I could do myself, but opt to hire a professional to handle them.  Before you take on the job of For Sale By Owner, make sure that you are prepared for the outcome-- because it will be influenced by far more than just that ad that you placed.

If you have tried to sell your Northern Virginia house and have decided to hire an expert, give me a call to discuss a plan to get your house sold!