Your FSBO house isn't being blackballed...it's invisible to agents.
For Sale By Owner (FSBO) properties are very often targeted by investors who are looking for a "steal of a deal". Often, FSBOs have only a sign in the front yard and maybe a newspaper ad or flyer. Without the skill and marketing experience of a REALTOR®, they get very little attention from owner/occupant buyers. So when an investor comes knocking at their door, they are tempted to Sell at their rock bottom price.
I recently had an interaction with a FSBO seller who just wanted to complain about Realtors not showing her home for sale. She handed me a flyer, and as I glanced at it, I noticed that her price was already somewhat high for that sub-division. What she said was that Realtors were blackballing her listing. I don’t often hear that term in regards to selling real estate.
I asked her why she thought that and she said that no agents were showing her home that had been on the market for several weeks.
Are you offering a co-op to agents? No. She read on the internet that she didn’t have to do that. The agent’s buyers can pay their commission. While that may be the case in some areas, it’s not the standard of practice here. I guess her expectation is that agents will work for free.
Is your house in the MLS? No. When you’re an unrepresented seller and you don’t know how to do these things, you’re going to be at a disadvantage.
Is your house being syndicated? No, and what’s that?
Do you have a website? No, too complicated and expensive.
Are you doing any advertising, even newspaper? No. Just the flyers I printed.
Directional signs? No, but I have a sign in front of my house.
Twenty questions was over for me. That’s when I told her that her house wasn’t being blackballed by Realtors...IT WAS INVISIBLE to Realtors. It seems that the only way anybody would know her house was for sale was a drive by. We all know just how effective that is.
Real estate is a competitive undertaking these days. If you’re not prepared to do the job of selling your house completely, you should really consider hiring a professional Realtor.
Rich Iarossi is a full time licensed REALTOR®, working in Crofton, MD. My coverage areas are: Anne Arundel, Prince George’s, Howard, Calvert, Queen Anne, and Baltimore City and County. I specialize in residential real estate, working with both buyers and sellers. Use the registration free search on my website at www.RichSellsHomes.com. If you’re not already working with a REALTOR®...I can help. Call me at 443-995-9595 (Cell) or 410-451-6255 (Office).
SKYPE ME: RichSellsHomes
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