So you’d like to sell your home yourself. Why? Most of time it’s to save the commission (i.e. your money). Sounds great!! However, are you really marketing your home to all the qualified and approved buyers out there? Sure, you can make a flyer, put a sign in the yard, and even get the home in the MLS. But are you really getting the highest and best price for your home?

Maybe and maybe not. Every market is different and has their own processes for sale of homes. In many areas offers are written and accepted before inspections and disclosures about the home is given. This opens the door for the buyer to re-negotiate the purchase price. Is that really what you want? Doesn’t it make sense to have inspections up done up-front so you know what the buyer is getting? Every home has something wrong no matter how nice. Having as much information as possible to present to the buyer will make the process much smoother and give the buyer less things, if any, to ask you for. Any good negotiator knows when the right time is to ask for something, and it’s usually not before you’re in contract.

Something else to consider is why is a buyer coming to you the For Sale by Owner. Do they think that less people may know about your property which means less competition? Perhaps… The commission that you’re ‘saving’ may be something that the buyer thinks they can save for themselves.

Having sold a home for buyer clients that was a For Sale by Owner, I learned first hand that my clients secured a home well under the market value at the time. The seller didn’t have a grasp on what the home should actually sell for. Even though multiple offers were received, the process of getting to the highest possible price was missed. As the buyer’s agent, my fiduciary duty was to the buyers not the sellers. My folks were so happy that there wasn’t more competition. Having an agent and using their expertise and marketing/negotiation skills would have gotten the seller more money.

In casual conversation with someone at a volunteer event, I met someone who had purchased a For Sale by Owner in an area I serviced. I asked her how it went. She said she was so happy because she got it for the price they were asking and didn’t have a bidding war. They had lost out on other homes they had written on due to multiple offers. If that’s any indication of what buyers are thinking, you may want to think twice before trying to sell on your own.

Open your home up to all the qualified people looking for a great home like yours. Remember as the seller, you have all the control. It’s your house. Be certain you’re doing what’s in your best interest to get the highest possible price for your home!!