Selling a house FSBO

[Scarlett]

We are definitely going to try this.  I have done it before but it was in a much more predictable market.  

 

Here is my problem.  We live in a lake area.  There are different coves, all about the same distance from the small town but many miles from each other.  But when I run comps they are jumping the lake!  It is showing a place all the way across the lake as being 2 miles from me.  Also, some of these houses are ON the lake and others are not so price per sf will be wildly different.  Am I going to have to click on every single recent sale and determine how it compares to my house?

 

I don't want to underprice but overpricing can be the kiss of death for selling a property.

[OneStepAtATime]

This may not be what you want to hear but in your situation not only would I click on them all I would actually go SEE the ones that seem closest to what you have to offer before you ever list.  Make sure you are comparing apples to apples.

 

ETA:  Also, best wishes in your endeavor.

Edited February 12, 2018 by OneStepAtATime

[gardenmom5]

yes - you're going to have to click and do the ground work.

we've done it just for fighting property taxes - as the houses to which we would be compared.  :eyeroll:

 

[Scarlett]

This may not be what you want to hear but in your situation not only would I click on them all I would actually go SEE the ones that seem closest to what you have to offer before you ever list. Make sure you are comparing apples to apples.

 

ETA: Also, best wishes in your endeavor.

I just spent some time on this. Clicking, scrolling, mapping. Ugh. Anyway, there is really nothing like our property. There is a flip nearby but seems like a small lot....we have an acre plus a big shop and a pool. And while ours is not 100% remodeled it is not a flip....meaning we didn't do everything on the cheap. What we have done is nice. Anyway, the flip sold for $91 per SF. If we could get that we would be thrilled.

[Happy]

I just spent some time on this. Clicking, scrolling, mapping. Ugh. Anyway, there is really nothing like our property. There is a flip nearby but seems like a small lot....we have an acre plus a big shop and a pool. And while ours is not 100% remodeled it is not a flip....meaning we didn't do everything on the cheap. What we have done is nice. Anyway, the flip sold for $91 per SF. If we could get that we would be thrilled.

As a real estate agent, that's part of what a seller pays me to do. It is tough to do. 

​I wish I were close enough to help. ;) All the best as you figure it out. 

[Scarlett]

As a real estate agent, that's part of what a seller pays me to do. It is tough to do. 

​I wish I were close enough to help. ;) All the best as you figure it out. 

 

That reminded me that I did get a market analysis last April.  That was before we did the new windows, doors, siding, paint, gutters and loft bedroom (which we aren't quite finished with but won't list it until the upstairs is done--and also the laundry room will be remodeled. )  She gave me 3 figures....basically 'as is' , partial remodel and complete remodel.  I felt all of her figures were low.  And even now looking at the comps she supplied me with....I don't think she did  a fair job of comparing.  Two of them that were for sale at the time have now sold.  Both for over asking price.  Both of them were completely remodeled...nicely too, closer to what we have done--better than a flip but not high end or anything......and they are the same size as mine...One has almost an acre with a nice shop and one has 5 acres with no shop.  Neither has a pool.  AND biggest of all neither is near the lake.  We are 1.5 miles from the lake.  So I think at the least we should be valued as high as them...one was 81 and one was 73.  So I am leaning on splitting the difference and asking 77.

 

It is a desirable area.  So I am feeling more and more it is worth 77 to 80 per sf.  

 

Oh and when we did the HELOC the did a drive by appraisal and it came in at 67 BEFORE the new windows, doors, siding, paint, and gutters.

[ThisIsTheDay]

That reminded me that I did get a market analysis last April.  That was before we did the new windows, doors, siding, paint, gutters and loft bedroom (which we aren't quite finished with but won't list it until the upstairs is done--and also the laundry room will be remodeled. )  She gave me 3 figures....basically 'as is' , partial remodel and complete remodel.  I felt all of her figures were low.  And even now looking at the comps she supplied me with....I don't think she did  a fair job of comparing.  Two of them that were for sale at the time have now sold.  Both for over asking price.  Both of them were completely remodeled...nicely too, closer to what we have done--better than a flip but not high end or anything......and they are the same size as mine...One has almost an acre with a nice shop and one has 5 acres with no shop.  Neither has a pool.  AND biggest of all neither is near the lake.  We are 1.5 miles from the lake.  So I think at the least we should be valued as high as them...one was 81 and one was 73.  So I am leaning on splitting the difference and asking 77.

 

It is a desirable area.  So I am feeling more and more it is worth 77 to 80 per sf.  

 

Oh and when we did the HELOC the did a drive by appraisal and it came in at 67 BEFORE the new windows, doors, siding, paint, and gutters.

 

Holy cow, Scarlett, I'm trying to remember if I know where you live. I don't know ANYWHERE that you can buy a house in a nice area, and REMODELED on top of that, for $80/sf.  :O  I think anything under $100/sf is a screaming deal.

 

I do wonder about your decision to try to list it yourself though. As a buyer, if a house were FSBO, I'd expect to be getting a discount too, since there isn't a realtor fee. On top of that, I would assume that would put more pressure on my own realtor to step up and take care of what a seller might miss.

[Scarlett]

Holy cow, Scarlett, I'm trying to remember if I know where you live. I don't know ANYWHERE that you can buy a house in a nice area, and REMODELED on top of that, for $80/sf.  :o  I think anything under $100/sf is a screaming deal.

 

I do wonder about your decision to try to list it yourself though. As a buyer, if a house were FSBO, I'd expect to be getting a discount too, since there isn't a realtor fee. On top of that, I would assume that would put more pressure on my own realtor to step up and take care of what a seller might miss.

 

 

Rural OK.  Very Low COL.

 

Both times I sold myself no one seemed to be looking for a discount because of that.  Doing it yourself is not that difficult.  Pricing it right is the main thing.   The first house we sold didn't appraise for as high as the offer we got....so we had to get creative and the buyer paid out of pocket for some things that we had including in the sale price.  

[3 ladybugs]

Can I just say, that in a market like what your describing, DON'T do FSBO.

 

I am not a realtor and I don't even know any other then the lady who we used to buy this house 9 years ago, but I have watched my mom go through ALL sorts of problems because she tried to do FSBO. Like you she had a hard time pricing her house. It wasn't like anything on the market. However, once you list it it goes on Zillow and a lot of people use zillow to find a house or to check out a neighborhood they are looking to buy in. So if your house doesn't sell (like it didn't for my mom) and you have to go with an agent (my mom with a helper agent, then a real one) it doesn't look great for your house. Now my mom is 13 months into this and hopes to close at the end of April if not sooner (I am hoping for sooner as her April is packed enough! Buyer wants to move closing.). I should also mention that my mom has had 2 sales fall through at the 9th hour in the last year. 

 

All that to say that after seeing what my mom went through and seeing how you will probably be priced above what you are wanting to get, to me it would be WELL worth the price of a Realtor to do everything right the first time. 

[Scarlett]

That is just the problem though. Realtors are not magicians and I don’t think she knew what is best. She did not think we needednew windows or siding..... just slap some paint in it.

[catz]

I do think FSBO is difficult in certain markets.  I sold my house FSBO before I got married.  I had my own home.  I was able to pay an independant realtor a flat fee to do a little leg work for me - paperwork for closing, a few comps, etc.  I don't remember what I paid for that service, but it was very worth while and it was considerably less than a full commission.   I still did have to do a bunch of leg work on my own - showings, open houses, e-mails, calls, etc.  It's a ton of work actually. I'm not sure I'd do it again

[Scarlett]

I do think FSBO is difficult in certain markets. I sold my house FSBO before I got married. I had my own home. I was able to pay an independant realtor a flat fee to do a little leg work for me - paperwork for closing, a few comps, etc. I don't remember what I paid for that service, but it was very worth while and it was considerably less than a full commission. I still did have to do a bunch of leg work on my own - showings, open houses, e-mails, calls, etc. It's a ton of work actually. I'm not sure I'd do it again

Both times I sold on my own it was work but I enjoy it.

 

I did have my real estate license at one point. Never used it though.

[OneStepAtATime]

Both times I sold on my own it was work but I enjoy it.

 

I did have my real estate license at one point. Never used it though.

It does sound like you have plenty of experience and you are meticulous about getting stuff handled so I have no doubt you can do this and do it well. 

 

Unfortunately I do think you are going to have to go out and SEE some of your competition to more accurately price your home even if they are not actually what you would consider true comps.  The area sounds really funky.  I have found over and over again that what is described may not convey what a property looks like in person AT ALL, and especially in markets where the properties available are unique or at least not the same (vs. standard suburbs where the houses all have similar square footage/yard size/architecture/etc.) it can be REALLY hard to judge just from on-line descriptions if one property is going to be real competition for another property or not.  And I would absolutely be driving by homes that are at least SORT of comparable that have sold in the last few months.  What did they sell for vs. what they were listed for?  How long were they on the market before they sold?  What features did they have?  You need to see with your own eyes what the other houses are that people might be looking at and have already purchased in your area and comparing those with yours based on what you can see with your own eyes. 

 

With the situation you describe it won't just be square footage and upgrades, obviously.  The land/location/special features/closeness to the lake/ease of access/etc. may all factor in heavily as to whether someone will be willing to pay for your home vs. someone else's. 

 

(For example, I know a friend whose house took multiple months longer to sell than a house that she considered comparable and not that far from hers simply because her house, while larger and in better condition, was much harder to access during snow/icy conditions.  The road to her home was really steep and wound around.  It was a safety concern for many potential buyers.)

Edited February 13, 2018 by OneStepAtATime

[Scarlett]

I will be driving by these recent sales.

 

There is a lot to consider, it is certainly not strictly SF .

[FriedClams]

In our area there are two classes - ON the lake and NOT on the lake. For the "not", distance is irrelevant. You can be a block away or a mile and it's the same. The only difference would be if you're in a neighborhood with private lake access -like a beach or boat ramp. Otherwise being "near" the lake doesn't affect price.

 

We've done FSBO and would again if we were in the area. I didn't find it that terrible. I would recommend paying for an excellent lawyer to manage the paperwork side.

 

Be prepared for people expecting a "deal". They don't get that you've priced it competitively, including discounts for no Realtors. They'll still think you should take even more off. Have a plan for buying agents, too. What commission do they get? Etc.

 

When we were selling we got A LOT of requests to rent to own.... Rent.... And other (seriously) stupid out of the box plans that were NOT in our interest. Be ready. It's business, not personal.

 

Have an exit plan in case the FSBO doesn't work.

 

Hope it works out for you!

[Scarlett]

In our area there are two classes - ON the lake and NOT on the lake. For the "not", distance is irrelevant. You can be a block away or a mile and it's the same. The only difference would be if you're in a neighborhood with private lake access -like a beach or boat ramp. Otherwise being "near" the lake doesn't affect price.

 

We've done FSBO and would again if we were in the area. I didn't find it that terrible. I would recommend paying for an excellent lawyer to manage the paperwork side.

 

Be prepared for people expecting a "deal". They don't get that you've priced it competitively, including discounts for no Realtors. They'll still think you should take even more off. Have a plan for buying agents, too. What commission do they get? Etc.

 

When we were selling we got A LOT of requests to rent to own.... Rent.... And other (seriously) stupid out of the box plans that were NOT in our interest. Be ready. It's business, not personal.

 

Have an exit plan in case the FSBO doesn't work.

 

Hope it works out for you!

 

 

Interesting I think that is not how it is here.  There are all of these coves off of the main town and if you are in one of those communities it will bring more money than if you are across the highway somewhere.  Then again it just depends on what people want.  Our house is more of a family home than a lake home, BUT it has a big loft and two downstairs living area so it can sleep a lot of people and there is a pool and big shop so if you have a boat it works nice whether you live here year round or it is just a lake house.

 

I am not one bit bothered by filtering out the no deal phone calls.  

[2squared]

That is just the problem though. Realtors are not magicians and I don’t think she knew what is best. She did not think we needednew windows or siding..... just slap some paint in it.

Bank appraisals don't include age of windows and siding. They go mostly by square feet. I would be more likely to buy a house with new windows/siding/whatever if all else was the same, but I wouldn't pay a premium for it.

 

I'm assuming the realtor didn't think you would be able to recoup the investment in windows and siding. usually improvements incrementally increase value, albeit at a sad % of cost.

[Scarlett]

Bank appraisals don't include age of windows and siding. They go mostly by square feet. I would be more likely to buy a house with new windows/siding/whatever if all else was the same, but I wouldn't pay a premium for it.

 

I'm assuming the realtor didn't think you would be able to recoup the investment in windows and siding. usually improvements incrementally increase value, albeit at a sad % of cost.

i am not sure I believe that in every case. We did Windows, doors, siding, paint and gutters for under 14k. Without all of that it wouldn't even have passed some bank loan inspections.