For Sale By Owner
So you want to sell your home. You don’t know what to do.
You search the internet. You ask friends and relatives advice on how to go about doing this. You have a series of questions.
- What price should I ask for the home?
- How and where should I advertise it?
- How much should I spend on advertising?
- How long should I leave it on the market before I lower the price or should I list it with a realtor?
- How do I negotiate with a buyer?
- Who writes the contract?
- Are the buyers even able to buy my home?
This is just a short list of the questions you may have. After some research you decide to try and sell it yourself. You become a ‘for sale by owner’ home. FSBO for short.
Did you think of asking your mortgage loan officer for help?
Mortgage loan officers are not realtors and more than likely will not be able to answer all your questions about selling your home but they sure can be a good ally. They are in the business of home mortgage financing. They know a whole host of service providers related to the real estate business. Their sphere of influence and knowledge includes realtors, buyers, sellers, real estate contracts, settlement companies, real estate attorneys, appraisers, home inspectors along with other service providers that you may need during the ‘for sale by owner’ real estate process.
If you are selling your home it is likely that you will need a mortgage for your new place. Give your mortgage loan officer a call to get pre-approved. When we meet for your pre-approval you can discuss the ways in which you may need help with selling your home.
The most important service they can provide to you is to do a pre-approval on any potential buyers of your home. This will insure the buyer can purchase your home. This step will save you a lot of time, money and potential heartache down the road.
Some mortgage loan officers can also provide you with marketing flyers FREE of charge. These flyers will be colorful, descriptive and professional. You provide them with great pictures of your home. They will include those pictures along with your contact information, monthly payment examples and the amounts needed for down payment and closing costs. If you need a value on your home they can refer you to home valuation websites. They can also refer you to a real estate appraiser who can give you an exact market value of your home for a fee. Most can show you how to obtain a real estate sales agreement and how to fill it out. They can also refer you to a real estate attorney to do the contract if that would make you feel more comfortable. You may want to have your home inspected to provide a potential buyer with a clean home inspection. They can refer you to a home inspector for that service.
Remember, when you are a ‘for sale by owner’ seller, use all the resources at your disposal. This includes your mortgage loan officer. They can be a great asset in your corner when selling your home on your own.