Posts Tagged sell your own house
My House Is Under Contract and Officially “In Escrow”
Posted by Deane in Sale Of Author's House on May 13, 2010
Whoops! I see I haven’t posted in two weeks. I didn’t mean to let it be that long, but I’ve been busy. I’m sure you understand.
Just before we met with the Anderson’s agent who was presenting our second offer, the Johnson’s agent called to announce they were removing the contingency. Oh happy day! So now we had a full price offer, no contingencies. The Anderson’s offer wasn’t as strong as the Johnson’s, but I didn’t care – it encouraged the Johnson’s to remove the contingency. (As it turns out that wouldn’t have mattered anyway, I’ll explain below.)
The original offer(minus the contingency) was accepted, we signed the contract, and are officially in escrow. Here is what has so far happened during the escrow process:
- We have had our home inspection. The inspector found a handful of small items, but the buyers didn’t ask for any
repairs. Whew-hoo! That is unusual but more likely when your house is an excellent shape. 
- The Johnsons got a full price offer on their house, with no contingencies. Their house was on the market only 7 days! Their buyer wants to move in fast, so our closing date has already been set for 6/9. This is great news as it keeps them on track and motivated to close on time. Ironically, if we hadn’t held out for the contingency our closing date would have been the same. But you never know!
- Today the appraiser was by – we should have the results of that in a few days.
The only small glitch was I had to remind John to arrange the home inspection. According to our contract, the inspection should be done and been presented with the repairs requested 10 days after contract ratification (signing). The inspection wasn’t done til day 13. Uh-oh. So we requested an addendum. John seemed a little miffed that I asked 
for one, but you can never be too careful. In a perfect world we could do all transactions on a handshake, but in the real world we have contracts to help make sure everyone does the right thing instead.
Now we have to wait for the results of the appraisal and for the Johnson’s loan approval. Their financials were very strong, so I’m not concerned about that at all. Since there was no contingency about the appraised value of the house, that shouldn’t be an issue either. If someone is getting the maximum loan amount, not appraising high enough can kill a deal, but that really can’t happen here. The Johnsons are putting more than 1/3 down so there really is no chance their loan won’t cover their responsibility.
We Got It Together And Had Our First Open House Today
Posted by Deane in Sale Of Author's House on April 11, 2010
Even though I paid for my flat fee MLS listing 4 days ago, as of yesterday it still wasn’t live and I was freaking out (just a little).
When you do a flat fee MLS listing through a FSBO site such as FSBO.com, the listing still has to be put on the MLS by a real estate agent and they will farm it out to a local real estate agent that handles their flat fee listings. This will be one of the hardset things you will do to sell your house, but unfortunately, it almost is required for most houses. Here are the issues I had trying to do this simple thing.
- Initially the realtor only gave me half of the documents needed to complete the transaction. Having done this before I knew what was missing. It took me 24 hours to get two additional documents. When I got all the documentation, there were 29 pages that had to be filled out and signed. It reminded me why I don’t like working with them. Everything is a big deal.
- The contract from the agent stated I would get 1 photo (and had to pay for mo), even though FSBO.com clearly states I will get 8 photos so I had to argue for that. They ultimately put all 17 photos on for no extra cost. This is my favorite photo – looking up our front walk. It really shows off the landscaping which is one of my home’s main features.
- Then very sneakily they offer, “from time to time we may do some free advertising – would you like us to include you?”. Sounds good, right? WRONG! Check this off and you have just given them permission to market your house and now you will have to pay them commission.
- The realtor I was given to use never answered their phone. Not once. Iwas stressing because I already had an open house planned and was afraid my MLS listing wouldn’t be up in time. It went live Sat. night for my open house on Sunday. It took me three days (and some nagging) to get my listing up. Ugh.
Three days ago was the day I committed to having my house officially “for sale”. Here’s how it all came together on that day:
- My FSBO “for sale” sign was installed.
- I put flyers in my brochure box.
- The 259Cinder.com website went live. It looks great.
- My Postlets ad was syndicated.
- And I started running ads on Craigslist that had either my Postlet or my website as body of the ad
- I started distributing 150 flyers around the neighborhood, hanging them in plastic bags that fit over a doorknob.
- I put up a sign that said “Open House Sunday 1-3″ in front of my house.
- All marketing that went out this week advertised the open house that we had today.
This morning, I baked chocolate chip cookies, put up “Open House” signs at three major intersections nearby, got a bunch of helium balloons, and printed out a sign up sheet.
We had 13 families stop by which I thought was a great turnout. And interestingly, only one party found out about the house from the MLS listing! (See, I shouldn’t have stressed out about getting the listing up in time!) The others either saw the Open House signs or received a flyer on their doorknob. I’d say half were somewhat interested and 3 or 4 were keenly interested. Everyone loved the house and commented on how much better it was than other houses they had seen. (That is to be expected when you actually put some work into it!)
One neighbor said she belongs to a playgroup and there are several moms looking for houses in our neighborhood. As soon as the open house was over, I sent her an email with links to my website and my email and phone number. It pays to be proactive and make it as easy for her as possible. Of course she knows that I will give her a $500 “thank you” if anyone she recommends buys the house.
Today we also have someone coming by from a Craiglist ad to buy lawn furniture we decided to get rid of. And we have a commitment from a family member to buy one of our cars. We are only taking one car with us that we will tow and then buy another car once we get settled. Our life here is pretty rapidly being dissembled! Which is just what we want.
P.S. After you finish an open house be sure to take down the signs and balloons promptly or you will get stragglers who will demand to see the house after the set time. (Ask me how I know this!)
Before You Sell Your Own House, Sell Your Stuff On EBay and Craigslist
Posted by Deane in Sale Of Author's House on April 4, 2010
I am a minimalist when it comes to accumulating a lot of stuff, and so is my husband. On that we agree. However, as we stared sorting through our stuff and deciding what to give away, what to sell, and what to keep, to my surprise, we disagreed on almost everything! If he wanted to keep it, I wanted to give it away. If I wanted to give it away, he wanted to sell it. Therefore sorting through our stuff took a little longer than I expected. 
I usually am of the mind of giving things away rather than selling them. After all, who would want this stuff I’m now considering “basement clutter”. WRONG. My husband is taking care of selling on eBay and Craigslist, , blow me down, most of the items he has put on eBay (if we can easily ship) or Craigslist (for bigger items), have sold in a day for what he asked! So far we sold a treadmill, an exercise bike, a set of luggage, real estate investment books and DVD’s. I’ve been stunned at how easy it was. And so far we’ve netted nearly $2000! Wow! And we still have quite a few more big items to sell. And to think I wanted to give it away.
However, don’t just slap some crappy ad on there and expect these sort of great results. In my next post, I’ll show you an ad he did for an unusual big ticket item.
So here is my home selling tip for today. When getting your house ready to sell for sale by owner, consider using eBay and Craigslist to help. You will be recycling at it’s best. And other people will PAY you to remove your unwanted stuff!
Water Is Your Home’s Worst Enemy
Posted by Deane in Miscellaneous on January 13, 2010
Water is the most powerful force on earth. Water is the key to life. Water can carve out the Grand Canyon or destroy a city like New Orleans. And if you own a home, water can be your home’s worst enemy. Especially if you are trying to sell your own house. Nothing will scare off a potential buyer faster than seeing water problems or mold.
The main thing you need to know about water in regards to maintaining your house, is that it always finds the path of least resistance to run downward, due to the force of gravity. Even a pin hole in a roof or pipe will cause water to run down that spot and start causing damage. The smallest opening left unattended can cause a lot of damage.
The next obvious concept is that water issues never fix themselves. The instant you seed a drop of water anywhere it doesn’t belong is the moment you start looking for the cause and fixing it or hiring someone to take care of it for you. Ignoring a water problem is like ignoring a tooth cavity. It never goes away and only gets worse with time. And it will cost a lot more money and cause a lot more pain the longer you wait.
As a real estate investor, I’ve seen perfectly decent houses ruined by the owner not taking care of water problems. A few houses I purchased and rehabbed were destroyed by water. In one house, the bathtub had crashed down from the top floor and was sitting in the kitchen when I bought it, because the owner didn’t fix a plumbing issue in the bathroom. I purchased a house where a gutter had half fallen down and now acted like a trough that led right into a poorly sealed bedroom window. This eventually brought down the bedroom floor, the dining room ceiling, ruined the hardwood floor in the dining room and left the basement with standing water which ruined the finished portion of the basement. All this damage was caused just because the owner didn’t have a gutter reattached!
Besides taking care of any visible problems immediately, here are some tips to keep your home safe from water damage.
Make sure all your gutters are clean from leaves and debris and all your drain spouts are flowing properly. If you live surrounded by trees, clean your gutters twice a year, spring and fall.
Put a wire mesh filter over the drain from your washing machine. These look like a metal sock and are inexpensive. You can find them at discount or hardware stores. You won’t believe the lint, pet hair, and bits that are collected. This keeps all this stuff from clogging up your laundry room sink.
If you have a garbage disposal, use it only for the small stuff. I’m embarrassed to admit I once clogged mine cramming too many potato skins down it. Always run it thoroughly with cold water before you run your dishwasher. A plumber who specializes in snaking out drains told me to pour a box of baking soda down the kitchen sink every three months and run it thoroughly with cold water. If you put baking soda in your fridge to keep it fresh, pour the contents of the old box down the sink.
Get some natural enzymes that eat the junk in your pipes and use it as directed in all your drains – sinks, tubs, showers, and toilets. Don’t use caustic chemicals for this, that will only hurry the demise of your pipes.
It you take these preventative steps and are vigilant about looking for water issues and taking care of them early, you should be able to prevent any water disasters in your own home. This is always critical but even more so when you are selling your house.
On The Other Side of A Real-Life Home Selling Lesson
Posted by Deane in Miscellaneous on December 22, 2009
My adult son and his buddy since middle school have been roommates, sharing an apartment. Their lease was up this fall so they decided to take advantage of the tax credit and low prices. They made an offer on a house and it was accepted. How exciting for every one! Except me 
.
I didn’t want to be a wet blanket, but I knew the chances of them getting a loan were slim. I tried to explain this to the kids without being a total “budinsky”. Between them they make well into 6 figures, BUT at least 75% of that money gets paid to them on a 1099. If you don’t understand the significance of this, this is exactly why you need to get a lender on your side when you are trying to sell your own house! Lenders HATE to give loans to the self-employed.
Some lenders lie. They will say anything in the hopes that they can get your business. Their lender insisted from start to finish there would be no problem getting a loan. (I knew better.) The day after Thanksgiving, two days after they were supposed to settle, they get the bad news – no loan!
The sellers had already moved out. Yikes. My son and his friend HAD to be out of their apartment and quickly moved 
into his friend’s parent’s house. Double yikes.
Onto phase two. My son’s friend found another lender. (Not mine, again.) They are “pretty sure” they can get a loan next month. Meanwhile about 10 people’s lives have been totally disrupted. The sellers have one small child and another due any time. And it’s the week before Christmas.
Please put yourself in the seller’s shoes. They have two mortgages. They have a vacant house in the middle of winter they have to heat and worry about. We had 2 feet of snow yesterday they had to go shovel. Their life has been on hold for months. They can’t market the house to someone else because the contract is still binding. Even if they could, they have now entered the WORST time of year to sell a house.
Did I mention, that this wasn’t a for sale by owner house? Both parties, buyer and seller had realtors. I have to laugh when I see realtors saying how much FSBO sellers are risking by not using them and how much trouble they will save you. Right.
What lesson can YOU take to the bank here when you are selling your own house? Don’t believe a lender that you don’t have a relationship with and doesn’t have your best interests at heart. Be VERY leery about selling to a buyer that is relying on self-employment income.
I hope to come to you later and have a happy ending to this story!
Meanwhile, have a wonderful holiday. Stay warm and stay well.
Selling FSBO? Don’t Sabotage the Sale of Your House
You’ve gotten your house completed fixed up and ready to sell. You’ve started your FSBO marketing campaign. Now you have to make sure that YOU don’t sabotage the sale of your house because you aren’t ready to sell your own house.
HAVE THE RIGHT MINDSET
Your mindset is the key to accomplishing anything, including selling your own house. As Henry Ford said, “Whether you believe you can, or you can’t, you are right.”
Stop listening to bad news and naysayers. People will say you’re crazy. Don’t argue with them and don’t let them bring you down.
Absolutely refuse to listen to people’s “house selling horror stories”.
Once you have gotten your house ready to sell, there is a point where many people say to themselves, “Ugh. Now I have to sell my house and I hate selling! I don’t know how to sell anything!”
You must come across as sincere, professional, competent, and serious about selling your house. A buyer without an agent will be looking to you for guidance.
If you are dealing with buyers with an agent, you don’t want the agent to take control. If you are already totally comfortable with selling your house, that’s fantastic. If not, you’ll have to act as if you are. Here are some pointers.
DRESS THE PART
You, just like your house, have to make a good first impression. You need to instill in your buyers that you are confident and professional, someone with integrity that they would want to deal with. So you need to look the part.
Whenever you are showing your house your attire should be “dressy casual”. Don’t answer the door looking like you just got back from the gym!
THINK THE PART
I personally dislike what I consider “hard selling” and you may, too. So, I don’t think of myself as a sales person. I think of myself as a trusted advisor. So should you!
I remind myself that I am there to answer questions potential buyers may have. If a question comes up that I don’t know the answer to, that’s OK. I know I can find the answer. And relax and know “if not them, then someone else”.
ACT THE PART
When showing your house, greet people at the door, shake hands, and tell them you are happy to meet them. Build rapport
Show them around. Let them look and take in what they see. No need to be talking every second. Don’t hover. Be in the kitchen if they have any questions. This is where people usually feel most comfortable and will open up to talk.
Remember that you must come across as sincere, professional, competent, and serious about selling your house. If you are dealing with buyers without an agent, they will be looking to you for guidance. If you are dealing with buyers with an agent, you don’t want their agent to think he can take control because you’re selling for sale by owner.
TALK THE PART
Do more listening than talking. Put the attention on the buyer, not on you. Here are some easy sales tips you can use when talking with buyers.
- Assume that they are going to buy the house. Tell them, “Your family will love having cookouts on the deck this summer.” Help the buyers “see” themselves in your house.
- Listen for the “question behind the question”. If someone asks, “Is there a high school nearby?” Ask, “Oh, do you have teenagers?” Don’t assume they want the answer to that question to be “yes”. They might say, “No, but our last house was by a high school. What a nightmare!” Knowing this will temper how you will answer that question.
Now you’ve got the right mindset and know how to present yourself, as well as your house, in the best possible light to potential buyers. So you can proceed to sell your own house with poise and confidence.
Both Houses OK Tax Credit Extension
I’m delighted to pass along some great news if you are trying to sell your own house! Especially if you think your home might appeal to first time buyers. And remember what I’ve taught you in “The Truth About FSBO” – contact a mortgage broker who will put together some FSBO marketing materials for you on loan programs and tax incentives available.
Daily Real Estate News | November 5, 2009 | Both Houses OK Tax Credit Extension, Expansion
The House today and the Senate yesterday passed legislation to extend the $8,000 home buyer tax credit to May 1, 2010, for first-time buyers and add a $6,500 tax credit for repeat buyers if they’ve lived in their home for five of the past eight years. Home prices are capped at $800,000.
The legislation in both houses was included in a bill to extend unemployment benefits and is expected to be signed by President Obama shortly.
“REALTORS® appreciate the swift action by Congress to extend the home buyer tax credit and expand it to some current homeowners,” says NAR President Charles McMillan. “As the leading advocate of housing and real estate issues, we urge President Obama to sign this legislation into law quickly to keep the momentum going in the fragile recovery of the nation’s housing market.”
Under the bill, income limits are expanded to $125,000 for individuals and $225,000 for joint filers. Individuals with incomes up to $145,000 and joint filers with incomes up to $245,000 qualify for reduced credits.
Households who have binding contracts in place by April 30 will be allowed an additional 60 days to complete their transaction. The deadline for members of the military serving out the U.S. for at least 90 days between Jan. 1, 2009, and May 1, 2010, has been extended one year.
Taxpayers can claim the credit on their federal income tax returns. If the credit exceeds their tax bill, the government will issue a check. Taxpayers will be able to claim the credit on their 2009 income tax return for purchases made in 2010.
Source: The Associated Press (11/5/2009)
The Top Ten Things Your Realtor Doesn’t Want You To Know
Posted by Deane in Miscellaneous on October 28, 2009
As an outspoken proponent of the “for sale by owner” movement, I write about this topic extensively, but I read an article written by a realtor I wanted to share with you. Among his top 10, he includes how little time realtors spend getti
ng their license (as little as 10 days) and how much the hourly rate can be for a listing agent – thousands of dollars an hour. But don’t take my word for it. Here is the link to read the rest of the ten things your realtor doesn’t want you to know. You may be surprised. And glad that you chose to sell your own house!
Some People Don’t Know You Can Sell Your Own House!
Posted by Deane in Miscellaneous on October 12, 2009
I read today on ForSaleByOwner.com ‘s blog, that many consumers are mislead to believe there is some special law or policy which states they have to use an agent during the buying and selling process! Information used to be totally controlled by agents which lead people to believe they had to work with them.
About 4 years ago, an independent study by Real Trends found out about only 50% of consumers were aware 
of the “for sale by owner” method of selling their home. I imagine during the past 4 years awareness has improved considerably and homeowners understand they have the right to sell their own home if they chose. How anyone could miss all the ‘for sale by owner” signs around town is beyond me.
You will need a title company to draw up the necessary paperwork to transfer ownership from you to your buyer. But you definitely are not legally required to use a realtor!
Feeling Overwhelmed About Selling Your House? Your Feelings Are Predictable!
Posted by Deane in Miscellaneous on October 7, 2009
Now that you’ve decided to sell your own house, you may be thinking, “What have I gotten myself into?”
That is completely normal and to be expected. Did you know that there is a predictable learning curve that everyone experiences whenever they learn something new? The pattern goes like this:
It starts with “uninformed optimism”. You’re excited about your new venture and can see its potential to improve some area your life and help you get what you want – whether it will make you money, get you in shape, or help you sell your house.
The next phase is “informed pessimism”. This is where the reality of what is involved with your new venture sets in. It’s realizing that the new diet, opening that little shop, or selling your house involves more work than you thought.
The next phase is “crisis of meaning”. This is where you consider throwing in the towel on your new venture, “I can’t do this. This is too hard. I can’t figure this all out. I didn’t know it was going to take so much work.”
At this critical point, many people give up. It’s where they have an overwhelming desire to run back to the familiar, even if the familiar sucks! (I’m going through that right now with a new diet I just started…)
The shame of it is that at this point, the very point where most people give up, they are SO close to being at “informed optimism”. This is where you know the score, you are realistic about what it takes to meet your goal and you are still totally motivated. Getting to this point is what separates winners from losers every day in all areas of life.
So remember if you are feeling overwhelmed about selling your house right now it’s just because you’ve moved from “uniformed optimism” to “informed pessimism”, the normal learning curve.
