Hack Your FSBO

10 Insider Tips to Boosting Your Home’s Sale Success

I really shouldn’t be sharing this information with you. I’m a realtor, and I’ve made my livelihood selling homes for twenty-five years. Giving away my hard-earned industry secrets is like giving away money, right? But if you’ve committed yourself to selling your home on your own, I’d like you to be successful. That helps the whole market! And if you change your mind — I hope you’ll give me a call!

So, without further ado, here are my ten tips for boosting your home’s sales success:

1. Price Your Home Correctly.

Do Market Research: Use comparable home sales (comps) in your area to set a competitive price. Overpricing can turn buyers away. Sometimes, sellers attempt to price in some “wiggle” room, but buyers are much savvier than you’re giving them credit for. They’ll let your home sit on the market until they feel the price is right (meaning you’ve marked it down). And the longer your home sits on the market, the greater your chances of getting a low-ball offer. I’ve had sellers ask me, “If they want it, they’ll make an offer, right?” No, often, buyers will not approach a home they feel is overpriced because they believe they won’t successfully work it out with the seller. Who can blame them for not wanting to get their hopes up?

2. Prepare Your Home for Sale

Declutter and Clean: Make the home appealing by removing personal items and deep cleaning. That means hire a professional to steam clean your carpets and deep clean your home. I always tell my sellers, “It should appear like you are living here effortlessly.”

Make Necessary Repairs: To avoid turning off buyers, go ahead and fix issues like dripping faucets, chipped paint, or broken fixtures. If the roof is leaking or the AC isn’t cooling, schedule the repair. In most cases, however, renovating your home is not a good financial decision.

Stage the Home: Consider staging key rooms to help buyers envision themselves living in the space. You can hire a professional or use online resources for DIY tips. An experienced real estate agent can help you with this (wink wink).

3. Take High-Quality Photos

Use Professional Photography and Videography: Listings with professional-quality images attract more attention. And the more photos the better! Realtors will often order 50 or more photos. Videography is the new name of the listing game, especially when marketing on social channels. Don’t skip this part!

Highlight Key Features: Focus on capturing the best aspects of your home, such as natural light, open spaces, or recent upgrades. Our real estate firm often orders a nice mix of small details and broader shots for my clients.

4. Market Aggressively

List on Popular Sites: Post on all major real estate websites like Zillow, Realtor.com, and FSBO-specific platforms.

Leverage Social Media: Use Facebook, Instagram, and local community groups to spread the word.

Use Yard Signs: A well-placed yard sign can attract local buyers.

5. Create an Informative Listing

Write a Strong Description: Highlight your home’s best features, including recent renovations, neighborhood amenities, and any unique selling points.

Include Accurate Details: Provide information on square footage, lot size, number of rooms, and any special features.

6. Be Ready for Showings

Create a Flexible Showing Schedule: Allow for both scheduled and last-minute showings. Buyers often look at homes after work or on weekends.

Keep Your Home Show-Ready: Always be prepared to show the home at a moment’s notice. If possible, pets should be restrained or off the premises. Safely secure all medications, firearms, cash, and items of value.

7. Understand the Legal Requirements

Get Familiar with Disclosure Laws: Every state has specific requirements about what you must disclose to potential buyers, such as issues with the roof, foundation, or plumbing.

Have Contracts Ready: Use legally sound real estate contracts. You can find templates online, but it’s wise to have a real estate attorney review them. Or, an experienced real estate professional could help you out (Hey! That’s me!)

8. Negotiate Like a Pro

Be Prepared for Offers: Understand how to handle offers, counteroffers, inspections, and contingencies.

Stay Objective: Don’t let emotions drive your decision-making. Focus on facts and market value when negotiating.

9. Consider Buyer’s Agents

Offer a Buyer’s Agent Commission: Most buyers work with agents and offering a commission can make your property more appealing.

Prepare to Work with Agents: Agents can bring qualified buyers, but you’ll need to communicate and negotiate effectively with them.

10. Just Hire Me, and I’ll Handle the Other the Nine Plus These:

Select a qualified Real Estate Attorney or Title Company. Assist through inspections and appraisals. Follow up on financing to ensure the buyer can complete the purchase.

I wish you all the success in selling your home quickly and for top dollar! If you decide at some point to enlist the services of a real estate agent, I hope you’ll interview me!

With our team at Art House, Brokered by Realty South, there are no minimum listing time or upfront fees. We offer a special rate to FSBO’s as well! Along with placing your home on the Multiple Listing Service, which puts it in front of over 5000 real estate agents in Birmingham, we also syndicate it in up to forty other real estate websites to maximize how many potential buyers receive information on your home. In addition to that, each one of our listings receives promotional ads across all our social media channels and is distributed to our pool of buyers. And, with your permission, we enjoy hosting open houses and offer that as part of our service!

Interested in learning more about our approach? Reach out!