For Sale By Owner Checklist

FSBO Checklist This for sale by owner checklist includes helpful tips and a set order for task completion and gives owners exactly what they need to sell their home on their own.

1. Set Realistic FSBO Expectations Setting realistic for sale by owner expectations helps owners prepare for market trends and learn more about the sales process in their state. These realistic expectations around the sales process will help owners decrease the time to close and result in more offers for their home. What’s more, it can verify whether or not a FSBO sale is actually right for you.

Consider FSBO State Laws & POA Requirements Each state has a different set of laws and requirements for real estate sales. For FSBO transactions, there may be different laws that apply from state to state. Reading up on the real estate laws in your state will help you avoid nasty surprises at the end of the sales process.

Most homeowners do not check with the property owners’ association (POA) or homeowners’ association (HOA) in their neighborhood before deciding to start a for sale by owner process. Some POAs/HOAs have strict policies against signage in the yard and open houses. It is best to review your POA/HOA regulations before the violation notice comes in the mail.

Decide Whether to Partner With a Real Estate Agent Many owners assume that working with a real estate agent is off the table the moment for sale by owner is a consideration.

However, working with a qualified real estate agent can bring interested buyers to your door by offering the standard buyer’s commission. Although this is an extra expense, a real estate agent can point qualified buyers to your property, shorten your sales time and likely get a higher price for your property.

Formulate a Moving Plan Owners often put off the moving plan until the very last minute because there are many other things to do in the sales process. The moving plan is a vital part of closing the sale, however, because you have to vacate the house to turn over the keys. Instead of rushing around to find a mover at the end of the process when you’re focused on completing the sale, consider your move early — and if you have any limitations around when and how you can complete a move.

2. Consider Your FSBO Price This is when you start to think about pricing your home. Many For Sale by Owners fail to sell because the pricing is off for their home or the neighborhood. It is vital to do some research and find out about the market and what your home is worth for the features in your neighborhood by learning about the market and home sale values to help set a price.

Learn About the Market & Your Neighborhood Research current sale prices for houses within 1 mile of your neighborhood and with features comparable to your own house.

Set Your High & Low Asking Price Using the research you have gathered, think about your highest and lowest price for your house. The highest price would be the amount that you would be thrilled to receive as an offer. The lowest would be the bare minimum that you would accept as a seller. Be realistic because this will affect you’re the buyer’s appraisal, other negotiations and, ultimately, your ability to sell.

3. Ready Your House for Showing Readying your home for showing means making sure that small repairs are complete. By making your home inviting to buyers both inside and outside, you can increase interest and the number of viable offers for your property. Now is the time to get your house ready for visitors and tours.

Make Small Repairs & Replacements You probably know every leaky faucet and sticky door in your house. Be sure that you make small repairs and replace things that visitors are likely to come in contact with during their tour of the house. From burned-out light bulbs to broken window panes, broken fixtures can make a negative impression on potential buyers. Do not, however, make major repairs at this stage.

Increase Curb Appeal Curb appeal is the first impression people get about your house before getting out of the car. Be sure to mow the grass, trim the hedges, shovel the snow (if necessary), power wash the house, weed the flower beds, and replace the mailbox.

The outside of your home should be a candidate for a magazine layout, right down to a new welcome mat at the door.

Declutter the House Cluttered rooms can look small and messy. It is vital that you remove old furniture, ripped rugs, excessive knickknacks, and any dĂŠcor that is questionable or unusual. Visitors like to see open spaces with plenty of room and light, so do everything you can to enlarge the space with mirrors and make it look brighter. This allows people to see their own furnishings in the open spaces.

Hire Professional Cleaners Most people skip this step because they clean their own house, but this small expense can yield large bonus points with buyers. Professional cleaners focus on everything from baseboards to windows to dust removal and mopping.

A professional cleaner pays attention to small details in every room to make potential buyers feel like the house has been well taken care of by the current owners. For around $250, you can focus on the sales and marketing of your home and leave the cleaning to the professionals.

Clean the Unseen Stuffing things in the closet, garage, or basement or attic is a mistake. If you have too much stuff, then a garage sale or donation to charity might help you get rid of it. Potential buyers with run of the house will look under cabinets, in closets, in the attic, and the garage as well as any storage sheds.

4. Design & Execute Your Marketing A marketing plan for your home is a vital part of your for sale by owner checklist because this is how you get your word out to potential buyers. From flyers to listing opportunities, attractive marketing pieces and a well-thought-out strategy help you increase the sales opportunities.

Create a Flyer & Signage Creating printed materials like a flyer and a yard sign can be something most people put off until the last moment. A yard sign is the 3nd most popular way to offer a home for sale.

List on MLS or Local Real Estate Agency Site Listing your home on the local MLS or real estate agent site might not seem intuitive if you have decided not to work with a real estate agent, but most home searches start online. * Advanced Real Estate and Property Management helps FSBO offer a property on the local MLS for a low fee, which allows home sellers to save thousands of dollars in commissions*

5. Prepare for an Open House The most important part of preparing for an open house means preparation for every step of the buyer’s journey. From making sure the sales forms are ready to create the right mood for the buyer and follow up, you have to prepare to meet your buyer and close the deal at the right moment. * With the onset of the Covid-19 Pandemic, Advanced Real Estate & Property Management has partnered with companies to secure home buyer offers without Showings or Open Houses or commissions. Please call 801-738-8315 for more info*

Make Sure Sales Forms Are Ready Some people forget this step of their for sale by owner checklist or add it to a later stage. The reality is that your goal is to attract potential buyers. If a buyer falls in love with your house and decides to make an offer, then you do not want to let them get away. Preparing the paperwork at this stage means that you are ready to sell when the buyer makes the right offer.

Set the Mood Some prefer to bake cookies or use pretty candles to control the smell of a room. Many real estate agents advise that you leave all of the lights on in the house because it helps people to see features more distinctly. The mood is set by many different factors like lighting, the smell of food, and the right temperature, so provide a comfortable setting to make people feel at home.

Here are a few ways to set the mood for the buyer:

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Bake cookies or cupcakes right before opening the door Leave lights on in all rooms Make sure that the room temperature is comfortable Open curtains to show the view Offer food or drinks to create a friendly atmosphere

Let Visitors Tour & Answer Questions It is natural to want to follow people around and conduct a tour of your home. After all, you want to show it off. However, letting people wander through your home by themselves removes the awkward feeling of them being in someone else’s house.

The open house is your opportunity to host potential buyers and share the best parts of your home. Although you should let buyers roam around instead of conducting guided tours, your interaction after their self-tour will be all about answering questions and highlighting important features.

Display a Sign-in Sheet Do not be bashful about asking people who visit your home to sign in. A sign-in sheet gives you the ability to track those who visited and connect with them later to touch base about any questions. You can include a box to check if they are preapproved for a loan to reduce invasive questions further.

6. Nurture Leads Until the Sale After visiting your home, people might need time to look at other houses before making a decision. Staying connected to your leads and nurturing them through the sales process will keep your property in their mind.

Offer to send them another flyer or schedule a follow-up showing to help buyers make up their mind and be sure to provide them with clear contact information so that they can reach out at any point with additional questions.

7. Negotiate a Fair Price Negotiating a fair price is all about offers and counter-offers because it is rare that an owner and a buyer agree on a price in the beginning. In step two of your for sale by owner checklist, you researched the market value of your home using features and neighborhood. Using this data to determine a high and low price for your home makes it easy to negotiate a fair price.

Find Out About Prequalification If you have not asked a potential buyer about their pre-approval status, then now is the time to ask the potential buyer about a pre qualification letter. A pre qualification letter helps you determine how long it will take to complete the sale and how seriously you can take a buyer’s offer. It is helpful to realize a pre qualification letter does not always guarantee a sale.

Accept Earnest Money Once you have accepted a buyer’s offer and set a price, the earnest money will be deposited for your home that is applied to the total amount owed to the owner. This earnest money allows everyone to move forward with the purchase in good faith.

Set Expectations for Inspections & Closing This is the right time to schedule all of the inspections needed for your home and set a timeline for the closing. With an overall home inspection, owners will need to have a termite, home inspection to be sure that there are no problems that might lead to lawsuits later. You can find a home inspector through a real estate agent or online.

8. Complete the Closing The closing is the place where planning is the most vital because delays can cost money and time. Making sure that the home is inspected and repairs completed are the biggest steps.

Settle Home Inspection Findings & Repairs Deciding with the buyer what will be fixed as the result of the home inspection is another point of negotiation. Some sellers lower the price rather than make larger repairs to the home. Other sellers decide that making the repair is worth the full offer price. It depends on what the home inspector finds and what the repairs entail.

Sign Paperwork to Complete the Sale Bring an ID with you to the closing to make sure that everything is legal. Because legal documents that are notarized are necessary to complete all sales documentation, a form of identification is required.

Address Final Details This is the final step before handing over the keys to a new owner. At this point, you will want to deploy your moving plan from step one of your for sale by owner checklist and get ready to start a new stage of life.

Here are some of the most important things to consider before closing the door on your home sale:

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Set a stop date for the utilities Establish a time and date for the movers to relocate your household goods Connect with the insurance company to stop the property coverage Change your address with the post office

If you have any questions or would like assistance during your home sale process…feel free to contact us:

Advanced Real Estate & Property Management 1133 N Main # 122, Layton, UT 84041 Office 801 738 8315