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PO Box 37, Louisville, KY 40203 Phone: 502-638-8888 - Fax: 888-387-3188
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
- What is the smartest way to fix up my home?
Concentrate on first-impression improvements, such as washing all your windows, touching up paint, un-cluttering closets, installing high wattage light bulbs to brighten up the rooms and up grade the hardware on your front door. Paint dirty walls, clean out gutters, spread new mulch and planting blooming flowers. You must, however, make obvious needed repairs. A dripping faucet, broken railing, rusty mailbox, or malfunctioning lock signals buyers that your home isn’t well maintained. If anyone makes a bid at all, it will be at a handyman special price. More worrisome signs – odors from a leaky furnace or a telltale whine in the central air unit will almost certainly scare off buyer’s altogether.
- I know that pricing is an important issue when selling a home. How do I price my home accurately?
We wish everyone asked this question! Statistics have proven that the right price sells a home faster than any other factor. Over 90% of the homes that fail to sell are overpriced, regardless of being with an agent or “by owner”. There are several ways to price your home accurately.
- As a seller, do I have to pre-qualify my buyers?
NO! Pre-qualifying buyers is the responsibility of the lender, or mortgage company, not you! Although agents would like you to believe that they always bring qualified buyers, this is not always the case. How ever, you too can pre-qualify your buyer by simply asking them if they have been to a lender about a mortgage. Also, encourage those interested in making an offer that they bring a letter of pre-qualification with their offer to purchase.
- What about security? I hear from agents that selling “for sale by owner” is dangerous.
This is a scare tactic used by agents of less than honorable intentions. With 15+ years of working with the real estate industry we have never heard of one single incident of theft. Recent reports show that homes listed with real estate agents were robbed by individuals who used open houses by realtors to gain access to the home and then one person occupied the realtor while the other robbed the house. We are not aware of any home robberies that have occurred while someone was selling by owner.
- Is it true that selling “for sale by owner” takes much longer than selling with an agent?
No. A well priced home will sell just as fast “by owner” as with an agent, sometimes faster. The average time that it takes to sell a home on the MLS is about 120 days. With FiSBO Network the selling time is usually quicker unless the home is overpriced. An accurate price and a solid marketing plan is the best advise. Price your home accurately, advertise it aggressively, and watch the buyers flock to you.
- Do Open Houses really work?
Since you would be counting on drive-by traffic, open houses work best if you live on or near a heavily traveled area. You need to advertise your open house in as many places as possible. The best time for an open house is usually Sunday between the hours of 2pm and 5pm if possible. Don’t hold an open house every weekend. They become monotonous. Most buyers are willing to look at your home by appointment. The National Association of Realtors reports that only 2% of all home sales actually comes from an open house.
- How difficult is the paperwork?
You receive and standard contract and forms with any ad placed on our FiSBO Network internet advertising and you may also purchase a generic contract & forms packet from our office, however if you feel uncomfortable writing you own contract Innovative Realty at a fee can provide you with contract preparation service and only represent the transaction and receive no commission from the sale or if you list your home with our discount MLS real estate program your realtor will do all of the paperwork for you at no additional charge.
- Are all internet sites the same?
NOT AT ALL!!! Many websites will offer their services for FREE. Be aware that those sites need to make money too. This usually means that they sell your personal information to others in the real estate industry (i.e. real estate agents, mortgage companies, insurance companies, etc.) There are also 1.1 million For Sale by Owner websites on the internet. Most websites that are internet only, are like a billboard in the desert… they could have all of the “bells and whistles”, but who sees them? The answer is absolutely no one!!!
- Is there anyway to list on the MLS without paying a 6-7% commission?
YES! Innovative Realty offers a program in which you can place your home on the MLS and still save money. If any other agent sells your home, you agree to pay up to 4% total (3% to the selling agent and 1% to Innovative), however if Innovative Realty represents the you the seller and buyer as a limited dual agent then you pay 1.5% total commission.
- Why should I consider paying a buyer’s closing costs?
You can still net the same sales price provided you price your house with this in mind. Most importantly, it increases your market of potential buyers because it reduces their out of pocket expenses.
- What happens if an agent calls with a potential buyer?
One thing to remember is that you are in control when selling your home by owner. If you don’t want to deal with an agent, you don’t have to. An agent may find a buyer for you and he or she will most definitely want to get some compensation. One way you could handle this situation is to say, I have priced my home without a commission built in. My bottom line is $xxx,xxx. You (the agent) add your commission to that bottom line and keep the difference. If they want a full 3% commission, they will have to sell your home for more than the asking price and the buyer will pay the commission.
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