FACTS & STATISTICS for FSBOs (For-Sale-By-Owners)

A common mistake made by For-Sale-By-Owners is not pricing their properties correctly. About 10% under-price their homes, and these often sell in less than 2 weeks. Many of these are snatched up by investors on the lookout for under-priced FSBOs who often buy them for 10-20% under market. About 1/3 of all FSBOs are overpriced, and don't sell until they reduce their price.

The other problem is that many FSBOs tend to be impatient, and expect to sell their home in less than a month. Even if a FSBO is priced right, it still takes an average of 4-6 months to sell. The reason it takes so long is that they are missing the major real estate market that is dominated by MLS and Realtor.com. Obviously, a house will sell quicker if it is exposed to 20 times as many buyers.

Many FSBOs drop their price sooner than they should when their house doesn't sell right away. Most give up during the first month and list with one of many real estate agents who contacted them when they first put their sign in the yard or ad in the paper.

The biggest complaint from FSBOs: I get a lot of calls, but they're all from annoying real estate agents who just want to list my house!

Final Outcomes for "For-Sale-By-Owner" Homes

79% End up being listed with a Realtor

15% Sell without a Realtor

6% Don't sell and are taken off the market

*These figures include private party FSBOs only, and NOT professionals or investors

National Inventory of Homes for Sale, Including All For-Sale-By-Owners

90% Homes available on MLS and Realtor.com

3% Homes available on all FSBO websites combined

4% FSBO homes not on any websites - seller NOT an investor

3% FSBO homes not on any websites - seller IS an investor

*All FSBO sites combined comprise about 3% of all real estate listings, compared with 90% on Realtor.com alone.

On 11/29/04 we did property searches of 3 top national FSBO websites and Realtor.com to compare their number of listings. We entered 3 random cities: Plano, Dallas, and Las Vegas, to see how many listings each site had. These were the search results:

	Plano	Dallas	Las Vegas
Forsalebyowner.com	50	85	124
Buyowner.com	25	66	0
Byowner.com	2	2	0
Realtor.com	1,904	8,005	13,173

To verify findings, just click on the site links in the table and run searches for any city in the country.

For a comparison, here are the results of our previous search done on 5/25/02:

	Plano	Dallas	Las Vegas
Forsalebyowner.com	9	9	22
Buyowner.com	34	66	2
Byowner.com	6	29	43
Realtor.com	1,490	5,079	7,911

For-Sale-By-Owner websites make money by charging sellers to place ads on their websites. Their fees can range from a few hundred dollars to thousands. A common problem is a lack of follow up by website management, resulting in many houses still being advertised that are off the market. The websites look more appealing and viable to sellers the more listings there are, which can be one reason why many FSBO websites keep listings posted long after the houses are off the market. Buyers get discouraged quickly when they leave messages for a sellers and don't hear back from anyone.

What's the Solution?

We are not trying to discourage anyone with these statistics. The numbers are what they are. Our message is: by all means, sell your home as a FSBO, but take advantage of the marketing tools we can make available to you, and use the resources available on this website. We want you to succeed in selling your home, and we'll provide you with the important link to the major real estate market for less than most FSBOs spend on newspaper ads.

Recent News: A Must Read for FSBO's!

Why People Are Afraid To Buy From You!
Many homeowners believe that to maximize their profit on a home sale they should sell it themselves. At first glance, they feel selling a home is simple and why should they pay a broker fees for something they could do themselves? In fact, close to 25% of all the homes sold last year were sold for sale by owner (FSBO).

However, close to half of the FSBO's said that they would hire a professional next time they sold. Thirty percent said they were unhappy with the results they achieved by choosing FSBO. Why?

Many FSBO's told us that the time, paperwork and everyday responsibilities involved were not worth the amount of money they saved in commissions. For others, the financial savings were even more disappointing. By the time they figured the amount of fees paid to outside consultants, inspectors, appraisers, title lawyers, escrow and loan officers, marketing, advertising... they would have been better off having paid the broker's fee which would have included many of these charges up front.

Selling a home requires an intimate understanding of the real estate market. If the property is priced too high, it will sit and develop a reputation for being a problem property. If the property is priced too low, you will cost yourself serious money. Some FSBO's discovered that the lost money as a result of poor decisions outweighed the commission.

Before you decide to sell FSBO, consider these questions and weigh the answers of assuming the responsibility versus employing a professional. A little time spent investigating up front will pay off tenfold in the end.

Questions To Consider:

Do I have the time, energy, know-how, and ability to devote a full forced effort to sell my home?: One of the keys to selling your home efficiently and profitably is complete accessibility. Many homes have sat on the market much longer than necessary because the owner was unwilling or unavailable to show the property. Realize that a certain amount of hours each day is necessary to sell your home.
Am I prepared to deal with an onslaught of buyers who perceive FSBO's as targets for low balling?: One of the challenges of selling a home is screening unqualified prospects and dealing with lowballers. It often goes unnoticed... how much time, effort and expertise it requires to spot these people quickly. Settling for a lowball bid is usually worse than paying broker commissions.
Am I offering financing options to the buyer? Am I prepared to answer questions about financing?: One of the keys to selling, whether it's a home, a car... anything, is to have all the necessary information the prospective buyer needs and to offer them options. Think about the last time you purchased something of value, did you make a decision before you had all your ducks in a row? By offering financing options you give the home buyer the ability to work on their terms and open up the possibilities of selling your home quickly and more profitably. A professional real estate agent will have a complete team, from lenders to title reps for you to utilize...they'll be at your disposal.
Do I fully understand the legal ramifications and necessary steps required in selling a home?: Many home sales have been lost due to incomplete paperwork, lack of inspections or not meeting your states disclosure laws. Are you completely informed of all the steps necessary to sell real estate? If not, a professional would be a wise choice.
Do I have the capability of handling the legal contracts, agreements and any disputes with buyers before or after the offer is presented?: Ask yourself if you are well versed in legalese and if you are prepared to handle disputes with buyers. To avoid any disputes it is wise to put all negotiations and agreements in writing. Many home sales have been lost due to misinterpretation of what was negotiated.
Have I contacted the necessary professionals....title, inspector (home and pest), attorney, and escrow company?: Are you familiar with top inspectors and escrow companies? Don't randomly select inspectors, attorneys, and title reps. Like any profession there are inadequate individuals who will slow, delay and possibly even cost you the transaction.