FSBO Marketing

June 23,2022 | Posted By Flavia Brown in Real Estate

See the last paragraph for state-mandated disclosures. For-sale-by-owner (fsbo) home sellers have a few challenges if they want to sell at their desired price and timeframe. Their biggest challenge is attracting enough potential buyers. Many fsbos think all it takes is pay $500 to get their listing on the MLS and thousands of Realtors, and buyers will see their property. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way because when a Realtor and his/her buyer searches on the MLS they will be searching for a particular property. So there will be only a few Realtors and buyers searching for the subject property. Many Realtors make the same mistake of relying on the MLS when promoting a listing. Since they rely on the MLS they cut back on other ways to promote so they can save on promotion costs. That mistake is one big reason why many listings stay on the market for months.

Fsbos and Realtors need to promote many ways because they don’t know where the buyer will come from. By far, the best way to promote a listing and attract the most buyers and Realtors is to pay for a service that will put the listing on more that 100 real estate portals and websites, and contact 35,000 Los Angeles County Realtors. However, that service is available only to Realtors. But there are several other ways to attract buyers. Please read on.

Following are a few fsbo marketing tips. If you are an experienced and savvy fsbo seller I may not have any marketing tips that you aren’t aware of. My marketing is quite extensive, but it is supported by companies that are exclusive to Realtors. Click on “A marketing program better than most” under “Blog” on my website (homesbyflavia.com). Meanwhile, here are a few tips:

+ Write a compelling and informative flyer that will attract buyers and agents, and include many photos and a virtual tour. Promote your home and the area (example: "only three miles to the ocean.").
+ Install a For Sale By Owner sign in your front yard and as close to the street as possible. Most buyers drive around neighborhoods where they want to live.
+ Attach a flyer box to the For Sale post, and be sure the box always has flyers.
+ Hand out at least 100 flyers to neighbors. One or more neighbors might have a friend or relative who wants to live in your area.
+ Promote to Realtors online (eflyers). Very inexpensive. For $50 you can promote to 10,000 L.A. County Realtors. This is important because most buyers have agents because there isn’t any cost to the buyer.
+ Buy a one-page property website, and promote it via your eflyer and every other type of promotion you have. Very inexpensive.
+ Promote your home on YouTube.
+ Pay a small fee for entering your fsbo listing on the MLS. Find a fsbo company that offers MLS service. The MLS will accommodate fsbos.
+ Market on social media.
+ Promote for free on Craigslist (but don’t expect good results) and other free classified ads sites.
+ Host open houses professionally. I have available tips on how to get the most success from an open house.
+ The following link contains some helpful information. Click it:
https://u.realgeeks.media/tricityhometeam/ebooks-handouts-flyers-etc/fsbo/fsbo_marketing_tool_kit.pdf

Kind regards,

Flavia Brown, Realtor

P.S. Three more tips: 1) Be sure prospective buyers who want to preview your home have pre-approval letters. Otherwise they aren’t ready and able to buy, and you will be wasting your time. 2) If an offer is accepted contact the buyer’s lender every few days to be sure the loan processing is going okay. 3) Have your state-mandated Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS) completed and ready to show buyers. Buyers like to know what they are buying, and if they know, they will often make higher offers. One reason the TDS should be ready before an offer is accepted is to let the buyer know if there are any serious physical issues with the property. It's better for the seller to disclose early, rather than wait for the buyer's property inspection. (The TDS is required by law for listings and fsbos).

Mandated disclosures required before selling a home in California: The Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS) is the most important disclosure (Ca Civic Code 1102), Natural Hazard Disclosure (NHD), Statewide Buyer & Seller Advisory, Supplemental Disclosure Questionnaire (SPQ), Smoke Detector Disclosure Statement, Water ZHeater Disclosure Statement, Lead Paint Disclosure (if built prior to 1978), Environmental Safety and Earthquake Disclosure, and the Preliminary Title Report provided by the title company. Contact me with any questions or concerns.
###

Testimonials

Flavia did an exceptional job of getting my duplex sold, and found a 6-plex to complete a 1031 exchange transaction, all on time t...

- John Baker

View All Testimonials

Popular Pages

Location

22939 Hawthorne Blvd., Suite 203
Torrance CA 90505

310-702-0293

DRE# 01729313

Real Estate Websites by Strategic Agent Inc.