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SOLD
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Lynn
Fortney
(Listing #205)
1044 Ivy Hills Circle
Hoover, AL |
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I sold my
townhouse/condo (listing 205) after only two months on
FORSALE-BYOWNER.com. AND my net profit from the sale was exactly what I'd
hoped to get out of it!
In those two months
of exposure on FORSALE-BYOWNER.com, I had almost 600 hits on the website
and personally showed the condo to seventeen prospective buyers. Fifteen
of the seventeen I showed it to had initially seen the house on Pat's
website. The other two had seen the directional signs Pat provides as part
of the service. Meanwhile, the house across the street from me is still
for sale. Another friend of mine has had her home listed with one of the
area's top real estate agents for seven months and has only just now sold
after drastically dropping the price. FORSALE-BYOWNER.com works!!!
What I did right:
I got the place in
good shape before I listed it on FORSALE-BYOWNER.com. I replaced the very
worn carpet and had the interior almost completely repainted in light
neutral colors. Some people advised me that this was a waste of money -
prospective buyers would want to pick their own colors for paint and
carpet. However, I am convinced that the "freshness" and
move-in-ready look this expense gave the condo contributed to my getting a
price that was higher than what some of the other condos in the
neighborhood had recently sold for.
I listened to what
Pat McCaghren told me and took his advice. Although the condo was empty,
Pat took great photographs that really showed off the floor space inside
and the setting outside. The townhouse does not have a traditional floor plan,
and it really helped that prospective buyers could take a virtual tour
before actually seeing the place. I'm sure this helped eliminate many
trips for me just to show the condo to a "casual looker".
I read the book Pat
provides as part of FORSALE-BYOWNER.com, How to Sell
Your Own Home: The Homeowner's Guide to Selling Property by Owner
by William F. Supple, Jr. I took the suggestions about creating a
checklist for questions to ask prospective buyers and tips on how to show
your home yourself. Based on the advice in the book, I put together a 4
page information packet based on information that I had listed on the
FORSALE-BYOWNER.com website, plus floor plans and other tidbits. I gave
this to each prospective buyer. I watched them refer to it as we looked
through the condo and they asked me questions.
What I wish I'd done
differently:
I should have had a
professional real estate appraisal before I set the price. Instead, I
decided how much money I wanted to get out of the sale based on watching
newspaper ads for similar property in the area, then I listed it on
FORSALE-BYOWNER.com at about 10% higher than my "walk-away"
price.
My buyer was working
with a real estate agent who required 3% commission. I accounted for this
as we negotiated the price, and the price we agreed on would have covered
his commission and still met my goals. However, for the purposes of the
buyer's mortgage, the house appraised below the price we agreed upon, so
we had to negotiate again. I ended up hiring an appraiser. Having a
professional appraisal in hand during the negotiating process would have
avoided much anxiety, both for me and for the buyer.
I received far more
exposure from FORSALE-BYOWNER.com than I did from the first real estate
agent I worked with or from the ads I placed in the newspaper. For people
who want to sell their property quickly, FORSALE-BYOWNER.com is the way to
go!!
Lynn
Fortney |
