FYI~FSBO News
Part 1 - "Enough about Real Estate Agents"
Part 2 - " FSBO sites that tick me off!"
Courtesy of FYI~FSBO newsletter http://www.canadianhomes4sale.com - Canadian Web Award Winner
PART 1
In this newsletter I would like to recap some of the interesting facts and statistics that have been mentioned in the past few FYI`FSBO letters. Of course much of my research information comes from the United States not Canada, but as we all know that apart from being allot more liberal, less aggressive in nature and an all around fun loving Nation with a “live and let live attitude. Canadians are not much different than Americans in their day to day lifestyles. When I can I do prefer to search for Canadian based information but this is not always available. So once again lets make a list of FSBO facts, as we now know them thus far.
- 99% of us FSBO folks decide to sell our own real estate, simply to save money that we would normally give to a real estate agent. Not just any money, but your money. You worked hard to purchase your home, and you made a great investment. So why would you want to throw away 6-7% of your equity?
- The NAR reported that for the first time more home buyers nationwide used the Internet instead of newspaper ads as a key information source. 66% percent of buyers surveyed reported using the internet compared to 49% of buyers who say they used newspaper. In 1995 only 2 percent of home buyers used the web!
- E-Business report, Business Week Magazine, reports well over 70% of home buyers search online “first"
- NAR (National Association of Realtors) stated that “Use of the Internet in searching for a home has risen along with the level of Internet penetration, rising from only 2% of buyers in 1995 to over 71% in 2003 and 74 %in 2004.
- California’s Association of Realtors study also quotes “ Internet buyers shell out $100,000.00 more than those who are coy about the Net - - -a median $426,200.00 compared to a $350,000.00. At the going 6% commission rate, that’s a $6000.00 bonus for the agent! - End of quote (As I said once before! Thank you California Association of Realtors for clearing up why we are FSBO’s)
- Studies show that home buyers who use the Internet are younger wealthier and more ethnically diverse than traditional buyers, Internet buyers also spend significantly less time physically looking at homes for sale before making a purchase than traditional buyers
Don’t get me wrong. I am not all about bashing real estate agents. There are definitely good ones out there. The Real Estate Council of British Columbia had a survey that indicated that real estate agents in BC had median gross earning of $23,405.00. This is a somewhat misleading figure because the top 25% of salespersons earned 61% of the total earnings and the bottom 25% earned only 3%. Earnings of less than $10,792.00 were recorded by 25% of salespersons. You can understand than, how important every single listing is to an agent and why they are not to impressed with us “For Sale By Owner" Web Sites. Even when we offered "free" listings when we launched our site, most still refused to bite! "Feeling a little threatened?'
An article written by Dan Volker
“How do you spell Profitable Niche Market? Quotes: with the competition for listings hotter than ever in most markets, many real estate agents are finding new clients in places where other agents just aren’t looking. One largely untapped niche market is the “For sale by Owner “ prospects". H e goes on to describe how to deceive us FSBO folks. “You need to get your foot in the door to tell them how you can help." He mentions “ I have had good success doing CMA (market evaluation) and hand delivering them to FSBO, usually during their open house". You can read more of his article at
http://rismedia.com/index.php . He basically teaches other real estate agents what to say and do to get you to list your home. I am sure that many of you have had a phone call from an agent stating that they have a hot prospect for your home. If this does happen..Perhaps a simple “ I pay a 1% finders fee, with courtesy to Realtors" will work? I have used this line many times and it works! An agent has yet to bring the prospective buyer around and I have sold all of my properties myself.
PART 2
Enough Bashing of Real Estate Agents. I would like to go over a few do’s and don’ts when it comes to listing your home on a FSBO site.
#1 NO NO ...... Being the proud owner of
www.canadianhomes4sale.com myself. I do have a beef or two about some of my brothers in the FSBO site business. I do my homework, as I am sure many site owners do. You have to, in order to stay competitive in this market. I am always looking to see if there is a better way to help our clients. Happily there are allot of very well done sites on line today.... and .... A few not too very well done. ( you know who you are!) FSBO sites are supposed to be about showcasing and marketing your homes and business on line. We are not in the business of selling books, tapes, videos, & mortgages, A well built site will have a Links and Resources page set up for the convenience of the site visitors to search for these products. I don’t believe these sites are doing their clients justice when every page is full of blinking
Banners and advertisements. Its like trying to watch a movie with the stereo blaring in the back ground. The blinking lights and banners totally distract visitors from your listing!
Other factors to look for
1. Make sure that the site is user friendly. Easy to navigate through
2. Make sure that you have total control of your site , 24/7 editing capability etc.
3. If you were a potential buyer looking for a home in your area , how fast could they find your listing
4. How fast does your page load? One of the biggest reasons visitors will leave a site is if it loads slowly.
5. Make sure the site has a security certificate before any online transaction take place
6. Make sure that you are pleased with the appearance of the listings and that the site offers online help if necessary.
7. An Online hit counter is a great way to track visits to your page
8. Mortgage calculator is also a great way for visitors to pre-qualify themselves.
9. Are you able to link to your own personal website from your listing?
10. Do you feel comfortable with the cost of the advertising. This should be one source of advertising to market your home, newspaper ads and a sign in the yard don't hurt either. You can easily tie all your marketing in together by directing people to visit your listing on the site. Saves words in a print ad as well
Have a great week ! good selling!
C.Alderliesten
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