Fsbo

  For homeowners, here are some simple guidelines that can guarantee a successful FSBO sale.

1. Invite interested buyers to visit your property again. Prepare the FSBO property for the next visit of interested buyers. Make sure every single corner of the house is clean and presentable. Set a comfortable atmosphere in your home. This next visit is make-or-break in a For Sale By Owner – it will determine whether the interested buyers will go on with the purchase or find another property.

2. Greet the interested buyers cordially the moment they arrive in your FSBO home. Offer them drinks. Allow them to go around the house once again without getting in their way. However, escort them as they tour the house so you could answer any questions they might have. Be patient in answering particularly when they have numerous questions. Remember that asking many questions is a good sign as it means that they are interested in the buying the FSBO property. Be honest when you answer their questions.

3. When the buyers show interest and ask you about the next step, be prepared with your answer. This is the time for the buyers to make their offer and formally put it in writing. It is important that you have copies of necessary contract forms which you will give interested buyers. Otherwise, simply knowing where to get the contract forms would be enough. Watch out for subtle signs. If the buyers say that they would want to discuss the sale, it might mean that they want to negotiate about certain terms. Only when there is formal writing that the transaction becomes official.

4. When the buyers want to negotiate the price of your FSBO home, do it in formal writing. Avoid any verbal negotiations. If they ask you the lowest price you are willing to counter-offer, before you declare any amount, ask for their entire offer first and request proof that they are qualified for the mortgage.

Simple Tips on Dealing with FSBO Buyers:

• Be friendly. Treat your potential buyers well.
• Be professional. If your buyers have negative comments regarding the FSBO property, think of them as something that you have to improve and work on instead of taking the comments personally. They could turn out to be helpful later on.
• When there are discussions with interested buyers, keep them calm. Avoid confrontations. An FSBO sale is supposed to work for both the seller and the buyer.

1. Little or No Appreciation as Market Bottoms

In parts of the country hardest hit by 2007 - 2008 foreclosures such as California, Michigan and Florida, prices will continue to soften. In scattered markets, the bottom will already have been reached by April but media won’t report it until late summer, after a trend has been established.

There will be no more dramatic price drops such as those 30% to 50% declines we saw between 2006 and 2008. But the market will not stabilize in 2009. Furthermore, consumer confidence will continue to fall, and more people will find themselves out of work.

On the bright side, employed home buyers with good credit will find 2009 is an excellent time to buy.

Read the rest of this entry »

An entire village, complete with two blacksmiths, a shop and a cricket club, has been put up for sale for a cool £22.5 million.

Nestling in the rolling countryside of the North Wessex Downs, Linkenholt is the archetypal English village. Now, for a cool £22.5 million, it could all be yours, as the entire village – including every house in it – goes up for sale.

The historic village of 22 houses and cottages is part of a 2,000 acre estate which will go on the market later this month.

Read the rest of this entry »

There is always a belief that the FSBO process is not so safe as compared to the job done by the real estate agent. However if you will take some sensible precaution then there is no reason why you will not find the FSBO to be safe enough as compared to that done by the real estate agents. I must say that you will definitely find it to be really safer that done by the real estate agent. I would definitely like to ask few questions to you. Can you say that what real estate agents do cannot be done by the others?
Read the rest of this entry »

Home buyers who want a good deal in real estate invariably think first about pursuing foreclosures. Buyers have this picture in their mind of a cute little house, surrounded by a white picket fence that is owned by a widowed mom who fell on hard times, but that scenario is generally far from reality.

Why Do Sellers Go Into Foreclosure?

Sellers stop making payments for a host of reasons. Few choose to go into foreclosure voluntarily. It’s often an unpredictable result from one of the following:

• Laid-off, fired or quit job
• Inability to continue working due to medical conditions
• Excessive debt and mounting bill obligations
• Squabbles with co-owner, divorce
• Job transfer to another state

Read the rest of this entry »

Buyers pursue short sales to get a good deal. So when you see a price listed for a home that you think is too low for the neighborhood, before you jump on that price like hot fudge on a sundae, ask your agent to call the listing agent to find out if the home is a short sale.

Because you might want to think twice about making an offer on a pre-foreclosure, short sale home. It’s not as simple as you may believe, and very few can close in 30 days or less.

Many of my Sacramento home buyers have waited 4 to 6 months to close on a short sale, sometimes longer.

Read the rest of this entry »

Foreclosures, short sales and REOs remind me of, "Lions and tigers and bears, oh, my!" The latter are dangerous animals but different from each other — just as foreclosures and short sales and real-estate-owned (REOs) are distressed sales but different from each other.

However, they are also similar because without knowledge about handling foreclosures, short sales and REOs, you could find yourself in dangerous territory. For example, while most short sales are foreclosures, not all foreclosures are short sales. To further complicate matters, REOs are not short sales either, but some intended short sales can end up as an REO.

Read the rest of this entry »

Everybody wants to know how to best time the market when buying a home. It’s just natural. Especially if you’re thinking about buying in a down market where homes prices are declining. You wonder how low they will go and whether you should wait, right?

Some Home Buyers Should Buy Immediately

Well, here is why:

• If you are a seller who wants to move up to a more expensive home in a down market, now could be the best time. The longer you wait to sell, the lower the price of your home could fall.
• If you can arrange for alternate housing, a smart strategy is sell now, wait a few months, then buy your new home.
• If you sell and buy simultaneously, you’ll still be ahead of the game because the price reduction on the purchase is greater than the loss on the sale.

Read the rest of this entry »

Housing prices took a 24% nosedive during the Great Depression of 1929. In hindsight, that housing recession was not really a good time to buy real estate in the short term because the recession lasted 10 years. It was long enough that some survivors still fold up and save pieces of used aluminum foil.

All other recessions since 1929 lasted a period of two years or less. Many of those recessions shared falling stock prices, high interest rates, high unemployment rates and a loss of consumer confidence, along with one other common trait: They were all good times to buy real estate.

Read the rest of this entry »

A story told by Erica Ferencik that deeply reflects the current situation and its roots.

All I wanted was a good job I couldn’t lose. I didn’t realize I’d end up bringing down the global economy…

It’s a terrible thing to come to terms with, but I am the reason the world is in an economic tailspin. Me, alone. All those foreclosures, short sales, bank failures, job losses, bailouts, plummeting stocks, the ripple effect into Europe, China, even Madoff: all my fault. Moi. That last house I sold at 253 Carrington Way? That was the tipping point, I’m convinced. I sold it for $657,500 in August 2005, and now Zillow is damning it at $537,000. I would weep to call the owners now and say, hey, want a market analysis? Sound like fun? I know, you’d rather shove shards of glass under your fingernails, I hear you.

In any case, I’m your neighborhood real estate agent, and I’m really, really sorry. Read the rest of this entry »