Real Estate News: What “For Sale By Owner” Means

In 2009, 11% of real estate transactions were FSBO. Others claim it’s close to 22%. What does FSBO mean and why give much importance on it. In the real estate industry, this may be often heard and used. Sometime it’s often heard as “fizz-bo” or sounded like it. Actually it’s a short term for FSBO or also known as “For Sale by Owner”. This process involves no agent in selling the property. The owner of the property himself is selling the property, no representation or no real estate agent to aid him.

 

The good thing about FSBO transaction is no need to pay extra for the commission of real estate agent which is quite expensive. It’s usually six percent of the selling price. By doing FSBO, the owner gets to keep the entire sale of his property. Although getting into this involves much research and skills to successfully process it. There is staging, marketing and negotiating that needs to be done correctly. Everything is handled by the owner except for legal concerns maybe. He may get a legal aid.

Owners selling their own properties did not occur to them instantly. It’s because of the bad reputation that agents have over the years plus the six percent bulk of commission they get from the sale. According to property owners, they don’t’ want to bother themselves with agents that have a huge chance of not representing their properties well and will just settle to sell the property even with a low price agreement.

Today, there are now a lot of services catering to the advertising and marketing needed by the FSBO people. For a minimal fee, realtors could list the property on the owner’s local Multiple Listing Service. They could also use their account with online property ad or listing sites for advertising.

Property owners have a great challenge in selling their own properties. They have to extend their research and learning regarding state laws and regulations and financing options. Also, they encounter buyers who offer them lower price with the thought that they get much savings without a real estate agent’s commission.

In going FSBO, there are a lot of things to consider especially the property owner. Nevertheless, may this be a helpful insight on whether choosing to hire an agent or going on FSBO. The important thing at the end of the day is the seller gets the deserving price of the property.