FSBO’s Present Barriers To Realtors And Their Customers
So you want to sell you own home. You may have had previous experience in a hot market,or in a different area, and feel you are an expert at contract negotiations and the home sale process. I’ll be the first to tell someone, if you have experience, give it a try!
However, let’s talk about the barriers to selling your home as a For Sale By Owner (FSBO). The Federal Trade Commission (FCC) rules say that Realtors can not call FSBO’s or homeowners with Expired Listings to solicit for listings even if your number is on the sign or in a newspaper or online ad. Here are a few reasons Realtors may not call you – even when your number is right there on your sign!:
- Florida has made its do not call registry a part of the Federal Trade Commission’s Do Not Call registry. Your Phone Number requires us to look it up on the “Do Not Call List” EVEN if you are advertising your number on a sign, if your name is on that list, Realtors could be charged with a violation of the FCC Rules.
- In the rare event that your name is NOT on the Do Not Call List, unless Realtors have a true buyer for your home, we can not call you to discuss your listing – to get information, to talk about your home, it’s beautiful qualities, your terms of sale, nothing. How will a Realtor know if your home will work for their buyer, if they can’t get the details on it?
- Even if a Realtor has done business with you before, if it has been over 18 months since the transaction concluded, we can not call you if your name is on the Do Not Call List.
- If you Register at an Open House Realtors are having, and you have requested that a Realtor call you, if your name is on the Do Not Call List, we can not phone you.
Violators of this Federal Law face fines up to $11,000 for each incident. That equates to much more than a potential commission for the sale of your home most likely, and certainly not worth the risk.
There are other drawbacks to listing your home for sale by owner involving much more than calling off a sign such as not knowing your buyer, their financial history or capabilities. Also, not having resources you need to secure a protective contract. Marketing tools that Realtors only have at use every day, taht are costly, yet targeted to find buyers. In addition, not being able to reach full time Realtors or know the network of real estate industry experts needed to see a contract thru inspections, title searches and cures, repairs and closing not to mention the safety aspects of showing your home, and screening persons who request to see your home or simply ring your doorbell unannounced are other pitfalls to listing as a FSBO.
If you are selling your home as a FSBO and have the experience necessary, you are a minority, however, even if you are savvy and capable, the FCC has made Realtors think twice before calling you, resulting in drive-bys and missed opportunities. Most Realtors simply do not have the time, and have much more inventory that is accessible, where commission is advertised in the MLS – clear and concisely, and where showings are easy to arrange with other brokers and contract are handled with other Transaction Brokers in timely fashion that they are going to work in a system in which they are comfortable and where guided by ethics, assisted by other professionals and where risks are minimal.
Points to ponder when thinking of selling your home.
If you’d like to talk about selling your home, and what professional listings involve, please contact us.