Author Topic: For sale by owner  (Read 3605 times)

lavagirl

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 79
For sale by owner
« on: November 09, 2015, 05:29:11 PM »
So I'm selling my rental condo to family.  My mom is a real estate agent and told me to do it for sale by owner (since I'm underwater) and she will help me.  I need to find a contract. Has anyone sold a property themselves and would share with me where they got the contract from?

My mom made it sound very simple.  Get preapproval letter from buyer, sign contract,get deposit,  deliver contract to mortgage company and title company, set settlement date.  Buyer gets inspection and appraisal.  Does this sound right? I've never sold a property before. 

GuitarBrian

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 252
  • Age: 35
  • Location: Panama
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #1 on: November 15, 2015, 02:39:11 AM »
You don't have to use a fancy contract.

The title company will be able to provide all documents you need.

Set up a document signing. Go with the buyer... Easy.

Call now and talk to the title company. Explain the situation, they will have local knowledge. There might be something different from what we experienced last year with a FSBO without any buyer/seller agent.

Zamboni

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3882
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #2 on: November 15, 2015, 05:48:44 AM »
I've seen good transactions on the buying end of FSBO. It's great that your Mom can help you through the process as it doesn't have to be painful.

Based upon some behavior I've seen from FSBO sellers, here are some things that can make the transaction go more smoothly:
1) Unless your market is really hot (sounds like it is not), then be prepared to negotiate and entertain any reasonable offer. Don't set your heart on a certain number, especially not the number that is your list price. Awesome if you get that, but you probably will not. Your mom should be able to help you with this.
2) Be prepared to pay for some repairs after the inspections. You certainly don't have to do everything requested, but realize that there probably will be some requests and set aside some money for that in good faith. While it's true that you can refuse to do anything, that can torpedo a deal and at a minimum it will make the buyer think you are not bargaining in good faith unless you list the property up front with a note about "AS IS, seller will make no repairs."
3) If the buyer comes with a buyer's agent, then be prepared to pay at least half of their fee. Remember that it is traditional for the seller to pay all of the buyer's agents fees in most markets. If you say "I won't pay anything for that," then you will lose many prospective buyers. The worst asshat move I've seen in this regard is advertising "Buyer's agents welcome!" and then turning around and refusing to pay any of their fee.

Good luck!

MayDay

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 4953
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #3 on: November 15, 2015, 11:31:23 AM »
If your mom is an agent, can she provide a contract?

We sold our house FSBO, and brought in an agent once we had a verbal offer.  For 1% (rather than 2.5-3%) he handled all the paperwork, negotiating, scheduling, etc.  Best of both worlds. 

Bearded Man

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1137
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #4 on: November 15, 2015, 10:55:07 PM »
Tagged

lavagirl

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 79
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #5 on: November 18, 2015, 07:37:15 AM »
Thank you all for your input. I contacted a title company and they will provide a contract and walk me through what needs to be done.  Seems kind of simple so far.  Fingers crossed that the condo appraises close to the selling price. 

lthenderson

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2252
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #6 on: November 18, 2015, 07:47:44 AM »
Sounds like you have a contract. When I bought my first house privately, I just googled housing contracts and cut and paste together paragraphs that made sense to me.

When I sold that first house, I started off trying to sell it privately but eventually gave up. Too many people didn't understand the house buying process and evidently needed a realtor to walk them through the process (for a fee). I got people asking me if I was going to loan them the money, would I hire their lawyer, etc. They regarded me as being shady and probably trying to scam them out of thousands of dollars. Your mom being a realtor might be able to sooth those feelings. I eventually gave up after four months of trying to sell my house privately and gave it to a realtor who had it sold two weeks later.

Bearded Man

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1137
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #7 on: November 18, 2015, 01:47:58 PM »
Sounds like you have a contract. When I bought my first house privately, I just googled housing contracts and cut and paste together paragraphs that made sense to me.

When I sold that first house, I started off trying to sell it privately but eventually gave up. Too many people didn't understand the house buying process and evidently needed a realtor to walk them through the process (for a fee). I got people asking me if I was going to loan them the money, would I hire their lawyer, etc. They regarded me as being shady and probably trying to scam them out of thousands of dollars. Your mom being a realtor might be able to sooth those feelings. I eventually gave up after four months of trying to sell my house privately and gave it to a realtor who had it sold two weeks later.

I wonder if that's more the access to the MLS they have. Did you just post an add to sell FSBO or did you pay a realtor $200 to put it on the MLS for you? I'm leaning toward trying that first.

lthenderson

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 2252
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #8 on: November 18, 2015, 03:57:31 PM »
Sounds like you have a contract. When I bought my first house privately, I just googled housing contracts and cut and paste together paragraphs that made sense to me.

When I sold that first house, I started off trying to sell it privately but eventually gave up. Too many people didn't understand the house buying process and evidently needed a realtor to walk them through the process (for a fee). I got people asking me if I was going to loan them the money, would I hire their lawyer, etc. They regarded me as being shady and probably trying to scam them out of thousands of dollars. Your mom being a realtor might be able to sooth those feelings. I eventually gave up after four months of trying to sell my house privately and gave it to a realtor who had it sold two weeks later.

I wonder if that's more the access to the MLS they have. Did you just post an add to sell FSBO or did you pay a realtor $200 to put it on the MLS for you? I'm leaning toward trying that first.

I'm sure not having it on a MLS played a large part, perhaps just as big as people not understanding that a house can be purchased without involving realtors. If I wasn't in a hurry to sell a house, I would definitely try it again to save a few bucks.

CashFlowDiaries

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 178
  • Location: Indianapolis, IN
  • Follow me on my journey to Financial Freedom!
    • Cash Flow Diaries
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #9 on: November 19, 2015, 10:08:57 AM »
I agree with guitarBrian, call your local title company and they should be able to provide everything you need assuming you will be using them for the closing.  Call them, see what they can do.

lavagirl

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 79
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #10 on: November 25, 2015, 04:10:31 AM »
Thanks everyone! The title company provided a contract, which we signed.  The process is pretty simple since we already have a buyer and have agreed on the selling price.  The biggest pain in the butt has been getting the hoa to fill out a form for the buyers mortgage company and to get a resale package.  Both these items have cost me about $400 😠

Bearded Man

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1137
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #11 on: November 25, 2015, 01:51:16 PM »
Thanks everyone! The title company provided a contract, which we signed.  The process is pretty simple since we already have a buyer and have agreed on the selling price.  The biggest pain in the butt has been getting the hoa to fill out a form for the buyers mortgage company and to get a resale package.  Both these items have cost me about $400 😠

I can't believe it's really that simple; calling the title company and they will take care of everything for a small, flat fee. Real estate agents are a crock/rip off. The entire industry is setup to milk homeowners as much as possible.

I own ONE house in an HOA, and was under contract to buy another one. Backed out, and still don't regret it, even though I was leaving money on the table. From what I've read on BP forums, everyone will sooner or later have an issue with their HOA, especially if they are an investor...

arebelspy

  • Administrator
  • Senior Mustachian
  • *****
  • Posts: 28444
  • Age: -997
  • Location: Seattle, WA
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #12 on: November 25, 2015, 03:04:16 PM »

From what I've read on BP forums

You seem to put a lot of stock in stuff you read on BP. :)
I am a former teacher who accumulated a bunch of real estate, retired at 29, spent some time traveling the world full time and am now settled with three kids.
If you want to know more about me, this Business Insider profile tells the story pretty well.
I (rarely) blog at AdventuringAlong.com. Check out the Now page to see what I'm up to currently.

Bearded Man

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1137
Re: For sale by owner
« Reply #13 on: November 25, 2015, 03:19:48 PM »
No I only believe what people on the mmm forums say, lol.