Safety is often raised as an issue in FSBO (For Sale By Owner)
real estate sales. Some real estate agents try to scare
homeowners into listing with them by claiming that is unsafe.
Some homeowners are unsure how to show their property safely.
By taking a few sensible precautions there is no reason why
selling your home FSBO (also known as private sale) should be
any less safe than selling through a real estate agent. In fact
selling FSBO should be safer. There is nothing that a real
estate agent does to vet buyers that FSBO homeowners cannot do
for themselves.
What does a real estate agent do?
Real estate agents claim that they vet prospective buyers before
they visit your property but what does this mean? Does the real
estate agent check whether the buyer has a criminal record for
violent crimes or theft? Of course they don't. At best, the
agent may get a name, address and contact number of the buyer
before they visit.
Getting a contact number for buyers is easy, just ask when the
buyer calls to enquire about viewing your property. Before the
buyer visits call them back to confirm that they are still
coming. This lets you confirm that the contact number is genuine
and also reduces the likelihood of no-shows.
FSBO advert contact details
It is advisable to limit the amount of information that you make
available through online FSBO advertising. Some homeowners
include their full name, telephone numbers, e-mail address,
street address of the property for sale and times when they are
at home. While including this information is not enough to
forge documents such as a passport it is enough to gain unwanted
attention from confidence tricksters.
A potential buyer only needs to know your first name to make
polite initial contact. There is no need to include your surname
and titles in your FSBO advert.
Choose an online advert that protects your email address. There
are programs that trawl the web looking for published email
addresses. If you post your email address in your FSBO advert
you are asking to receive spam.
The better FSBO sites such as
www.smartvendor.com.au have online
messaging systems that allow buyers and sellers to communicate
online while keeping email addresses private
When selling your own home a mobile (cell) phone is invaluable.
Not only are homeowners less likely to miss a call from a
potential buyer but also a potential thief cannot cold call the
property to check whether anybody is home. Open house
inspections
We don't recommend holding an open house viewing when selling
your property. Open house inspections are hard to supervise and
many buyers find viewing a property with lots of other buyers
unproductive and frustrating.
Real estate agents use open houses as a way of getting leads
about other properties that are for sale. Often the real estate
agent will stand at the front of a house to make sure buyers
receive details of their agency. But once inside the property
buyers are allowed to roam around unsupervised.
Potential thieves can use open house inspections to check out
security systems and case the properties if left to roam
unsupervised. Don't provide too much detail relating to your
home's security system to a buyer on their initial visit.
Common sense rules
When you are holding viewings of your property follow these
common sense rules:
Remove all valuables from the property. Take them off site
preferably in a safe deposit box. Don't just put them in a
drawer.
Make sure there are two people in the property at all times. Ask
a friend or family member to accompany you. Only one of you need
conduct the viewing.
Keep blinds and curtains open during viewings this allows people
outside to see in to the property and will potentially deter
somebody thinking of getting up to no good.
Showing your property after dark
Allowing buyers to drop in for viewings without a prior
appointment is not recommend and especially not if the buyer is
requesting an impromptu viewing after dark. Politely explain
that you're happy to show your home during daylight hours, when
the buyer can fully appreciate your home's wonderful features.
Offer a flyer or information sheet to take away.
FSBO may not be for you
FSBO is not for everybody. In order to sell your own home you
must be prepared to show potential buyers around the property.
If you are uncomfortable doing this or feel that your
circumstances would make you especially vulnerable it would be
wise to consider using a traditional real estate agent.
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