It is becoming apparent that selling property privately as a For Sale by Owner (FSBO) is becoming more and more popular amongst property owners across Australia.

Many property owners now realise that a no agents sale is easy as a reasonably presented property that is marketed to as many potential property buyers as possible will sell it self saving the real estate by owner on commission. The greater the audience a for sale by owner (FSBO) conducting a private real estate sale property is exposed to the greater the possibility it will sell.

A for sale by owner (FSBO) conducting a no agents sale can increase their marketing audience by making sure their property is advertised in papers, through flyers, letter box drops and sign boards. Don’t forget the internet which is one of the most cost effective and efficient means to expose a private property sale via online advertisements, email marketing and electronic brochures. Any real estate sale by owner is capable of performing these marketing functions which a real estate agent would normally perform. By doing this these for sale by owners (fsbo) will save on the commission they would normally be charged by a real estate agent.

Selling property privately with no agents and no commission is becoming increasingly popular amongst real estate owners across Australia.

A for sale by owner selling their property privately with no agents should be able to provide an answer to this question within 15 seconds of reading it, if not then the real estate by owner should not be selling their property privately with no agents.

On too many occasions real estate by owners selling privately have not had a specific reason to sell their property resulting in the private house sales process being a complete disaster. This is increasing apparent during times when property prices are on the rise and property owners conducting a no agents sale as a for sale by owner (FSBO) decide to “test the waters” by placing their property on the market and setting an unrealistic listing price.

Below is a list outlining the reasons why a for sale by owner (FSBO) property will not sell if the real estate by owner does not have a clear reason to sell the property;

Unrealistic listing price – For sale by owners (FSBO) will only accept a price which is well above the market value of the property and will not be prepared to move from this unrealistic listing price.

The for sale by owner (FSBO) is unwilling to commit marketing resources – Inadequate money and time spent on the marketing strategy for a private property sale will limit the audience who are informed that the property is on the market.

Lack of property preparation – As the real estate sale by owner is not committed to the sale they will not spend time and money to prepare the property for sale. If a property has not been prepared correctly then this could affect the first impression a potential buyer has when they inspect the property.

Stale listing – This affects many for sale by owners (FSBO) who are conducting a private real estate sale as a listing which has been on the market for an extended period of time will convey a negative image to potential buyers. Buyers will be concerned that there is something wrong with the property or that it is overpriced.

Future Price Reductions – When the for sale by owner (FSBO) does decide they would like to sell the property for a more reasonable price they will need to drop the price more than what the initial market value of the property was. The only way to sell a stale listing is to offer a “bargain” and reduce the listing price below the market value of the property.

If a property owner is conducting a no agents sale or no commission sales and the property is on the market when they are not 100% committed to the sale, can have a dramatic affect on the final price the for sale by owner 9FSBO) sells their property for.

Every property which is advertised For Sale including all private property sale or for sale by owner are required to be accompanied with a draft Contract of Sale outlining the conditions of sale. A final Contract of Sale will be prepared as soon as the buyer and for sale by owner have agreed on the final conditions of the private property sale.

A contract of sale usually includes the following information;

• The for sale by owner name(s)
• Blank space for buyer’s name
• Solicitor’s name (if any)
• Agent’s name (if any)
• The type of title
• Details of items included with the sale
• Details of items not included with the sale
• The sales price
• Exchange of Contract date
• Settlement date
• Notifications from authorities
• Details of tenants
• Special Conditions

We strongly recommend that all property owners who are coducting a private sale as a for sale by owner seek the services of a Solicitor or Conveyancer to prepare the Contract of Sale. Although there are many Do-it-Yourself (DIY) Conveyancing kits which can be used to prepare the Contract of Sale, the legal system is quite complex and the experience of a professional in this field can never be overlooked. By conducting a private house sales a real estate by owner selling their property through a no agents sale with no commission will already be saving large amounts of money.

The added benefit of a Solicitor or Conveyancer preparing the Contract of Sale is that they can deal directly with the buyer’s Solicitor which should result in a quicker exchange of contracts.

By engaging the services of a professional to create the Contract of Sale a for sale by owner conducting a private real estate sale can be assured that all the terms and conditions agreed to with the buyer in regard to the sale of the property are correctly documented and executed.

A for sale by owner selling their property privately with no agents must always use a solicitor to finalise the Contract of Sale for the property.

Property inspections are an important way for any private property owner who is selling privately to make contact with prospective buyers. They also allow a for sale by owner (FSBO) and real estate by owner to gauge the views of their target audience in regard to their thoughts about the private property sale owner’s property, its listing price and the marketing strategy they are undergoing.

An essential item in conducting a property inspection as a property owner selling privately is an Open Inspection sign which is displayed outside a property while a property inspection is performed. There are two benefits from having an Open Inspection sign erected at the front of a property, these include;

1. Directions – It provides directions and helps prospective buyers who had planned to view the property find the property when they arrive for an open inspection. It is important that viewers at open inspections find your property easily as often they have a tight schedule of viewings they need to get through in a morning, afternoon or evening.

2. Attraction – People who are in the neighbourhood who weren’t planning to view the property will be attracted by the Open Inspection sign and if they are interested in real estate then they may view the property.

If you are selling property privately with no agents and no commission then it is a necessity to include an open inspection sign in your marketing campaign when you are holding an open inspection.

A For Sale sign is your virtual agent marketing your property 24 hours a day. As a for sale by owner selling your property privately it is an absolute must to include a for sale sign in your no agents marketing strategy.

When conducting a private house sales a For Sale sign not only notifies pass-biers that your property is on the market as a private house sales but it helps potential buyers locate your property during property inspections which are a large part of a no agents private real estate sale.

By using a For Sale sign when conducting a private sale with no agents has the potential to reach an audience that no other means of advertising and marketing can reach. The audience we are referring to are those individuals who live in proximity to your property and who are not currently looking to purchase a property.

These individuals who are not currently looking to purchase a property wouldn’t normally frequent online real estate websites nor would they read the real estate section of a paper or magazine. Also, these individuals would more likely than not ignore all real estate flyers which reach their letter box.

These people are basically immune from all real estate marketing you throw at them! However, through using a for sale sign in your no agents sale will reach them no matter how determined they are to ignore real estate marketing.

All property owner believe real estate agents charge too much in commission and that variable real estate commission is no longer justified in the real estate industry. This dissatisfaction with the fees and commissions real estate agents charge has led to an increase in property owner who are choosing to sell real estate privately with no real estate agents and no commission.

I am under the belief that real estate agents should be paid a commission but the commission should not be variable but rather fixed. The same can be said for paying waiters in a restaurant a tip which is based on the percentage on the cost of the meal.

For example, if you order a cheap bottle of wine and a $10 steak and chips in a restaurant for say $30 and pay a $3 tip why then if you order an expensive bottle of wine and a sirloin piece of steak which costs $100 should you have to pay a $10 tip. The waiter or waitress has performed exactly the same amount of effort to bring you your meals and wine yet they are demanding a greater tip.

This is absolute nonsense and is exactly what happens in the real estate industry, is there any difference in selling a $500,000 property or a $1,000,000 property? Of course not.

Agents like waiters should have a list of services they perform for a fixed fee. The property owner should be able to decide what they want the agent to perform. This way the property owner knows exactly how much tips, fees or commissions they will need to pay and can measure the value the agent is providing.

There is a trend amongst property owners not to display their property address details for their listing. Obviously the reason for this is for Privacy but exactly why I am unsure, is it because you don’t want real estate agents to know where your property is located?

Let me say, it dramatically reduces the attractiveness of your property listing as not only does the user not know the address of your property but the property does not appear on the Google map at the bottom of the property listing. When i am browsing properties, I always like to view the Google map to know exactly which street and where on that street the property is located.

To make matters worse real estate search engine websites like Suburb View can’t display your listing as their crawlers are unable to find your property on the Privatepoint website. The way their crawlers work is to scan the first two lines of text on websites like Privatepoint and if the full address is not there then the crawler does not know where to display that listing on their map website.

So next time, think carefully before you decide to hide the property address for your property listing.

I spent a few days last week working in Brisbane and was able to spend a bit of time around the Gold Coast, Hope Island and then up to Maroochydore. Although property prices have reduced from what they were 12 months ago the reduction in this area of Australia has been far less than anywhere else.

The reason property prices have stayed strong in this part of Australia is because it is the destination of choice for both domestic and international immigrants. South east Queensland has approximately 2000 people immigrating to it each week, it is this demand which is stabilising the price of houses in the region.

Why are people moving there? Well, there are a number of reasons including:

• Climate with winter days similar to a late spring day in southern NSW.
• Generous tax breaks, although NSW has removed vendor tax QLD state taxes are more attractive to investors.
• Lifestyle, because the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast is spread out over a vast array of coastline means many home buyers can live the dream of being next to the beach.
• Affordability, this dream is affordable.
• Retirement, a large portion of Australia’s retirees are settling there.

Outlined below are last weeks property auction results according to Australian Property Monitors:

Total auctions: 444
Sold: 260
Withdrawn: 20
Clearance rate: 56%
Total Sales: $ 133,054,250
Median: $ 485,500

Don’t forget that Privatepoint is a free online real estate private selling website allowing private sellers to market their property to a large audience of potential property buyers. As a property owner you enter your property details into the Privatepoint website we then automatically send your property listing to a number of popular real estate advertising websites.