Let's get that house of yours sold! You are one of the small number of property owners who, for various reasons, would like to sell your home without using a Realtor. Maybe you object to paying a real estate sales commission, or maybe you think your house will sell itself. I am not here to disagree... I am here to help. If I can't act as your agent, I can still assist. Maybe some day, you will return the favor?

Or, you may have people looking at your home who do not wish to buy your house. Perhaps they would like to be referred to a Realtor who can show them other homes. I would appreciate the referral opportunity to assist them. So you see, a FSBO can help the friendly agent (that's me) who provides the help that follows. And, perhaps you may change your mind and decide to use my services. I would welcome the chance to show you what I can do and even give you some of your own money back!.

What follows are general guidelines for the FSBO seller. While many of the procedures a professional agent would use, are unavailable to the FSBO seller, there is much you can do to maximize your options. I hope these suggestions will be helpful to you.

First of all, remember, if you are the agent, you had better work just as hard as the one you didn't hire. Professional agents are there when you are on vacation and for them, weekends are part of the work week. If you want potential buyers to see your house, they will want to see your home on their free time. So for a few weekends, it's you and your home, clean as a whistle and open to all!

When you have read these pages, I hope you will have gained some valuable tips and insights. As I mentioned earlier, I know you probably want to save paying a real estate commission, and I hope you're successful, if that's what you wish. However, we offer a unique For Sale By Owner Program that might help you achieve your goal by letting us assist you. It's a program very few Realtors will know about much less offer as an alternative, and it is a win/win for you . . . and for us.

Lastly, when you put out your FSBO sign and the calls from agents flood in, you can always say you're working with us at Reston Homes. It will reduce the calls, giving you a chance to do the job of selling your home.

Arranging Financing

What do you mean, arranging financing; that's the job of the buyer, isn't it? Well, yes, but then you do want to actually see the money, don't you?

Did you know that more real estate contracts fail, due to a failure to finance, than for any other reason. No, it's worse than that. More fail for a lack of financing than for all other reasons combined.

In the real estate business, we say we have performed when we present a "Ready, Willing and Able Buyer". Notice the "Able" part; that refers to financing; already having it arranged or at least able to obtain it. Never accept an offer that is not accompanied by a pre-qualification letter from a bonafide lender, unless of course the buyer is offering cash... I haven't seen it happen, but I suppose it does. Why am I so firm in this? Well, your house is effectively off the market once it is "Under Contract", so it is wise to make sure the single biggest problem area is covered. With this in hand, you have minimized the risk of the deal going sour.