A new twist exists to selling your house as a For Sale by Owner and it’s no surprise either… the Internet. Just as intriguing though; is the plethora of FSBO websites that have popped up all over the Internet.
Enterprising individuals have created Internet websites that offer a FSBO the opportunity to look totally professional when selling their home. The popularity of such sites is in response to the costs of housing, and the associated marketing costs and commissions incurred when selling a house.
It’s the new wave of house selling without the benefit of a Knoxville real estate agent; however, there are unexpected costs and associated risks when attempting to sell your house as a FSBO.
Thanks to the Internet, people that are wanting to sell their homes no longer have to settle for sticking a homemade sign in their front yard, and just running a local ad in a newspaper. For a fee, mass marketing for sale by owner sites provide Internet advertising to for sale by owners and a semi instructional guide for the steps necessary to sell their homes.
There are many services that you can garner from using an online website to sell your house, but remember that as the seller, you must be aware of the risk of taking advice from FSBO Internet websites. Often times there are other issues that you might not be aware of when ordering their services; such as the unexpected costs associated with the listing of your house, or even different levels of membership packages. Here is a typical outline that many websites promote for their online services; however, sellers need to do their homework.
- Payment For Services – Different types of packages are available, and costs vary. Remember to read the fine print. Payment is usually accepted via a credit card.
- Picture Submittal Service – Limitations exist on the amount of pictures that you will be able to submit. Additional fees are required if you feel that more pictures are required to show off your home to its fullest potential.
- Yard Sign Service – In many packages a professional looking yard sign is available, but for an extra fee. Understand too that any unintentional damage to the sign will cost you for replacement. If ordering more than one sign to place at other areas to advertise your home there is extra cost associated with it too.
- Paper Advertisements of Flyers Service – Basic print advertisements in a pre-designed format is an additional cost. You will need to be able to print quality advertisements from home on high grade stock or glossy paper, or incur the cost of having them professionally printed.
- Print Purchase and Counter Offer Form Service – These forms are available for you to print with an additional fee.
- Disclosure Property Forms – Usually there are no additional fees, but the standard disclosure form, and the federally mandated lead disclosure form are released only when services are paid for in advance. This does not include other attorney’s fees for the review of the forms to ensure compliance to the federal, state and local requirements.
- Information tubes – For an additional fee an information box or tube to attach to your yard sign. Again, any damage to the individual sign or tube will be your financial responsibility.
As you can see a careful evaluation is needed when considering using an Internet website when selling privately. Without the use of a Knoxville real estate agent that is a trained professional, you loose out on their insight and experience when trying to sell your home privately. Remember to read the fine print and carefully weigh your options. Hidden costs can quickly eat up profits!
More free help is available to you when selling your house privately in Knoxville TN. To receive a free for sale by owner service packet with all the needed paperwork, disclosures, contracts, flyer templates, staging tips, developing a safety plan to protect your family and more, send me a blank email or visit the Knoxville TN houses website @ www.davidhamilton.com.
Here’s a short video about selling your house in Knoxville TN on your own:
David Hamilton
Ferguson Realtors
865-310-0636 Cell
865-690-1300 Office
800-747-0713 Toll-Free