Anyone that has made a decision to sell their home should consider For Sale by Owner. Consider the following: The average home sold in USA last year according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) was $278,000. Based on that the average commissions paid was in the $16,000 range. Most Realtors will claim that is the cost of selling a home – but is it? What it more accurately represents is $16,000+ in YOUR hard earned, after tax, home equity. The gap between Realtors and FSBO’s has been all but eliminated by the popularity of the internet when it comes to Real estate. Realtors no longer enjoy exclusive access to literally thousands of MLS listings. In the “olden” days For Sale by Owners had to rely on drive bys and classified to “spread the word”. Now we have the World Wide Web! The NAR conducted a comprehensive survey in 2006 and discovered the following compelling results:
1. “The typical Internet homebuyer is married and 38 years old with a household income of $70,700. By comparison, the non-Internet buyer is married, 47 years old and has a household income of $56,300”
2. “Although most buyers surf the Web, only 11 percent first learned about the home they bought on the Internet, up from 8 percent in 2001.”
3. “18% of all home sales are initiated by a Real Estate Lawn sign”
4. “80% of homebuyers said they used the Internet to search for a home”
5. “74% of all surveyed real estate agents spend a total of LESS then $1000 annually on their website”
6. Actions taken as result of using internet real estate website:
i. Drove by/viewed a home – 74%
ii. Walked through a home viewed online- 61%
iii. Found agent used to search/buy home – 23%
So now let’s take a closer look at these stats.
1. An internet based homebuyer makes more money, which means they have more money and they SPEND more money – that’s a good thing.
2. 11% of “buyers” first saw their home on the internet, I like those odds, lets remember that’s better then 1/10 (remember we are talking about $16K of YOUR hard earned after tax money)
3. 18%? – now your odds are getting substantially better – even if you go to your local sign company and have them make up the best sign possible you can’t spend $200. A typical sign at LOWES will run you $9.99.
4. Did they say 80% – WOW!!!! Did you know there are over 1 million monthly FSBO related searches alone?
5. So, 80% of homebuyers use the internet to search for a home and 74% of surveyed realtors spend less then $1000 annually on their website (that includes marketing)?
6. So after seeing your house on the internet 74% go and drive by it and 61% walked through it but only 23% found an agent to buy it?
Based on the NAR survey I think they present a pretty compelling argument to at least “try” to sell your own home. Get yourself a great real estate attorney to handle the closing (cost $600 -1000). Realtors are having a difficult time justifying the 6% fee they charge. Do the math. Think about how long it takes you to earn $16K after taxes – then decide if you can sell your own home in today’s environment. The playing field has definitely been leveled, regardless of the marketing rhetoric coming from the mouths of realtors.
Mark Camphaug is currently President of [http://www.FreeFSBO.com] and its parent Martcam LLC. FreeFSBO.com [http://www.FreeFSBO.com] is a For Sale by Owner (FSBO) website that offers a free online listing and free real estate lawn sign to prospective FSBO home sellers. Camphaug spent the last 6 years as Vice President of one of the world’s largest and most successful Interactive Marketing Agencies where he specialized in all aspects of internet marketing, including SEO, PPC, Email and Affiliate marketing. Prior to that Camphaug spent 12 years in the competitive new home industry, duties included sales, marketing and client relationship management.
