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I'm not a realtor, just someone who has my house on the market.
Realtors call me directly to schedule appointments to show our house. They typically give us 4+ hours notice, often wanting to schedule for the following day.
We have a lockbox so they can get in when we leave for their scheduled appointment. We have NEVER had a realtor use the lockbox without calling to schedule an appointment. We HAVE had realtors schedule appointments and never show up.
Exact same experience here on my last sale.
Retired, I was usually home, so I could get out quicker than 4 hours notice if necessary. I might have shown it during the evening, but only with 24 hour notice. Never had to though.
Another suggestion: Get a great big honking padlock big enough to lock the box to a pipe or other solid object, then take the box in when you aren't willing to show. Don't know if your agent would go for that, but I've seen houses where the lock box was left just sitting on the porch. I presume the seller put it out only for appointments. Saw that only once, maybe twice.
And very important, make certain your Realtor makes it very clear in the MLS private remarks about the hours you are willing to show, notice required, and whether to call Realtor or seller for appointments. Then take in the box and leave the phone off the hook, ignore knocks on the front door.
One thing though. I you set up an unreasonable plan you are putting a big roadblock in the way of selling your house and it could mean the difference between weeks or months on the market if you are too restrictive. Hey, it's your life. You wanna endure selling a house for months, it's on you. Me, I was at least willing to show my house 8 am to 6 pm any day of the week, and would have found some way to show at a different hour if I could. I sold my house in 11 days.
One alternative is to pack up all your stuff into storage and move into temporary housing while the house is for sale.
I didn't do that but it's a great idea particularly for buyers like me who would like to see vacant houses, every flaw exposed to my easy inspection. It also allows for quick close of escrow.
We read through all the replies together and have decided to pursue FSBO and have started researching options on the internet. This will save everyone a lot of frustration. We had only called one realtor to check on what % they take and tell her we would not be listing until later this month. She called back in two days saying that she wanted to get people in...............and part of the story didn't check out so she wanted the listing but has not a chance of getting it now. We do have a realtor that we worked with when we came to town so if we need something minimal in the way of services, we'll just contact him and avoid all the MLS mess. We can always change our mind if FSBO doesn't work for us which we can't do once we get locked into a contract. A lot of people here, where wages are low, realize how much they can save by going FSBO. We saved a lot when we bought in closing costs and the owner saved even more. So, we'll try FSBO and see what happens. Thanks all.
We are getting ready to sell our house but are agonizing over signing up with a realtor. I know from experience that many don't supervise potential buyers when they enter your house and we have had something taken before. I am fed up with having listed 24 hours notice in the past and getting calls during supper saying someone wants to see the house in 20 minutes, having realtor and someone at the door saying "Didn't your realtor call to let you know we were coming?", having the potential buyer show up alone, having a parade of people that aren't actually interested in our house/location - we were able to hear what was being said and the annoyances go on from there. Also, I don't think people should bring their dogs to a showing. We won't allow the lock box since my husband sleeps days and we have two large dogs plus the "five finger discount" issue. We have sold probably 5 places (different cities) over the years and the problems get worse each time.
It sounds like you're not ready to sell. Selling your house is a pain, a hassle, and an annoyance, no matter what. Those are all things you can't handle. So you can avoid the hassle by keeping your house. Wow, that was easy
It sounds like you're not ready to sell. Selling your house is a pain, a hassle, and an annoyance, no matter what. Those are all things you can't handle. So you can avoid the hassle by keeping your house. Wow, that was easy
No, we aren't ready to put up with the crap that we put up with before. I have no intention of paying someone 3 months of my wages to do as they please, why they please and how they please. So, we just don't want to be a bother to the realtors or them to us.
We have looked at houses with jewelry and cash lying out and the realtor standing at the door of the home the entire time. We have been given the key to the key box to enter a home by ourselves. We have found homes unlocked when going out to see them. We have been told that if we offered a $1,000 over the contract price that the contract for less would be cancelled and we would get a house by the realtor. We had an item stolen from our house while the realtor accompanied the person seeing our house. An offer from a couple that didn't have any money, ANY, for an earnest deposit not even $100.00 to their name.
After thinking about it, how many people call a realtor and want to see houses when they get off work that day? So, I'm guessing they show the homes listed with their agency and if the person doesn't like them, they call another agency to try to set up appointments, in our case it was usually 20 to 30 minutes, from the call.
The quickest sale for us was when someone specifically called to see our house, called the agency that we were working with. I don't want "showings", just people who have a sincere interest in seeing our property for potential purchase. Everyone I have talked to lately complains as we do that when you are the buyer, you get paraded through homes that aren't even close to what you have said you wanted but then I guess it looks like the agent is trying to sell your home but in reality, everyone is wasting their time.
Middle Aged Mom, I was surprised that no one mentioned price before you did.
OP, one great way to reduce hassles is to price the property well below comparable properties. With enough marketing, this will bring in buyers the first weekend you are on the market, and they may behave extremely well in order to get their bid accepted (or start a bidding war). The shorter the time you are on the market, the fewer the headaches.
I agree selling a home while living in it is a major headache
Here's one little suggestion---Install interior sliding bolts or chains on outside doors, to keep agents from literally walking right in. While on the buying side, we had an agent just walk right in on a lady in her underwear, the agent hadn't bothered to call ahead. We had another agent read from the listing oh, they want to be called in advance, so, she pulled up in the driveway and called then walked right into the house while talking on her phone!
Do realize, the listing agents are at the top of the commission-splitting food chain. They rarely show the listing themselves, unless they are the high-priced listings. Most of the showing agents don't have any listings of their own, and are competing against a hoard of other commission-hunting agents. They don't get paid unless they make a sale To H*ll with the seller, they will all but break down your door to get a buyer in.
We are currently renting, and have decided to buy this house, because we simply don't want the hassle of buying again, while allowing the owner to show our home----we've done that enough in our lives, this house is good enough
You seem like you are bringing a lot of negative energy and expectations to this process.
It is a pain in the neck having your house on the market. But the more you commit to having the house as completely available to show as possible, the faster it will sell.
I have nothing against going FSBO and have done it myself. As a Realtor, I would not accept your listing given the way you feel about the process and agents at this point--not in a mean way, I just insist on being on the same page as my sellers so that I can get their house sold as quickly as possible and everyone will be happy. But there are some downsides to FSBO as well....
If you go FSBO, where do you think most of the buyers will come from? The vast majority of qualified, serious buyers are working with an agent. Not having your house on MLS greatly decreases your exposure to these buyers, to say the least. When buyers do come along, it will likely be with their buyer's agent (though deals do happen without any agent involvement at all), whom you will need to pay in all likelihood. That agent will be representing the buyer, not you.
You are concerned about unscreened buyers in your home with an agent. (BTW, no decent professional would let a buyer in your home totally unsupervised, but yes the buyers will walk from room to room without the agent being right on top of them. Remove valuables from your home or lock them up for the duration of the time your home is on the market.) If you go FSBO, who screens the buyers then? Do you insist on seeing preapproval paperwork before you will show it?
Where will you advertise?
As you noted, people will still show up at your doorstep, and people will still want to case your house (moreso with FSBO). You will be making the appointments and present in the house when a buyer is there, which is generally awkward and off-putting but not the end of the world.
Also as you have noted, people expect to save money going FSBO. The seller expects to, and the buyer expects to as well. This is often the source of frustration in FSBO transactions--you will receive more lowball offers from those expecting a better price because there is no commission to pay. You will also receive more lowball offers from buyers who aren't working with an agent. A buyer's agent will at least look at comps and share them with her client before making an offer. The client is free to offer what he/she will, but will at least have had some guidance as to what is realistic.
FSBO takes longer, so you will endure the inconvenient aspects of having your house on the market for a longer time. If you're doing it right, it means your house is kept within 20-30 minutes of photo-shoot ready at all times for the duration. Basically, it should always be ready to show whether you are doing FSBO or listing. Always. That is the worst part, imo, but it's totally necessary.
If you do list, I would choose a 4-6 hour period every day, or two shorter periods, that the home is available to be shown with a courtesy call. 24 hour notice, lots of notes about dogs and day sleepers and valuables and no lockbox = pita to show. It will sit on the market MUCH longer if you throw up these roadblocks to showings. Is this a pain? Yep, and it will be a pain for a MUCH shorter period if you do it.
If you want to sell, and you want to sell as quickly as possible, statistics bear out that having the house listed on the MLS is the biggest deal. Having it decluttered (remove 1/3-1/2 your belongings. Yes, that's what I said) and properly staged is just as important imo, and statistics support this as well. Having it easily available to show and exuding a positive energy about the showing process is more important than you might think--the buyer's first visit is all about an "emotional buy," that is making a connection with your house. Make the property easy to schedule a showing. Have a lockbox, for the love....Unless you are really in a timewarp, they record who has opened them.
If there's an irritated seller on the premises, the agent has a difficult time getting in the house and is stressed, and all parties are left with the general impression that this is a "difficult" seller, that emotional connection will have a much lower chance of happening. That's a fact.
Your attitude should be much less angry and resentful and much more toward, "Hey, I've got this great product to sell you! Come on over and see it; I know you're going to love it!"
You can be clear with your agent what your expectations are without being negative, whiny, or distrustful. Agent remarks can remind showing agents to lock the doors when they are finished, but expect some lights to be left on and the occasional door left open. It's just going to happen sometimes. You should not have items of value visible or unlocked in the home.
Good luck! Take a deep breath and surrender yourself to the process. It's temporary, whether you go FSBO or list. My concern with FSBO, for you, is that you seem so overwhelmed by the process as it is, and FSBO takes longer and takes more of YOU to get it done. FSBO works better for folks who are genuinely excited about the selling process, are willing to take the steps necessary to aggressively market their home, and can bring all that positive energy to each phase of the transaction.
Last edited by Montanama; 06-19-2014 at 09:53 AM..
After thinking about it, how many people call a realtor and want to see houses when they get off work that day? So, I'm guessing they show the homes listed with their agency and if the person doesn't like them, they call another agency to try to set up appointments, in our case it was usually 20 to 30 minutes, from the call.
This is not how it works in any market I know. A buyer's agent finds listings meeting their clients' requirements on the MLS, regardless of whose office they are listed with. This is the whole point of the MLS. A buyer's agent who defaults to their own agency's listings will not sell many houses. MLS works because it's in everyone's best interests to have a larger inventory from which to choose. Sometimes buyers just want to see your house at the last minute, and there are lots of possible reasons for that, some good and some silly. Point is, LET THEM SEE IT. You don't know which one is the serious buyer. Often the agent doesn't either, as much as we might insist on preapproval etc. It's the nature of the process.
It's not unusual for that house that we stop to see on a whim to end up being "the one," even though it was outside the target area, or smaller than what the buyer wanted, or priced a little higher than they wanted to go...A good agent does their best to "know" their client, but much of the process is emotional. Recognize that and you can make it work for you.
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then walked right into the house while talking on her phone!
