FSBO Selling Condo - Help?! (flat fee, for sale, real estate)

[CVAlicia]

Well, we have had a condo on MLS, through one of those $350 discount agencies, for nearly 6 weeks. We had two showings on the second weekend and that's it. I had two more showings from postings on my neighborhood's discussion board and one from craigslist, but I need more showings!

What am I doing wrong?

I dropped the price $2,000 so that it is now priced $2,000 BELOW what the builder is charging for the last two similar condos (first floor, same plan) and ours is better in that it 1) has a view of greenery and not the parking lot and 2) ours includes the washer,dryer,and fridge.

That was nearly two weeks ago and didn't produce any nibbles!

Should I put "Priced to sell at $122,900" on the flier or is "priced to sell" Realtor code for something bad? I guess I'm trying to point out that it is priced better than the builder (and I think priced competitively).

I have e-mailed all of the agents with properties at this condo development. I plan on visiting a few nearby real estate agencies tomorrow and drop off copies of my flier. Is that a good idea? Or weird? Would they prefer I e-mail it or just go away?

Sigh. Any tips? Thank you!

[North_Raleigh_Guy]

Originally Posted by CVAlicia

Well, we have had a condo on MLS, through one of those $350 discount agencies, for nearly 6 weeks. We had two showings on the second weekend and that's it. I had two more showings from postings on my neighborhood's discussion board and one from craigslist, but I need more showings!

What am I doing wrong?

I dropped the price $2,000 so that it is now priced $2,000 BELOW what the builder is charging for the last two similar condos (first floor, same plan) and ours is better in that it 1) has a view of greenery and not the parking lot and 2) ours includes the washer,dryer,and fridge.

That was nearly two weeks ago and didn't produce any nibbles!

Should I put "Priced to sell at $122,900" on the flier or is "priced to sell" Realtor code for something bad? I guess I'm trying to point out that it is priced better than the builder (and I think priced competitively).

I have e-mailed all of the agents with properties at this condo development. I plan on visiting a few nearby real estate agencies tomorrow and drop off copies of my flier. Is that a good idea? Or weird? Would they prefer I e-mail it or just go away?

Sigh. Any tips? Thank you!

I would have priced it below the builders price from the start. You may think your condo is superior, but his are new. Some people will pay more for new. Is the builder offering any incentives?

What are you getting for your $350 flat fee lisitng? Is anybody marketing your lisiting or was it just stuck on the MLS with a few pictures?

Edited to add: I just checked your lisitng and noticed there are four other condos in you community with the same # of bedrooms and square footage that are listed below yours. Two are around $116K and two are at $99K. What is it about your condo that makes it worth more? Is it made clear in the marketing materials?

Good Luck!

[MikeJaquish]

Originally Posted by CVAlicia

Well, we have had a condo on MLS, through one of those $350 discount agencies, for nearly 6 weeks. We had two showings on the second weekend and that's it. I had two more showings from postings on my neighborhood's discussion board and one from craigslist, but I need more showings!

What am I doing wrong?

I dropped the price $2,000 so that it is now priced $2,000 BELOW what the builder is charging for the last two similar condos (first floor, same plan) and ours is better in that it 1) has a view of greenery and not the parking lot and 2) ours includes the washer,dryer,and fridge.

That was nearly two weeks ago and didn't produce any nibbles!

Should I put "Priced to sell at $122,900" on the flier or is "priced to sell" Realtor code for something bad? I guess I'm trying to point out that it is priced better than the builder (and I think priced competitively).

I have e-mailed all of the agents with properties at this condo development. I plan on visiting a few nearby real estate agencies tomorrow and drop off copies of my flier. Is that a good idea? Or weird? Would they prefer I e-mail it or just go away?

Sigh. Any tips? Thank you!

Please don't email. Drop fliers off.

It is a long shot, and a lot of agents toss them immediately. You have about 1-2 seconds to make an impression, before they go into the always overflowing waste can beside the mail boxes.
But... You never know. You only need one buyer.

[CVAlicia]

Thank you for such quick replies!

A couple things to add - our condo is empty so there are no staging worries and one very similar condo closed at $121,000 a few weeks ago.

Ours is "better" than the couple in the $116s because it is on the first floor, overlooks the greenery in the back, and has MUCH more hardwood flooring. Going up each floor seems to lose you about $5,000. These are on the second or third floor and overlook the parking lot. I know it looks like the builder has 2 at $99,000, but the agent told me at least one has sold. They are on the second and third floors and have the cheapest stuff the builder could put in there. Ours has hardwood EVERYWHERE but the actual bedroom floor. They were priced higher a couple months ago and they are having a big sale to get something moving. I'm told things are moving now for them, ack, who knows!

Oh, and for my flier I have "Highly Desirable FIRST FLOOR W...at C..P...Condo for sale!" to try to point out that difference.

I have also posted fliers around the condo complex in case someone has a friend or co-worker who might be interested. I also plan on trying to post or leave fliers with the larger neighborhood's clubhouse as well as those nearby. I know the condo would be GREAT for someone's mom so that they could be close to the grandkids. It might also make a nice investment for one of the more well-to-do in the area.

Also, we can't post signs. Mining those who come to look at the model home would be the best, but no signs! I was thinking of sitting in the grassy area by the model, holding the sign myself, and passing out fliers to anyone interested (and giving them a showing, of course). If I could only do that for one three or four hour chunk, would it be a Saturday afternoon with good weather? Sunday?

[kattykay]

To be honest, not all people think 1st floor condos are better - they imagine low ceilings and loud people above them. The view, the level, the hardwoods. Those "better" things are nice and may help it sell more quickly, but not for more money. We have an endunit townhome that the builder charged us ~5000 more for, but I don't expect to get $5000 more when we sell it this fall. It might just sell faster than my neighbors for the same price.

This is the age-old question of, do you want it to sell? or do you want to make a certain amount of $ on it?

One little thing: I would take down those curtains and update the pics after that. I know that sounds stupid, but I found them distracting since the rooms are empty - make them truly empty.

No "for sale" sign is bad. For people who have hired a realtor, they may not even know it is for sale if they haven't done their own MLS search. I don't know what you can do about that though.

Good luck!