Best Tips For Showing Your House: For Sale By Owner Guide

When selling your home FSBO you can benefit from learning tips for showing your house for sale by owner. Here, I have included the do’s and don’ts when showing a house. This will help you give buyers a positive showing experience which should result in getting buyers to take the next step and write an offer on your home.

Real Estate Showing Defined

A real estate house showing is an opportunity for a prospective buyer to tour a home for sale. There is a difference between a private showing vs open house.

Real Estate Open House Showing

An open house is an event where a home for sale is made open to the public. Prospective buyers do not need an appointment in order to view the home. Instead, you can just go to the house and view the home.

When arriving at the open house you should knock on the door. Do not just walk inside the open. A real estate agent will let you in the home. In the case of a FSBO the seller-owner will let you in.

An open house is different from a private showing. A tour with your own agent is a private showing vs open houses will often have multiple prospective buyers touring a home at the same time. Often, the buyers at the open house are not with their agent.

What Is a Lockbox House Showing

Real estate agents will attach a lockbox to a listing, or a home for sale. These lockboxes can only be accessed by a real estate agent or someone with the code to open the box. Most homes with a lockbox house showing will require a potential buyer to be with a real estate agent in order to tour the home.

View The Home with A Private House Showing

A private house showing is a showing for a prospective homebuyer which is scheduled with an appointment. Homebuyers having a private showing should expect to be touring the home with no other buyers present. Additionally, your real estate agent will most likely be with you.

FSBO Tips for Showing a House for Sale

Home sellers need to know what they should and should not do for a successful home showing. A ready to show home makes a huge difference in having a successful home sale. The showing is one of the most important steps in getting a buyer to commit to purchasing your home. Additionally, a great showing will lead to more aggressive offers with a higher price and better purchase terms for you.

Do’s For Showing Your FSBO

These are the things you should be doing before and during a home showing of your house for sale.

Staging Your Home

Nicely staged homes sell. This is because good staging and decor focuses on the best use and presentation of the spaces within the home. Consider reading more about decorating and design trends. Many decorating and furnishing improvements can be made on a relatively small budget. Additionally, a professional interior decorator can help you, too.

Curb Appeal Matters

A potential buyer will make his or her first impression of your home as soon as they pull in the driveway. Curb appeal matters. Have the lawn mowed, the weeds pulled, and trim any gnarly bushes and trees. Fresh mulch goes a long way for presentation, too. Throw in some color with potted plants and flowers and thin out overly grown flower beds.

Be Prepared For Questions About The Home

Homebuyers have questions. If you are selling your home FSBO you are both the owner and the salesperson. “I’ll get back to you,” shouldn’t be your response. Instead, know the answers to the questions. Here are the most frequently asked questions I receive when showing homes to homebuyers.

• How old is the roof?
• How old are the major mechanicals? (furnace, air conditioning unit, water heater)
• Where are the lot lines?
• Is there an HOA or POA? If so, are there any costs, and where can we read the requirements?
• Does the basement leak?
• What is this neighborhood like?
• What are the utility expenses?
• Why are they selling the home? (read more about this at the end and why you should never answer this question)

Practice Your Home Tour Routine

One of the first things Quadwalls team do with new real estate agents has them give me a tour of a home. You should practice how you will give a home tour. Know how you will let the buyers in, introduce them, and where you suggest they start. Knowing how you want the tour to end is good, too.

Your House Needs To Be Clean

Clean houses sell and dirty ones don’t. Clean your house. Everything should have and be in its place. Homebuyers will be turned off by your overflowing garbage cans, dirty dishes, and piles of laundry. Bathrooms should be cleaned and all of the beds should be made. It’s all about presentation and a clean house presents much better than a dirty house.

Consider Holding an Open House

Open houses are a good idea for a few reasons. First, it offers convenience to the buyers. Many serious buyers are reluctant to schedule a showing for fear of needing to cancel. An open house removes this burden from buyers. Secondly, open houses are efficient because many people can tour the home in a short amount of time. Lastly, a flurry of activity can makes your home more desirable in the eyes of other buyers. This can motivate buyers to take action and get an offer submitted.

Open houses will receive the best attendance if held during weekends. I have found 1 PM to 3 PM to be the ideal time for these. And Saturdays can be better during football season.

Have a Takeaway

Have professionally printed flyers and give these to buyers as they leave the home. These act as a great reminder after the buyers have left your home. The information on the flyer should include:

• Your contact information including your name, phone number, and email address
• The property address
• Hard features including bedroom count, bathroom count and square footage
• Soft features which can include things every house does not have. Examples include fireplaces, finished basement, a main bedroom with en-suite bathroom, or a recreation room

Do not include the price. You may change the price and then either need to re-print the flyers or mark it out which just looks bad.

Skip the Refreshments

I do not put out refreshments at my open houses. Buyers are there to see a home and not to eat lunch. It’s messy, cumbersome, and just one more thing. Refreshments are an unnecessary thing. Skip it.

Take Safety Precautions

Safety should always be taken seriously. Homes are private places and strangers will be coming into your home. Here are some great ways to stay safe when showing your FSBO.

• All valuables, whether financial or sentimental, should be either removed from the home or discreetly stored away
• Lock up any weapons, decorative swords, knives, and firearms
• Lock away any medications.
• Put away any personally identifiable information like mail, bank statements, or other important documents.
• Have additional people at the home with you during the showing. I call this the home team. Maybe it is you and a spouse, significant other, friend, or parent, but try to have someone else with you. Only one home team member should go with the buyer. The other should stay near an exit door. And make sure the other party has a key to the home in their pocket.

Collect Contact Information And Feedback

Home sellers should try to get contact information from buyers who tour the home. This can follow up with the buyers. Also, ask a homebuyer what they think about the property and specifically ask, “what if anything could I do to make the home more attractive?”.

Don’t Do This When Showing Your FSBO

Goldilocks the Temperature

Don’t be a cheapskate on the heat or air conditioning when showing the home. Make the home feel comfortable. First, if your home feels uncomfortable that will make a negative impression with the buyers. Secondly, uncomfortable buyers will be unfocused and rush through the home. The result will be your home will be easily forgotten because it did not make a positive impact on the buyers.

Reveal Why You Are Selling

As a real estate agent I always want to know why a seller is selling. That way I can tell the buyers how to take advantage of the seller’s situation. Brush off buyer’s questions about why you are selling the home. Doge the question as much as you can without coming off rude or secretive.

Don’t Be a Hover Mother

Earlier I wrote I teach agents how to show a home and the new ones usually just ask how I do it. This is exactly what I do: “Hi Buyer, welcome to 123 Banana St. Come on in! Okay, so I have known you for less than 2 minutes so I do not know much about you. Come in, look around, have fun, and if you get lost or scared just yell, ‘Chuck, I’m lost or scared come help me!’”

Back off. Give the buyers some space to breathe, to view everything, and to talk.

Freeriders Will Come Along

So that nice sounding couple called and said they want to see your home Saturday at 11:00 AM. Then three cars pull up with that nice young couple, her parents, and his brother. Don’t sweat it. Do not let the buyer’s extra party members throw you off. And do not always view these people as the enemy. Just let them in and tell them to have a great time.

Secure The Pets

Pets can so easily get overwhelmed. This can cause injuries to the pet or people or a pet could get out. Also, some people are not pet people. Have the animals safely and securely stored. Also, let the viewer know where the pets are and feel free to inform buyers no to touch your pets.

Conclusion

A real estate showing is an opportunity for potential buyers to view a home for sale. This can be either a private showing or through an open house. Knowing how to show your home for sale by owner will be a benefit to you.

FSBO homes are ready to be shown once they are staged, cleaned, and any outdoor sprucing up is completed. Be prepared for homebuyers to have questions about the home. Also, make sure that any valuable items are put away. Remember, stay safe when strangers are in your home.

FSBO sellers should make their home as inviting and attractive as possible. A comfortable temperature and securing pets removed those distractions. Give the buyers some space so they can have a positive showing experience and make an offer.

If you are trying to FSBO your home and getting overwhelmed feel free to contact me. I am an Indiana real estate agent and can help you get your home market ready, advertised, and get buyers coming through your home to buy it. Complete the contact form below to get started.