In last month’s PART I we discussed how to make your first contact, a gentle offer to provide the information most needed by the typical FSBO owner/seller. The information you provided was the enjoyable, “fun” part of selling a home, which initially attracts people to the concept of selling a home on their own. Your second contact should offer a bit more information about the less “glamorous” aspects of selling a home. Here, you should begin to discuss the harsher, but nonetheless realistic, aspects of wearing the seller’s hat.

Writing your second letter to an FSBO

Although they may have had a few contacts with the general public at this point, these individuals still are not ready to jump on your bandwagon and have you sell the house for them.

Your role now is to help them begin to understand the “big picture” of home sales. Your information should continue to be helpful and necessary. After all, you are here to serve homeowners in your area, even if they are selling their own homes. Right? So, be of service, but don’t coddle as much. Tell them some of the harder facts, and strengthen your position as the expert in the field. As always, offer them fantastic resources for valuable information during this process.

Consider offering standard tips such as:

• Pre-screening and pre-qualifying potential buyers

• How to make potential buyers more comfortable with your being onsite

• Maintaining a life while selling your own home

Give them a short paragraph of pointers or a bulleted checklist on each of these, or similar topics. Make sure this communication is primarily upbeat, but isn’t afraid to address one or two of the more difficult real estate topics. As with the first contact, be sure to direct them to your website for more detailed information or downloadable checklists for each topic.

Once the information you offer is presented, you should offer to help them find a new home when they complete the sale of their current home. In this way, you are not offering to take over their project, but you can offer to relieve them of the additional burden of seeking a new home while they are busy with the process of selling the current one.

Always approach them from what you can do to assist them in their goal of selling the house themselves.

An Example

Dear Mary and John –

The market has shown some activity in the last couple weeks, and I’m sure you have seen an increase in the number of showings requested of you for your own home. I hope all is going well.

Since there are now additional demands on your time, I thought you might be interested in a few of the following tidbits of information to make the job of selling your home a bit easier:

Pre-screening, pre-qualifying and pre-approving potential buyers - Save wear and tear on your home, on your personal schedule and on your nerves by pre-screening potential buyers.

• You do not have the time to play host to the merely curious. After all, you barely have time to show the house to serious, qualified buyers.

• Anyone interested in making a bid on your home should provide information on their employer, occupation, household income, major debts, two years of work history and a proposed down payment. But even that information provides only enough to do pre-qualification, which shows if the buyer is qualified based on their income--it does not indicate their ability to get a loan.

• A lending institution or mortgage company will take the potential buyer and complete the pre-approved process that will cover all aspects required to secure a loan.

• It is important that you protect yourself from having your home tied up and off the market due to attempts to purchase by unqualified individuals.

OR

How to make potential buyers more comfortable with your being onsite - Most potential buyers are uncomfortable expressing their concerns and true impressions of a home if the current owners and inhabitants are showing it. If they can’t see past the current dwellers, they won’t see themselves in your house. It won’t be their dream house. Buying is an emotional decision for many potential buyers. If your emotions are showing there will be no room for theirs.

• Be sure that your potential buyers have to deal with as few inhabitants as possible.

• Ask the grandparents or a friend to take the children during showing appointments.

• Put the pets elsewhere.

• Be objective--you may even consider having an objective friend or an extended family member further removed from the property show the house for you.

OR

Maintaining a life while selling your own home – Taking on a project as big as selling your own home will cut into your personal and family time. It is important that you maintain some time for yourself.

• Do not agree to show the house any time, any day of the week. Carve out a day or two a week for yourself and your family when the house is not available for show. This should probably be during the week, since weekends are a prime “home shopping” time for most potential buyers.

• Employ a maid, get a repairman, and get any outside assistance you need to make this process easier on yourself and on the family. It’s hard to live “under a microscope” for an extended period of time. It's difficult to relax when you know the house must be kept perfect so a stranger may call to view your entire house at any moment.

• Be forgiving of yourself and understanding of the stresses this process will cause you and your family. Be sure to get out and do family activities that everyone will enjoy on your days “off” from the home selling process.

I know your time is at a premium now, especially with the holiday season approaching, and you may find it difficult to carve out enough time in your day to search for a new home for your family. If you would like me to locate some options for your review, selected with your specific needs in mind, please let me know. I would welcome the opportunity to help you find your new home, while you concentrate on selling your existing house.

If you have any questions, or if I can be of any assistance, please call me at 1-800-come sell, or E-mail me at agent@comsellwithus.com.

Wishing you all the best and selling success!

Joe Agent
Come Sell With Us Real Estate
www.comesellwithus.com

Timing is everything where these contacts are concerned. Since you know the current market in your geographic area – you are the best qualified to determine how to time the contacts.

If the market is slow, they may only have one contact between your first and second letters. As such, your contact will appear pushy. However, if the market is hot and they have already had to balance six showings in one week, in addition to their regular daily activities, the demands of work and school schedules, and the extra work of an impending holiday season…the second letter would be a welcome bit of information for a hectic time.

What you want to ensure is that they experience some of the concerns you address JUST PRIOR to the arrival of your letters. Your experience in the local market, and knowledge of the current status will lead you to the best timing for these letters.

The above example letter lists three main points. You do not want your letter or E-mail to be too long. These (and other issues of concern to FSBO sellers) can easily be broken down into a series of “second wave” contact letters. You can also pick one main point and direct them to your website for a more complete discussion.

Chances are, you won’t personally know each FSBO owner/seller in your community, and so the best indicator of your contact schedule is the real estate market itself. Be sure to use the time of the year, the season and references of that type when addressing demands on their schedule.

Next month we will address the third type of contact with this group and how to position yourself to be their hero, and earning their trust while landing their listing.

Angela Allen is our WORD MAGIC columnist and a RESS Certified VA. You can visit her website at Wicked Wordcraft and contact her via e-mail at angela@vacentral.com