HOW WE SOLD OUR HOME PRIVATELY - WITHOUT A REAL ESTATE AGENT! SELLING YOUR HOME YOURSELF IS NOT AS HARD AS YOU THINK

by John Robinson

Here are the steps we used to sell our home:

I figured out the asking price by comparing prices of similar homes sold in my neighborhood and weighed that with what I actually wanted to get for my home.

Next, I hired a lawyer who gave me invaluable advice.

I obtained the two forms I needed; the purchase and sale agreement and disclosure form. These forms may vary depending on where you live.  Ask your lawyer. Your lawyer may advise you on how to obtain these or you can click on the following link: Buy and download legal and business forms from MegaDox.com

Next came the marketing of the house.  I placed an ad in the newspaper for Saturday only and got a sign from the Home Depot.  I realized that prospective home buyers still looked in the paper.  You also have to realize that buyers will drive around the neighborhoods that they are interested in.  For us, it was our neighbors who told a co-worker about our home for sale.  You see; MLS is not everything!  Also, if you are on a busy street, you are advertising all the time!  As far as online advertising, you can list your home free and easy with a site called kijiji.  There you can also upload pictures of your home with your listing.  Kijiji is very popular with home sellers and home buyers locally, nationally and internationally, so you are sure to get lots of exposure with your listing.

Showing the house.  The occasional real estate agent would show up, however, we were advised not to let them in the house- so we didn't.. We showed the house about 17 times.  There were a lot of nosy neighbors who got the very quick walk through, so the 17 showings was not as bad as you think - we weeded out the serious lookers fairly quick. When it came to showing our home, we just used our common sense i.e.. make sure the house is clean and clutter-free, have a scented candle burning a good 1/2 to 1 hour before they showed up, turn lots of lights on, in the winter make sure the house is warm before potential buyers show up, hand them a brochure when they walk in the door, make them feel welcome of course and get their name and number before they leave as well as any comments they might have.  Our feeling was; who better to show a home than the homeowners, the individuals who know the home the best and can answer questions more effectively than anyone else.

When we finally got the couple that was interested, things moved along very quickly.  They, the buyers, also hired and consulted with a lawyer. 

My wife and I and the young couple arranged to meet again to come up with an agreeable price.  This took all of 5 minutes - which is the beauty of selling a home privately.  There is no going back and forth between parties with offers and counter offers.  For us it was using a blank piece of paper with the parties together.  We also decided on a closing date, deposit and any stipulations at the same time!

No one filled out any forms nor did anybody sign anything.  They took the purchase agreement form home, filled it out and then brought it to their lawyer for approval before signing it.  When they brought it to us, we also took it to our lawyer for approval before signing.

We filled out the disclosure form and the buyers arranged for an inspection.

The final walk through on the closing day and that's basically it.