Anytime. People are always buying and selling real estate – sometimes because they need to and other times just because they want to move. The best time to put your home on the market is when it is right for you.

On that note I will say, depending on where you live, Spring is truly the best time as it is when the majority of buyers are actively looking. I would define this as March, April, and May and would ideally put my home on the market the last week in February. Real estate agents like to say the market begins right after the new year, however, I have not seen in the last 15 years that the general public has caught on to that premise. Although January and February are good months because there are fewer homes on the market and thus less competition.

You might think the holidays between November and January are the worst times to put your home on the market but in all honesty the buyers who are looking at those times are serious buyers and houses do sell in November and December.

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Buyers will sometimes ask what electric, water, and gas bills are for the home.

Your utility companies will gladly mail or email you a condensed version of your last twelve months worth of statments so you can show buyers at-a-glance what utilities have run. Obviously they are just a guide as everyone’s usage varies.

Put these in a plastic sheet protector in a three ring binder for people to look at when they come through the house. Most won’t look but when people ask it is nice to have the information handy for them.

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If your property has a Home Owner’s Association (HOA), you should own at least one copy of both covenants and bylaws from when you purchased the home. If you cannot put your hands on them, you can contact your HOA or the property management firm hired by the HOA and request copies. Some HOAs will email you .pdf versions for free. Others will charge you a lot of money for copies. If this is the case consider asking a neighbor if you can make copies of theirs.

Keep your master copy in a file and make a copy to show prospective buyers. Three hole punch them and put them in a three ring binder to leave out at your Showings and Open Houses. People typically will not look through this three ring binder much but you will be glad you have put it together for the one buyer who is seriously interested!

It is especially handy to make these copies in advance so that when a buyer puts an offer in on your house you can give them the copies from the three ring binder. Purchase Agreements have standard language which states whether the Buyer has or has not received a copy of the Covenants and Bylaws and that they will be given some time as specified in the contract to review the documents and make sure there isn’t anything they cannot live with.

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This is a standard, legal form where you disclose everything you know about the property. It is in your best interest to be honest. Since inspections are standard anything you omit will likely become apparant to the buyer when they have an inspection. Buyers can, and do, use inspections as an excuse to back out of a deal, even if the inspection does not bring up any major concerns. It is in the seller’s best interest to establish trust and credibility with buyers by filling out the disclosure form as accurately as they.

If you have had any water leaks or fire damage to the home you should disclose them, especially. On the form you can state that you have taken care of the problem and have had no repeat occurrences. Again, this establishes trust and credibility more than anything.

Some cities require pre-inspections of properties when they are put on the market. If you suspect your city is one of these, call your city and ask.

You should be able to print out a Sellers Disclosure Statement from the same website you find your state’s real estate documents.

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Whether you choose to do Open Houses or not, you will definitely be doing private Showings and can even include “Shown by Appointment” on your signs, flyers, and ads, both online and in the newspaper.

As a FSBO, you may have less but more targeted foot traffic because you will not have every Tom, Dick, and Harry looking at your house. People who call you to see it will likely be more qualified and you will want to ask them 3 questions to that effect:

1) Have you spoken to a loan officer and are you Pre-Qualified or Pre-Approved?

2) We are For Sale By Owner and are not working with real estate agents – just wanted to make sure you were aware of that…

3) Will all decision-makers be present at this showing? (If not, ask them to schedule a time when everyone can see the house at the same time)

Having Open Houses on the weekends truly does help to keep your home in tip-top shape throughout the week. I can tell you from personal experience that it will seem like even more work to clean up for each potential buyer who requests a private showing. You can always direct them to your Open House if it is only a day or two away. If they are hot-to-trot you will get that vibe and can make an exception for a private showing if your gut tells you to.

When you schedule a Showing you can let the buyer know ahead of time that you have 20 minutes (or whatever number you choose) if you need to keep the showing at a minimum. Some people walk through quickly and others take 30-60 minutes. Prepare yourself, and them, if you know you need to leave for an appointment.

Tidy up, as you would for an Open House, and invite them to look through the house, open any closets or cabinets, and let you know if they have any questions.

Also see:
Showing My Home Safely
Who Sells Houses, Anyway?
Open House Do’s & Don’t’s
How to Prepare for an Open House

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