Builders, how may we rip… er.. help you?
OK, everybody realizes now that the market is tough, competition is fierce and the bottom lines get hurt. So, what would you, as a seller, look to do? Cutting your costs, right? Wrong.
Why do sellers pay hundreds of dollars to advertise on websites like ForSaleByOwner.com? Exactly: because they don’t want to pay thousands of dollars in real estate commissions. And – I dare to presume – in order to make it as easy as possible for a potential buyer to access information about the property, its location and the seller’s contacts. In other words, the whole philosophy of selling “by owner” is to cut the middleman (middlemen) out. So, what’s wrong with that?
Nothing really – unless you are a builder selling your specs. Today, I went on the aforementioned website to look what else is available beyond our old good MLS. Usually, when you look up a property there, you almost always see the seller’s name and the phone number. I said “almost” because that site is also in business of trying to sell you their “find-all-foreclosures-everywhere” stuff (please, don’t waste your money on it) so, “foreclosure property†pages have no address and no seller contacts. Instead, you are invited to “click to sign upâ€.
But wait. What’s going on here? I open a page with information about a nice looking brand new million-dollar spec and realize that there is no address either. How am I supposed to find it on the site touting their “Lots of Help†thing? Let’s call the builder and ask for the address! I go to the phone number and… where have I seen it? A second later, the light bulb goes off in my head: I’ve seen it just now when trying to check out another new construction on this very website, offered by a different builder. Was there the property address? Nope. Hmm…
I checked 10 other listings: none of them had the property address but all had the same phone number to call. Is somebody representing all builders here? I thought the idea of this “Lots of Help” site was providing buyers with a quick, direct and unobstructed access to sellers… Puzzled, I scrolled down to “Contact Information” and clicked on the web link Inest.com.
Ha-ha-ha! Surprise, surprise! It is one of the Lending Tree’s “babies”! As always, they are standing by to be at your “service”, dear builders! That is, the service of helping you make less money! Because, you know, LT has to give a buyer a 1% rebate when that he purchases your house. And where does that rebate come from? Bingo - your money that you would have otherwise saved had that buyer had your direct contact information and the property address (you do have your nice big sign with your phone number there, right?)
Let’s forget about greedy agents for a second. Yes, they want that 5%-6% piece of your pie but at least you know upfront: they do want to be middlemen and they do want that Exclusive Contract. Instead, let’s talk about noble LT and ForSaleByOwner.com, its “No Commission, Lots of Help” ally.
Lots of help? Sure: if they “help” you sell a $1,500,000 spec, buyer gets a $15,000 rebate (coming out of your pocket) and, of course, plus an extra amount (there’s got to be something monetary in it for LT, too).
No Commission? Well, if you insist on calling it “referral fee”, then be my guest.
So, here is my completely free and no-obligation advice: Ever thought of displaying your direct contacts when going FSBO?
More wisdom to follow.
Technorati Tags: forsalebyowner.com, for sale by owner, rip off
Last Sunday, I conducted an improvised poll by calling people who sell “By Owner” just to see how quickly sellers respond. I have made 20 calls and in 14 cases nobody was there to pick up the phone. If I were a buyer or a buyers agent, 70% of the seller would have missed a chance. So, the first question: who’s supposed to sell your home? Your voicemail?