Questions/Answer

Q. Where can I obtain Real Estate documents to use when I sell my house myself? A. There are online sources of all type of Real Estate forms available to the general public. Simply searching Real Estate Documents in Google will bring up over 39 million sites to choose from. The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) offers to the public over 50 forms that pertain to a Real Estate transaction here in Texas. If you check with your States Real Estate Commission you may find they have forms available as well. You can also visit the Texas A&M University Education Center website for offers of For Sale by Owner document software for purchase. Finding the forms is not the problem, knowing which forms to use and their accuracy is most important.

Q. Once I find a buyer, what is my next step? A. There is a somewhat complicated schedule of events that follow after obtaining an offer to buy your home. Secure the buyer"s commitment in writing and get an earnest deposit check should be first on the list. Then I suggest that you take your completed buyers offer to a local Title/Escrow office to open escrow for the sale. From there you should work with the Buyer and Escrow Officer to complete the neccessary steps to end up with a transfer of ownership at the close of escrow. Things like property inspection, appraisal, financing commitment, your payoff information, repairs and title commitment are just some of the steps of the process. A typical time frame from the offer, to close of escrow might be 30-60 days. A lot of things can and will happen during this period of time so be prepared for contingencies along the way.

Q. How do I get my home listed on the MLS? A. The MLS is a tool that Real Estate Brokers use to be able to market property that they have secured a Listing Agreement from a Seller, to the entire list of Real Estate Agents within an area that pay to have access to the MLS. Most MLS services also may upload the listings to Online internet sites like www.Realtor.com that is available to anyone who wishes to see what property is for sale by the Real Estate community. As a non-member you cannot get your home listed on the MLS unless you enter into a Listing Agreement with a member Broker/Agent. There are companies that advertise that they will get your home (FSBO) listed on the MLS, for either a set fee amount or discounted commission percentage. Getting your home listed on the MLS will require that you tell in the MLS listing, all Real Estate Brokers/Agents what commission you are willing to pay to a Broker/Agent that brings a Buyer who purchases your home. You might want to read my Central Texas MLS-Listing Agreement offer below to see what First Choice Texas Realty can offer you in discounted fee's.

Q.Realtors charge huge commissions, can't I save money by selling my home myself? A. Let's look at the numbers. A typical Real Estate transaction involving Real Estate Agents will have a Listing Broker/Agent and a Buyers Agent each earning a commission. A change in the State of Texas requires a Real Estate Agent to disclose to all parties of a real estate transaction who he/she represents in the real estate transaction. It is most common for each party, a Seller and a Buyer, to be represented by their own Agents. This will insure that each party is represented by a licensed Agent who is working in His/Her clients best interest. It is a rare occasion where one Broker/Agent will represent both parties of a Real Estate Transaction. In regards to commissions, please understand this, all commissions paid in a Real Estate transaction are negotiable, and are stated in a Listing Agreement that you sign before your house gets listed on the MLS.  In our area, you may find a normal expected commission structure such as a 3% commission to the Listing Broker/Agent and another 3% commission paid to the Broker/Agent that brings the Buyer and successfully assists in getting the transaction closed. So if you offer your home For Sale By Owner, would you be willing to pay a commission to a licensed Real Estate Agent that brings you a Buyer? Would you agree to pay that Agent a 2-3% commission? So maybe, you can get an Agent to bring you a Buyer for your FSBO, pay Him/Her a commission, say 3%, and you could save the 3% Listing Broker/Agent commission. But wait, is it really an issue with paying a Commission or are you concerned and unsure that a Listing Real Estate Agent will get the job done for you, at the price you want for your home? Why don't you wait to answer that question until you read the rest of the Q&A's.

Q. What about ads on the internet? A. Just by searching Google for the term, "For Sale By Owner" will bring over 22 million hits for web sites of all kinds. By typing in Real Estate you can access a billion web sites total. So what ad would you feel might bring you a buyer for your home? Advertising in the newspaper will cost a lot of money for very little results. That is one reason print Newpapers are going out of business all over the US. You pay for an ad that gets lost in the many ads in the paper, that most likely a home buyer will never see. It's a known fact that print ads for items like real estate are fast becoming a thing of the past. So other than putting your sign in your front yard, what else could you do that might be effective? The most viewed website for real estate is www.Realtor.com, but again it only advertises listings that Licensed Real Estate Broker/Agents have on their MLS. In my Full Service real estate listings, I use about 30 different web sites to market homes I have for sale. I also use Craigslist with great success. You will find that any type of advertising you do, either print or online, will bring you more unwanted requests or contacts by someone wanting to sell you something! Selling a home today is much different, you need many more resources than ever before.

Q.What should I really be concerned about in attempting to sell my home myself? A. There is so much of the process of selling a home that can be frustrating and in some cases dangerous for a person to try themselves. The first and probably the biggest pitfall is missing the opportunity to market your home for sale in the areas where 90% of the buyers are looking. When you attempt a FSBO, and you are not marketing where the buyers are, you are potentially wasting valuable time trying to find the "buyer in a haystack" during a peak selling season. You may become so frustrated by not getting qualified lookers that you get discouraged and say, "I'll just take my home off the market until the buyers return!" In selling any product, timing is everything. Just because you didn't find a buyer yourself does not mean the buyers are not out there, they just didn't see your home for sale. In Williamson County Texas, there are approximately 100-150 homes that sell each and every week. Statistics show only about 3% of these are FSBO sales. The other concern is in the position you put yourself in attempting a FSBO with the legal aspects of a transaction. What forms and documents are the correct ones to protect you in the transaction. What if you do not properly disclose everything that a seller is required to disclose, will the transaction not make it through the close of escrow, or more of a concern is what could happen if a buyer comes back and says you did something wrong during the sale that might cause you a legal problem down the road. A buyer could come back and claim that you did not fully disclose an item that they say should have been disclosed, even as much as 1-2 years down the road. This is an area where licensed Real Estate Agents stay on top of the new laws, have you complete the proper disclosures and will help to prevent anything like this to happen.

Q. So what should I do to make sure I get my house sold, quickly and for the most money, and protect myself from any problems down the road? A. You have four choices.

1. Put a sign in your front yard with your phone number on it and hope for the best. (This is actually what some other Real Estate Agents do as well.)

2. Order Jim's ebook, and follow his suggestions to Sell Your Home Alone. Here is his link again. http://hop.clickbank.net/?512realtor/fsbohelp

 3. Read on to find out what my "Sell It Yourself" with a listing on the MLS program can offer you.

4. Consider using First Choice Texas Realty and my Premium  FULL SERVICE Listing Agreement option.

     So, if you now would like to know more about what Full Service means, please click the "Sellers Link" on the left. If you would like to still Sell Your Home Yourself, but would like to have your home listed on the MLS here is the the information to get started.

I don't need to read any more, I just want to get started. Please contact me with everything I need to know.

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You can go online and find ads that tell you a Real Estate company will put your home on the MLS for as low as $298. But you get what you pay for. Here is what you should know about using a MLS listing only company.

Who are they and where is their office?

Dave Graham is a Licensed REALTOR® and a member of ABOR, TAR, NAR and WCAOR.

Dave lives in Georgetown, and covers all of Williamson County.

Dave was awarded the Rookie of the Year award in his first year at Coldwell Banker United.

Dave currently is an Agent with New Century Realty Group, a Texas Broker with his office in Georgetown.

Dave is a part of his community as current President of his Homeowners Association, volunteers at the Caring Place, and is active in local Williamson County/Georgetown activities.

Dave and his family attend Celebration Church in Georgetown.

When you use a MLS Only Broker, who does the paperwork and negotiations?

 Here is one of the biggest concerns you should have when using a MLS only Broker for $300-$500. Do they leave you out there to do all of the paperwork yourself? Are you to do all of the negotiations with Buyers or the Buyers Agent yourself?

Even with my "Sell It Yourself" with a listing on the MLS program, I will make sure that you have completed all of the neccessary and required documents both prior to adding the listing on the MLS, as well as when an offer comes from the Buyers. I will make sure that you fully understand all of your options of an offer, and give you suggestions to any counter offers. Once you have agreed on terms to sell your home, I will then assist with getting your contract in escrow and working with you to come to a successful close of escrow.

What kind of marketing/advertising will they use? 

Some of the MLS only Brokers will talk about how they will get your listing on sites like, Realtor.com and AustinHomeSearch.com. Well as a matter of fact, by just having the listing on our MLS, these two sites will automatically have your home listed on their sites. The Broker does nothing extra to get it there.

Here's what Dave Graham will do to market your FSBO.

• Austin MLS listing
• Realtor.com
• AustinHomeSearch.com
• Texas4SaleByOwner.com
• Craigslist Ad
• Over 20 other online Real Estate sites
• Social sites like Facebook, YouTube, etc.
• And if you agree to pay a Buyers Rep a commission (we will discuss this in our initial consultation) I will have your listing sent to over 200 local Real Estate Agents.

 What happens if I get no buyers from the MLS listing, or if I decide I'm ready to list with a Full Service Broker?

Well, you pay upfront for any of the MLS only Broker listings. Most will have you sign a contract for 90 to 180 days or even up to a full year agreement. This is a CONTRACT, and you are most likely stuck with this service until your contract expires. With my Sell It Yourself Program, if you ever decide to go with my Full Service Broker Listing, your upfront payment will be credited towards any commissions that I earn. You can always cancel or take your listing off the MLS temporarily or permanently at any time, no matter what happens, only when you use Dave Graham, Your First Choice Texas Realty Agent.

So now you have some decisions to make. Are you still thinking you want to handle this very important transaction all on your own? Then again, I suggest you get Jim's ebook, right now.

Or if you think you would like to use Dave Graham as your Real Estate Agent, either with my "Sell It Yourself" with a listing on the MLS program or with my "Premium Full Service Listing", then go ahead and enter your information on the form above, hit submit and I will contact you right away.

Timing is everything in selling a home. Don't delay, let Dave Graham help you get through the maze of forms and marketing, and achieve your goal of SELLING YOUR HOME!

Dave Graham, REALTOR

"Your First Choice Texas Realty Agent"

License with New Century Realty Group

512-586-3310

dave@FirstChoiceTexasRealty.com