For Sale By Owner (FSBO) describes people who sell their property themselves and don't use the services of a real estate company.

Like the growth in DIY conveyancing in the UK, FSBO represents a growing trend as many people are demonstrating their self-reliance rather than pay the commission fees of 6% or so that real estate agents or brokers charge for their services. With thousands of dollars at stake, it isn’t surprising that many people find FSBO tempting, but they usually quote other non-financial reasons for going this route:

• Control. Some people hate being at the beck and call of agents and their client viewings and value being able to schedule viewings for times that suit them – and not having to live in “show home” conditions on permanent standby.
  
  
• Local Expertise. FSBO enthusiasts often feel they are the best people to sell their home because they are the people who know the most about it – and the surrounding area.
  
  
• Flexibility. You can try the FSBO route for just a few weeks if you want to “test the waters” without being tied into a six-month real estate listing contract.

Although there are a growing number of Internet sites that are designed to support FSBO promotion, these have nothing like the penetration of the MLS system. Instead, they tend to attract the equally independent minded buyer who is not using a buyer’s agent with access to the MLS database.

Figures from the National Association of Realtors suggest that these limitations are reflected in the experiences of FSBO sellers.

It appears from their statistics that over 80% of people who try FSBO end up listing with a real estate agent within six to eight weeks – and say they wouldn’t try FSBO again.

While we can certainly applaud the independent spirit that drives FSBO, we cannot recommend it for anyone who is likely to be reading this book. If so many native Floridians consistently find that FSBO doesn’t work for them, I fear there is little hope for anyone without a very detailed knowledge of the Florida real estate system.

If for some reason you find yourself in a situation where you feel FSBO is the best or only option available to you, the best advice we can give is to concentrate on these elements:

• Promotion. The agent-driven MLS system is the standard system for anyone to find property in Florida.
  
  With that avenue closed off to you, you will have to work 10 times as hard to get a decent amount of exposure for your property.
  
  
• Price. FSBO sellers consistently overprice their properties because they do not fully understand the market – or the market value of their property.
  
  This is especially a problem because most of the buyers that are attracted to FSBO properties are those that are looking for a cut-price bargain.
  
  Agent listing fees can quickly be justified if you get access to qualified, funded buyers who are willing to pay the market price. At least get an independent valuation done to establish a fair price to ask.
  
  
• Research. Many FSBO sellers ignore the details that every buyer wants to know.
  
  Facts and figures about sizes, dates and amenities are critical, so you should either buy a DIY pro-forma to gather all this information or try and get your hands on a listing form from a real estate agent.
  
  
• Due Diligence. There is a lot of work done in the back offices of real estate companies and the other professionals involved in non-FSBO sales that no one ever sees. Public records are checked, insurance details are gathered, title information is extracted and checked, mortgage details are confirmed and recorded, and much more.
  
  Best of all, these people assume a professional liability for the work they do – indemnifying you from problems that arise if they make a mistake. With FSBO, you have to do all that work yourself – and the penalties for getting it wrong could be very serious indeed.