Tips for FSBO sellers: Here are some of the best ways you can help For Sale by Owner sellers and generate listings.
Today I am sharing tips for FSBO (for sale by owner) sellers. In the video below, I speak on this topic during a REDX podcast as guest with host Robert Sullivan. Prospecting for FSBOs can be incredibly rewarding and is one of my favorite forms of prospecting. That said, you need to walk into it with a strategy in mind. And, that strategy needs to be based around providing value. Read through this blog and find the FREE DOWNLOAD of our FSBO Guide template in exchange for subscribing.
VIDEO: Tips for FSBO Sellers: Providing Value to For Sale By Owner Listings
FSBOs in today’s low-inventory market
Why should agents be prospecting for FSBOs right now? Home prices have gone up 23% over the last 12 months (at the time of this podcast). This rate of increase is insane. I’ve never seen something like this. It’s been a hot seller’s market for almost a decade now and people keep asking, when is it going to stop? It hasn’t stopped — it’s only gotten crazier. We need approximately 7 million more houses to put supply in equilibrium with demand to stabilize prices. Prices aren’t going down any time soon. We will probably see double digits in percentage price increases for several years until the supply can catch up with the demand.
This is where FSBOs come in. When housing prices are going up so fast, AND there is a crazy demand for houses, it creates a false sense of ability in many home sellers. They think, “The market is so hot and people want houses so badly that I can sell it myself.” Real estate agents tend to resist prospecting for FSBOs because, in general, these sellers don’t respect the job of the Realtor. They think the job is easy and that agents get paid too much to do something “anyone” can do. It’s not an easy conversation to have, and it’s not easy to change their mind.
Believe it or not, this is the ideal market to prospect for FSBOs. When the market is hot, FSBO prospectors do the best. Prospecting for FSBOs is not a lot of work in terms of quantity — yes, the conversation may be uncomfortable, but it’s not as time consuming as, say, circle prospecting.
The reason that prospecting for FSBOs is good in this market is that there are tons of them. You can find FSBOs to call everywhere.
Tips for talking to FSBO sellers: How to handle objections and change their mind
So, what can you do to change a FSBO seller’s mind? We have some tips for dealing with FSBO sellers. First and foremost, you must bring value. FSBO sellers already believe that you don’t bring anything to the table. They may have used a Realtor before and their house did not sell. Why are you any different?
You must remember that the vast majority of FSBOs do not sell on their own. The majority of FSBOs end up selling with a real estate agent because they failed. You must adopt the mentality that you are going to be the Realtor that’s there for them when they fail. When they can’t do it themselves, you want to be available to them. How can you add value in a way that helps them and doesn’t come across as pushy and off-putting?
Tips for working with FSBO sellers: first, set the appointment
When you talk to a FSBO seller on the phone, you are not going to convince them to sell with you right then and there. That is just unheard of. On that first phone call, your goal is to set the appointment. You need to meet in person or over Zoom to go over their objections together — don’t do it on the phone.
Topics to address at the appointment:
- Price
- Why their house did not sell
- What their needs are
- What is their motivation
- Listing with me
- Commission
Take our FSBO online course
Want more guidance? Check out our crash course on FSBOs. Learn how to handle objections, sell the value of your services, and convince FSBO listings to sign with you in this mini course.
It’s a numbers game; be patient
Remember, ultimately, FSBO prospecting is a numbers game. If you are meeting with a lot of FSBO sellers via Zoom and in person, you are queuing up leads to stay with until the time is right. Let’s say you are only able to convert one or two FSBO sellers at the appointment. The rest of the FSBO sellers you talk to become part of your long game. You stay with these FSBO sellers, provide them with value, and wait until they cave and realize that they need you.
Don’t get discouraged. Be patient. Keep nurturing, keep adding value, and the numbers will come around. It takes time, but it pays off. We know the statistics that show most FSBO sellers end up choosing to sell with a Realtor. You just want that Realtor to be you, so you need to stick around and be the name they think to call when the time comes.
Give them value: Tips for FSBO sellers
Most real estate agents use a CRM that helps with follow up. For FSBO sellers, you want to follow up and nurture for 6-8 weeks. You can go longer, but I wouldn’t go much shorter. Create a FSBO follow-up action plan. The vast majority of FSBO listings that you get are going to come during, and after, the follow-up process.
What’s in this action plan?
- Phone calls to check in
- Emails containing items of value
- Texts and direct messages
- Listing e-alert that sends neighborhood listings
As you add value, they start to like you. You are building rapport and showing that you know your stuff. And, you’re giving them all this value for free. They have made you no promises of listing with you, and yet you are being so selfless in giving your time and advice. This is the “window washing” analogy that I often talk about. No “payment” is required, but humans tend to feel a sort of guilt when they are given something for free. It will feel rude if they don’t choose you as their Realtor when the time comes.
Tips for FSBO sellers: the FSBO Guide
You can create a helpful guide to give to FSBO sellers. “Here’s a step-by-step guide that will help you sell your house as a FSBO.” Here, you are actually helping them do what they want to do. You provide tips for FSBO sellers and give pointers about how to handle the sale of a house without a Realtor. In doing so, you also point out how hard it is, but not in an annoying way. At the end, you provide your contact info and remind them that you are there to provide assistance should they ever need it. In the video within this blog, I walk through all the great parts of this helpful packet. Below, you can download it for free!
FREE DOWNLOAD: the FSBO Guide template
Subscribe to our newsletter and get a free download of our FSBO Guide template (PowerPoint format) directly to your email. You can easily customize this guide with your own logo, colors, and fonts, and you can edit the text. This guide is a great way to provide tips to FSBO sellers in a way that helps you build a relationship with them.
Handling objections: show, don’t tell
Need help with urgency objections from FSBO sellers? You can share infographics, like the one below, to demonstrate the statistics that back you up as a Realtor. At ICC, we coach our clients to “show, don’t tell” because it is much more impactful.
Want to learn more?
- Read The High-Performing Real Estate Team. You can buy Brian Icenhower’s best-selling book on Amazon.
- Subscribe to The Real Estate Trainer Podcast. You can find it on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Podbean, and anywhere you listen to your favorite podcasts.
- Join the Real Estate Agent Round Table. We are always posting fresh content, including market updates, free templates, and host dynamic discussions with the industry’s top producers.
- Subscribe to our newsletter. In the sidebar of this blog, you’ll see a form to fill out to subscribe. You’ll be the first to find out about our new resources, free downloads, premium online courses, as well as promotions.
- Reach out and talk to an ICC coach. Not sure which of our coaching programs is right for you? Let us help you.
