Fliperati

I spent most of yesterday at my investment property taking care of odds and ends.  I have been trying to dream up new ways to attract more prospective buyers and I thought changing the sign in the front yard might generate renewed interest.  I got the old sign from my flat fee listing agent and I never really liked it but was too caught up in getting everything else ready to do anything about it.  Now that I have a bit more time on my hands I decided to replace it with a large, simple “For Sale by Owner” sign in red and white lettering.  Many of the buyers who have come through my house so far seemed to equate my lack of realtor representation with the potential for a good deal, so I’m abandoning my fear that a FSBO sign will deter realtors from bringing their clients to my house and advertising my independence with a new sign.  The flyer tube has MLS printouts inside, so buyers with agents can quickly see that my property is in “the system” and I’m committed to paying a 3% commission if they submit an offer through their broker.  I’ve gotten almost zero traffic from the local realtor community, so it’s not like I have much to lose anyway (sniff sniff).  Part of me wonders if I’ve somehow been blackballed for listing with a flat fee broker?  The other part of me just assumes that the majority of local realtors don’t have any buyer clients right now because the market is so slow.

Regardless of the FSBO question, I would probably be replacing the sign now anyway.  While I am generally happy with the service provided by the flat fee listing agent, the sign they provided (for a $25 fee!) was a piece of crap.  The only good part about it was the sturdy metal frame.  The sign itself was unclear and much too busy for media that is geared toward getting inquiries from passing motorists.  Also, it only listed the phone number and website of the listing agent, which meant that prospective buyers would have to go through a middleman to get in touch with me.  I doctored the sign by carefully covering the listing agent’s contact info with my own phone number and marketing website, leaving only the company logo exposed.  I liked this solution at first because it advertised what looked to be a traditional listing marketed by a lesser-known realty (which would hopefully prevent local agents from ignoring it) while leading people to contact me directly.  However, the sign wasn’t very tidy and I think the new one will catch more attention with its clean, bold lettering.

I also put a permanent “ß House for Sale” sign up on the corner, hoping to drive a bit more traffic down my sleepy residential street (sorry neighbors).  I feel like a nerd on prom night waiting by the phone all the time and am looking to try anything to make it ring.