What are you going to do if it sells the first week?

I'd wait until you are 30-60 days from having your new home move in ready before putting your old one up for sale. Unless you would be ok with renting something. But be aware that many places want a 1 yr lease. Some of the places that offer month to month rentals aren't places many people would want to live. It's even more of an issue if you have pets, especially cats or "dangerous breeds" or dogs over 25 lbs...

I guess if I need a short lease and have to sign a year I will just break the lease. Most leases have a buyout, and most landlords are fine with you paying an extra month's rent and leaving.

I would wait. We just did a FSBO and sold in a few weeks. Why put it on the market, get an offer then have to move twice? Moving is a pain and can be expensive. Also if you are getting so much equity, why would you want to move into a place where you will get none?

If you do list it, you also have to consider how you will market. If you are just sticking a sign in your yard and not placing it on the MLS then it won't hurt you. If you put it on zillow or MLS, it will have a counter on how long it's been on the market. If it's a year, some buyers may wonder what is "wrong" with the house that it hadn't sold.

It's a lot of work keeping a home show ready and also showing it. If you just want to test the waters then go for it but I would really consider all the options. Plus, if you are not serious, you may really disappoint a buyer if they fall in love with your home and then you decide not to sell it. Plus, it could waste your time and theirs.

Just things to think about.

You bring up some very good points. You are absolutely correct that moving can be a pain and be expensive, but on the other hand, it will certainly be less expensive than paying the payment on two homes. While I will get no equity, on a purely financial basis it is still a gain for me, since I will not have the realtor fees. I am not putting it on any MLS. There is a very large park very close to my house and I would simply maintain a few well placed signs. Keeping it show ready will certainly be a problem for us but most of the heavy lifting will be done by the cleaning service, we just have to keep things tidy on the days they don't come.

The other thing I am not sure about is the whole half measure thing, while I am certainly serious about selling it I will not be paying a buyer's realtor (getting an extra $40,000 is something that makes it worth doing but only getting an extra $20,000 is not) which I am afraid may drive away prospective buyers. However, if I do get an offer that meets my requirements then I will take it.

Most people will not buy a home without some representation. Especially a home of that price ($40k in realtor fees makes me think your homers well over $500k).

I would be very concerned with safety too. How will you vet out potential clients? Will you make them send you preapproved letters?

There is lots else to think about but I'm on my phone and can't type it all out. Believe me, it's not easy to keep the house show ready - especially if you have kids.

First let me preface my comments by saying I sold my first two places on my own. My first was a coop and we sold it ourselves back in 1987. Our second home we sold in 1993 on our own. Both sold very quickly so I luckily wasn't having to spend lots of time cleaning and keeping the place looking perfect.

However I wouldn't do it anymore.

In fact, in 2010 when we sold our third place (the ex and I), we used an agent.

Nowadays, I would be very concerned about people coming over who are not vetted. One of the very first things new RE agents are taught nowadays is how to remain safe. I don't know if you remember but a year ago there was an agent who was killed showing an expensive home. Yes I too would love to keep the money but my safety is more important. I look at it as part of the cost of buying and selling.

@ loveumms - Yes I will require a preapproval letter before showing the house. Safety is not really my main concern. Aside from the fact that I live in a very low crime area (I haven't locked my front door in years), we also have an extensive security system with a lot of visible cameras, every possible point of entry into the house is monitored by at least two cameras with offsite video storage. Although, anyone is, of course, vulnerable if the motivation is high enough, I just don't see anyone taking that risk. I do have two teenagers, but my house is pretty much show ready all the time. The cleaning lady comes Monday, Wednesday and Friday, she cleans everything, does laundry and changes all the linens, so I don't see that being a big issue.

My main concern is losing someone who would buy my house in a year when I get an agent because I am not allowing an agent now. So it is whether people will say, "they have been trying to sell that house forever," or losing a buyer who would wait a year for the house.

You are absolutely right that most people at this price point will want an agent, but I feel like I have one of those homes that really doesn't need a realtor on either side of the transaction, however, I am sure many people who really do need a realtor feel the same way. The entire house had all the drywall removed and veneered plaster applied, redid electric and plumbing, reinforced walls and stuff, before we put walls back up, every inch of every wall was photographed. We have extra flooring for every room, every part number, paint color, lumber type, wire gauge, audio-video cable, warranty, inspection approval, etc. for every room is saved in electronic format that I can email to every potential buyer. The house was appraised last month which can also be sent.

It's a year until you need to move. Unless you expect it to take a year to sell, I would not do this now. Wait 6 months or so and then try it. And yes, people will know it's been FSBO for a year. They will likely think that you are overpriced or difficult to deal with and thus on the market for a year.

Sounds like you have thought it through - let us know how it goes.

"I am at 2.675% interest which means almost 75% of every payment is equity for me"

Having a low interest rate mortgage has nothing to do with the percent of a month's payment going toward equity or interest. The percentages are all about the remaining balance due on the loan.

I also think it is too early, I wouldn't do it until maybe six months before, then if it doesn't sell in three list it on the MLS.

I'm going to agree with rest and say don't list it now. I wouldn't go 6 months -- I think the 30-60 days from completion is a better suggestion. Being ready to show isn't just about cleaning -- if you go FSBO it is not making plans or dropping everything and cancelling plans, waiting, even for the no-shows, then watching them go through your home with both you and them a bit uncomfortable with looking, opening cabinets, making comments, asking questions, etc.

Your post above about all the work you've done, the information you have, the plans, etc. is one more reason I would use an agent. I think you will be personally involved and all too eager to share that info to folks who don't need to have it. Or have all of it - yet. Folks with no good on their minds can be very convincing and get info from you that could put you and your home at risk. Even me. It happened to me -- an elderly woman posing as an agent with a cople and their son. They asked legit questions, but used what they learned about the security system and who lived there to figure out when the house was vacant and how to bypass it.

Any house that sits is labelled as a problem house -- by anyone who sees it. Not just MLS. I think you are getting curious about how your home will sell. Better to sit tight and be reassured by those who say it will do well and then get the good agent who will earn that commission beore and after the offer (after the offer can be the hardest part) and help you get the best return.

There are so many reasons to not put your home on the market until you are serious about it -- and use a pro when you are. And no, I'm not a realtor. But I am convinced that the good ones are well worth the fee.

Don't count on a landlord allowing you to break a lease. Here in TX, if you try to break it, you are responsible for all remaining pmts due on the lease. If not paid, the landlord can sue for remaining pmts, then you get court fees and interest.

Sorry and I mean no offense at all but you seen like one of those sellers who thinks their house is worth more then it is (many have talked about this type on these forums).

This comment kind of made me sigh, "but I feel like I have one of those homes that really doesn't need a realtor on either side of the transaction". If that's the case then you could put it on the market a month before you plan to move and it would sell. But here you are thinking about putting it on a year (or more) before. Doesn't make much sense.

Also, the comment about saving $40k would be worth it but $20k would not. Must be rolling in money - thrice weekly maids along with the updates and security system you've put into a home in a "very safe neighborhood" where you don't lock the door. I don't know many people who have such an extensive security system but don't lock the doors. Doesn't add up. Most people who have so much money would just pay a realtor to do the work.

I am going to wait a bit I guess.

Just to reiterate. I am serious about it. I want to be out of it tomorrow but my house will not be done. I believe most people who build move into a rental property during the build just to free up the money for loan qualification. The lease and its cost is really not the problem. Nor is the security, I couldn't care less about the security feature. I don't have enough money to kidnap and I have some very nice things that are all insured for a hell of a lot more than they are worth to me. The problem is simply will people see it and decide I am a kook for trying to FSBO it without giving a discount to the buyer? I believe that a typical buyer offers less on an FSBO than otherwise so I am not sure I want to keep telling people no. But at any rate you all have talked me down from the ledge.

@ SaltiDawg Having a low interest rate mortgage has nothing to do with the percent of a month's payment going toward equity or interest.

It kind of does. Oddly enough, your payment goes down when your interest goes down yet the length of time to pay the principle remains the same. So by definition the percent of your payment that is going to interest goes down. I should have maybe said, "and" instead of "so" because you can get to a 75% equity on payment no matter what your rate is, by either paying a lot longer or a lot more, but lower interest rates naturally have more going to principle throughout the life of the loan.

@ loveumms - My house is worth far more than I am going to list it for. I already had a friend pull the comps and we looked at them, he suggested a price point and it is lower than I hoped but exactly what I thought. Many of the things I have done will simply not pay off, I will be pricing it in line with the houses in my neighborhood, none of which are as nice. I am hoping that all those extra things will translate to a fast sell. As to the security system, I am a tech geek, I like fancy bells and whistles. We don't lock the door anymore because of a rash of several break-ins, these teenagers kept breaking out a basement window to gain access to the house. I could hope that one of my kids will remember their key in the winter but leaving the door unlocked is a lot cheaper than replacing the window all the time.

I am certainly not rolling in money. I do well. The reason that the 20k will not be enough has to do with renting a home. Right now the marginal cost of paying for the house is about $750 per month. By renting a home and a storage unit that cost will go up to probably $1,750 per month. which will very quickly eat into the $20,000 I saved by not going with a realtor. The cleaning lady is actually very reasonable and was something my wife asked for, it has a lot to do with health and very little to do with money.

It was just an idea. I am not "dissing" realtors and when I need to sell it I will certainly call one. I was just thinking, "what if someone comes by and offers me full price."

'The problem is simply will people see it and decide I am a kook for trying to FSBO it without giving a discount to the buyer?'

No. They won't think that you are a kook. Well some might but I wouldn't.

HOWEVER, if it were I who had come looking at your house, knowing that it was a FSBO, I would be expecting to pay a bit less. And I would be all optimistic and thrilled that we were both saving a bit of dough and if it was only you saving some loot, I'd be a bit annoyed.

'Oddly enough, your payment goes down when your interest goes down yet the length of time to pay the principle remains the same.'

There is nothing odd about that.

' ... but lower interest rates naturally have more going to principle throughout the life of the loan.'

I doubt that. I think you will be paying exactly the same off the principle whatever interests rates are doing.

In times of low interest, anyone who takes advantage of that situation by paying extra off their loan will make a drastic reduction to their mortgage.

The OP seemingly sought advice with his original post... since then he has repeatedly rebutted any advice given to him.

I (correctly) quoted him as saying, "I am at 2.675% interest which means almost 75% of every payment is equity for me." He then has even rebutted that by a contortion of arguments.

Again, "I am at 2.675% interest which means almost 75% of every payment is equity for me" is simply not correct.

I suspect many of us have now moved on to a thread where people are actually seeking and digesting advice.

I think I misinterpreted you here. When I read ' ... but lower interest rates naturally have more going to principle throughout the life of the loan.' a second time, I took it as meaning something else.

AND I may have misinterpreted you before that too, because you say that you will be pricing your home competitively. Anyhow, I hope things go well.

Not me, SaltiDawg. I'm still trying to figure out what Bry meant and what I mean.

I think it will only hurt you if you way overprice it. And if it sits on the market for a whole year, I would say it's overpriced. At least in our area, that would be a lllooonggg time to be on the market!

To be fair, I said, "My question is: do you think having it as a FSBO for a year before listing with an agent will hurt me, if it doesn't sell?"

I asked a specific question in my original post and several people answered the question, yet I got a lot of answers that have nothing to do with it. While I appreciate the effort, and I do. I also really had questions ONLY about whether or not this forum thought that having a house as a FSBO for a long time will hurt me when I list it.

I got a lot of good information about security, rental agreements, keeping the house clean, and financial advice. But, again, I asked simply about whether or not people felt like having it on the market for a year would drive the price down when (if) I list it with a realtor.

Now, Salti - you are correct my statement was wrong. I should have said, "I refinanced a few years ago at 2.675% on a 15 year mortgage, and already 75% of my payment is equity for me." When I originally wrote the statement I said higher, I changed it to give a concrete number.

However, your statement, "Having a low interest rate mortgage has nothing to do with the percent of a month's payment going toward equity or interest," is also quite wrong. For all 180 payments on a 15 year mortgage or all 360 for a 30 year mortgage a lower interest rate will have a larger percentage going to principle than its equivalent payment on a higher rate mortgage. Having said all that, it is still not relevant to the question, and, you offered no other advice, just popped on to say I was wrong...

@ Tete - I was, probably pointlessly, defending percentages. You may have the same amount going to principle (or close enough) but you will have a lower payment. If your numerator stays the same, and your denominator is lower it has to be a higher number.

You title asked about whether to FSBO and then you mentioned it later. You also asked about listing now -- you've been told the only reason to list it now i if you want to move now. In this market, any house that sits more than 30-60 days is supsect and at a year, I doubt you could find many people who would even bother to look -- even after a couple of price reductions.

There is a house on my street that was on the market when we bought (couldn't see it - the lockbox didn't work or the key was missing). It was vacant at the time and was on and off the market for another two years plus. I heard there was a divorce involved and one of them wasn't ready to sell so rejected any offer. People stop looking and it was labelled a problem house. People started talkling about what was wrong with it. Rumors about stucco problems, mold, the sellers and more circulated. No one would look at it at any price. It went into forecosure. I was about ready to talk to DH about fliping it when a family from New Orleans bought the house the year after Katrina. They cleaned up and painted everything, cleaned out the overgrowth in the front, put a pool in the back yard. Sold it a couple of years ago for twice what they paid for it.

Yes, it will hurt you if you put the house on the market and are not ready to sell and move and it will hurt if you overprice the house thinking "what if?"

I can tell from other posts you make that you are an intelligent person. I really don't want to offend you, but I think this house is something you are heavily invested in emotionally - even though you say you are ready to move now. You have to be able to put aside the emotional attachment to a house to sell it effectively.

I have decided against it. First, because I don't want to be hurt when I really do want to sell it. But mostly, because the forum helped me to realize how unfair it is to buyers to be an unmotivated seller. I think I would want to deal with people who have some vested interest in selling so I should be that person before I list.

While I can see that I have given off the vibe of someone emotionally attached to their house, mine really goes the other way. I hate it. I bought it, thinking I could turn it into the perfect home, and have recently realized that it will never be a home I like (only after remodel after remodel and too much money). I think that is part of the problem I keep trying to be zen about a place that annoys me.

I have 2 points of disagreement with many of the above posters.

Sitting a long time without selling "taints" a house. While it may be true that people wonder what's wrong with it, I certainly wouldn't NOT view a house just because it's been on the market a long time. To me, that's a bit ridiculous. I might offer lower than to a newly listed house, thinking they might be desperate, but that wouldn't automatically make the seller have to take less, and it doesn't automatically mean I won't be willing to pay more (if the seller doesn't move much). It all depends on the house and how good a fit it is for me. If I saw a house that was FSBO for a while and then listed with an agent, I'd assume they didn't do enough marketing and finally gave up and jumped on the MLS.

You're an unmotivated seller. This term is thrown around a lot here as a perjorative, typically implying someone that wants too much for their house and is unwilling to budge to a reasonable price. To me, "motivated seller" means willing to deal and cut the price to offload it as quickly as possible. The opposite isn't someone that isn't willing to sell, it's someone willing to wait for the right buyer at a reasonable price. You've said you'll price it right, so I'm not sure how that's unfair to the buyer. If you get your reasonable price now, without a realtor, it'll be worth it to you to move early into a rental.

I'm not sure why you'd FSBO it a year before moving rather than 6 months, or 3 months. Unless you're thinking someone might be more likely to buy in the spring/summer than in the winter.

Why are you "unmotivated?" I thought you said you'd be ready to move out tomorrow?
Plus, "My house is worth far more than I am going to list it for." Sounds like it should be very easy for you to sell FSBO. Go for it.

Quite honestly, I have bought several properties, and an FSBO would have been a piece of cake (cash, no contingencies). The only problem for me was that the FSBO's had completley unrealistic ideas about what their property is worth.

If you think that it might take a year to sell it FSBO then you are not pricing it appropriately and are an unmotivated seller.
Conversely, if it's priced appropriately it won't take a year so don't put it on the market yet.

So unless you want to move right now, there's no sense in trying to sell it. Wait until it gets closer to the time and then try FSBO. If that doesn't work out then get a realtor.
If you do want to move right now because you hate your house and just want to put it behind you, then you aren't an unmotivated seller. So there's nothing wrong with trying the FSBO thing right now.

Sounds to me like a perfect situation for the Zillow "Make Me Move" feature if you have that in your area.

(I am not affiliated with Zillow)

Let me say there is some undisclosed information here: I apologize for leaving it out, and I was admittedly naive asking people to make an informed decision without all the information.

While I can qualify on my new home and continue the payments on my old home, I am barely able to do so. I am able to cover the bid plus 20%, with some of the more expensive areas, such as kitchen and bath fully priced out, still construction can and will run into unexpected costs. Additionally, it is forcing us to compromise certain items on our wish list, which is both a good and bad thing. Some of the things we originally wanted we have decided to simply plan for in the future, so we are putting the necessary infrastructure in place now. This not only saves money but will lower the tax base significantly for us.

The equity that I will gain during the construction by maintaining my old home will be substantial enough to negate the advantages of qualifying and having more money during that time. However, not paying a realtor gives me the opportunity to get that (and more) money out earlier.

Edit: I think the reason I may not be a motivated seller is that I will not be entertaining an offer that is significantly below my asking price, and if the buyer comes with a realtor then I will not budge at all and may need to add a small premium to the price (I am willing to meet them in the middle and cover half of the realtor fees.)

A reason other than price that a FSBO may take longer to sell would be lack of marketing. Properties not listed in the MLS are not nearly as visible as those that are. A sign in the front yard would likely take longer to bring in a buyer than an MLS listing.