We are quickly approaching peak real estate season right now and many “For Sale by Owner” sellers can miss a large chunk of the spring buyer population.
Why is this?
1) Much of the seasonal growth in sales transactions comes from buyers and sellers relocating to and from Ottawa and a very large proportion of buyers coming from elsewhere will be working with a Realtor on their purchase. These out of town buyers definitely need a local real estate professional to advise them on their search and this is a huge % of the spring market. DND personnel moves alone move 1,500-1,700 people to or from Ottawa annually and most of this happens between April and July.
2) FSBO seller properties may or may not be readily available for daytime showings, which is mandatory for out of town buyers, particularly those moving on the government relocation program where these buyers only have 5-7 days to buy a house. MLS® listed properties and MLS® buyer representatives are well equipped for these buyers and MLS® sellers go out of their way to accommodate the access and timing needs of these buyers who are working on a very tight time deadline.
3) An out of town buyer may not be aware of the different places to look for Ottawa property listings online. So if they don’t find it, you don’t have a chance to sell it to them. Since a major FSBO marketing site is an Ottawa/Eastern Ontario organization only-these buyers may never even have heard of it.
4) FSBO sellers have limited time to manage their sale-after all they do have another full time job-so their availability and response time is unlikely to be able to match that of a full time professional Broker who is managing a listing for their seller.
5) FSBO sellers do not have the access to market data to stay abreast of what develops in the market on a daily basis. Listing inventory is running well above the 5 year average and that means increased competition for every listed property. MLS® sellers with their Broker's assistance can be on top of new listings, selling prices and price changes daily to ensure their properties remain competitive.
6) Realtors do not have time to consider FSBO listings for scheduling purposes, given the condensed period of time we have to find a property for buyers on a 5-7 day house hunting trip. FSBO sellers often have to juggle property access around their own job and Realtors often cannot adjust their schedules to meet the seller needs in this busiest time of the year.
If you have been trying to sell yourself for 30 days or more at this time of the year with no success-you might want to ask yourself whether you are getting enough buyer exposure to your listing and if it is time to get a fully supported listing on MLS® so you can properly capture your share of the potential buyers. If you would like to discuss if this is the right time to change your selling strategy, please feel free to give us a call.
*not intended to solicit those with existing representation agreements.
Gord McCormick, Broker of Record
Dawn Davey, Broker
Oasis Realty Brokerage
613-435-4692
oasisrealty@rogers.com
www.oasisrealtyottawa.com
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