Selling a house yourself in Texas

Sparticle · #1 09/08/06, 07:28 PM

I think this might be the weekend the for sale sign goes up if everythign goes well. Either way it'll be soon. I just keep finding more stuff I want to fix. Anyway, I've never done anything like this before (selling on my own) and am really going to focus tonight (and obviously more than just tonight) on how to go about it. I've found a website that looks like it'll help

http://www.ourfamilyplace.com/homeseller/

I'm not going to go the buyowner route just yet. I know to post in the local papers and some of the basics. I've got a good idea on what I want to charge, but will finalize that soon after I finish my research.

Does anyone know a better website than the one I posted above? I dont' want to ask all my questions here because I'm ready to do the research.

Thanks!

mary,tx · #2 09/08/06, 09:04 PM

I would suggest that you have your house appraised before you put it on the market, so that you don't either price too high or lose money by pricing too low.
mary

Sparticle · #3 09/08/06, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mary,tx

I would suggest that you have your house appraised before you put it on the market, so that you don't either price too high or lose money by pricing too low.
mary

I did do the housevalues.com already and am currently checking all real estate in my area. I have a good idea of what land values are. I think I have a pretty fair price in mind.

bonsai jim · #4 09/08/06, 10:16 PM

I just did this last year- but God didn't make me put up a sign he brought the buyer to me...

Pick a title company that you want to use- they will probably supply you with a checklist and tell you what you need to do. We used Stewart Title. We used the title company's lawyer and split the cost. A lwayer isn't really necessary if it is a striaght forward deal with a clean title. The title co. might even be able to give you the standard contract. That's where we got all ours from. They were extremely helpful during the whole process. You can get a basic contract kit from Office Depot or anything similar as well.

The process was a little intimidating but not too hard. There are web sites that tell you who traditionally pays for what- it is also on the closing papers. Try ForSalebyOwner.com If you can dig up your old papers they will help you know what goes where.

Good luck!

jim

mary,tx · #5 09/09/06, 07:33 AM

I would second letting the title company help you with the contract, etc. You'll need them anyway for title insurance. Having worked several years with a title company, though, the lawyer would be a waste of money in my opinion. The title company guarantees the title and knows much more about it than an attorney does. They just gum up the works, trying to get as many fees as they can. Anyway, that's been my experience.
mary

Sparticle · #6 09/09/06, 09:47 AM

Thanks for the advice on getting a title company! I'll get on that today. It's raining today so I'm happy because that will make everything outside look not so wilted!

Siryet · #7 09/09/06, 02:19 PM

I sold two properties in Montgomery County Texas and I will say TITLE COMPANY. They are a necessity.

BTW Both sales went smoothly and I think that was because of the title company.

Good happenings on your sale.

Alice In TX/MO · #8 09/09/06, 02:50 PM

Yes to the title company. We have used Stewart Title in the past, too. They did a good job.

Leave the realtors out completely!

Selling in Texas without a realtor is actually EASIER!

MacfromNC · #9 09/09/06, 10:50 PM

If you have an assist2sell in your area they have a spot on their website that allows you to list your own house for free. They don't post it on mls or anything but it's additional publicity for free.

There are also a lot of companies that offer flat fee mls listing services. some even offer lock boxes & signs for additional fees (without a lockbox your home is only on the market when you are home). If you do a google search for flat fee mls you will get over a million matches. http://www.c21clickit.com/ is a century 21 flat fee site.

If you go the MLS route you may want put something in your add such as add 3% to offer for realtor fees

Sparticle · #10 09/10/06, 09:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MacfromNC

If you have an assist2sell in your area they have a spot on their website that allows you to list your own house for free. They don't post it on mls or anything but it's additional publicity for free.

There are also a lot of companies that offer flat fee mls listing services. some even offer lock boxes & signs for additional fees (without a lockbox your home is only on the market when you are home). If you do a google search for flat fee mls you will get over a million matches. http://www.c21clickit.com/ is a century 21 flat fee site.

If you go the MLS route you may want put something in your add such as add 3% to offer for realtor fees

Cool, thanks for the link!

Sparticle · #11 09/19/06, 09:03 PM

Did my first showing today. I've gotten calls almost every day and haven't even put an ad in the paper yet. But, I did put a sign down on the feeder road (i think most people call them access roads?) and another on the cross street. It took about 45 min and I was pooped. I haven't walked that far since I hurt my foot. It was more than I should have done, but I start therapy on it tomorrow and I'm sure they'll torture me for the walk. They really loved it, but I don't count my chickens before they hatch.

KindredSpirit · #12 09/19/06, 09:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by quntmphscs

Thanks for the advice on getting a title company! I'll get on that today. It's raining today so I'm happy because that will make everything outside look not so wilted!

If you have a copy of your owners policy, tell the title company, you can usually get a discounted rate called a Reissue Rate. You must present it though, before they do the title search on your property.

Sparticle · #13 09/19/06, 09:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KindredSpirit

If you have a copy of your owners policy, tell the title company, you can usually get a discounted rate called a Reissue Rate. You must present it though, before they do the title search on your property.

I made contact with a title company and I was going to go visit them with my files to see what we could re-use. Thanks for pointing out that specific paper!

KindredSpirit · #14 09/19/06, 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by quntmphscs

I made contact with a title company and I was going to go visit them with my files to see what we could re-use. Thanks for pointing out that specific paper!

You are welcome, the Reissue Rate can save you a few hundred dollars depending on the sales price. (I work for a title company)

doohap · #15 09/20/06, 07:26 AM

Not trying to hijack or anything, but want to thank quntmpshcs for posting this. We're getting ready to go on the market in the middle of October (anyone need a house in Fort Worth?) ... This is all great advice! Merci!

Sparticle · #16 09/20/06, 12:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doohap

Not trying to hijack or anything, but want to thank quntmpshcs for posting this. We're getting ready to go on the market in the middle of October (anyone need a house in Fort Worth?) ... This is all great advice! Merci!

good luck!

Sparticle · #17 09/30/06, 10:55 PM

oh these people that schedule to see your house and then don't show and don't call are really exhausting. I just would never do that and it's beyond me. oh well, at least they didn't waste my time further by viewing the property with no intention of buying. I have 4 dogs and a sick cat and getting them all situated for someone to come over isn't a 5 minute job. I even asked these last people, please make sure you call if you can't make it because I have to lock the dogs up. They called and wanted to come in 45 minutes. So, I rushed around (still in foot therapy so it's now really sore) getting everythign picked up. I was in the middle of cooking. Hand clipped many of the plants that were blocking the path to the back because there was just a huge rain. hosed the mud off the stairs and got everything done. 20 min after they were supposed to be here I called to see if they were lost. They said they couldn't make it -

But I'm confident that the right person is out there, I just need to be patient.

Cyngbaeld · #18 10/01/06, 11:47 AM

Good luck! Hope it sells quickly for you. I'm trying to decide whether to bother with realtors or not when I sell this place in the spring.

Sparticle · #19 10/01/06, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cyngbaeld

Good luck! Hope it sells quickly for you. I'm trying to decide whether to bother with realtors or not when I sell this place in the spring.

You are more than welcome to my notes. It's got all the good stuff everyone has shared with me. If so, PM me your email address and I send.

Cyngbaeld · #20 10/01/06, 12:32 PM

Thanks!