1. Get Your Home In Top Selling Condition: Clean your home to within an inch of it's life. Make necessary repairs. And de-clutter the entire house. Clutter is the #1 enemy of anyone selling a house. Invoke ?The Rule of HALF?. Clear off at least HALF of everything on kitchen and bath countertops. Half of all collectibles and family photos. Half of everything in closets (boxes, shoes, clothes, hats, belts). And then consider ?HALF AGAIN?! Put them in storage. Next, consider removing some furniture. Most people move because they want more space. Make your home look and feel 'spacious?. Remember that 'sparse' is better than 'cluttered?.

2. Set a Realistic Asking Price: The best way (and cheapest) to determine a reasonable asking price for your home is to call 3 real estate agents and ask each for a ?CMA?. Most every agent will offer to do a FREE ?C.M.A.? for you, which is a ?Comparative Market Analysis?. A CMA provides information such as what other homes similar to yours in size and location have sold for recently, the address of homes sold, original asking price, eventual selling price, and the number of days it was on the market before it sold. It's an invaluable tool for the by-owner seller.

3. Use Signs To Your Advantage: Signs sell more houses than anything else. Buyers see signs and follow them into neighborhoods they may otherwise have not known about. You need 3 types of signs. For Sale by Owner, Open House, and the little directional For Sale By Owner arrow signs. Put the large For sale By Owner sign out front of course. Put the Open House sign up every weekend. And the little directionals should go on every corner all the way back to the nearest main road to your house. And don't forget an 'info box' for your flyers. You do have flyers, don't you? See tip #4.

4. Create a Sales Flyer That Sells: Here's what you need to put on your flyer. Asking price, Address, Directions from the nearest main road, number of bedrooms, number of full baths and half baths, schools (elementary, middle, high school), interior description noting any special features (vaulted ceilings, fireplace, etc.), exterior description noting special features (old oaks, landscaping, fenced), convenience to highways, shopping centers, malls, grocery stores, hospitals, etc. Your name, phone, and I?d suggest ? ?Shown by Appointment?

5. Advertise Where Your Buyers Are Looking: Classified ads are usually a good investment. Local classifieds help get the word out to local readers as well as potential transplants who are actively seeking a home and searching for one in the 'local papers' from the areas they're considering moving to. The 4 most important items that must be in the ad: Price, Location, Number of Beds and Baths, and Phone. Beyond that, if you have room, note any stand-out features such as: waterfront, on the golf course, mountain view, financing available, pool, acreage, etc., and you've got it!

6. Make Arrangements To Help Your Buyer Get Financing: This is something too often overlooked by sellers. Make arrangements with an independent mortgage broker to refer potential buyers to him/her for a FREE mortgage pre-qualification. (Don't call your local bank, or "big name mortgage" because they are limited to their own companies loan programs). A smart seller will even put 'financing available' on their flyer and refer those asking about financing to the mortgage broker. Benefit to you? The mortgage broker can save you time and aggravation by telling you whether a potential buyer can or cannot qualify for a loan. And if your buyer goes through your mortgage broker, the broker can keep you 'in the loop' during the mortgage process!

7. Set Up a Voice Mailbox to Take Calls When You Can't: Every phone call that comes in could be the one buyer you've been waiting for. Don't take the chance of missing any calls. When I was actively calling sellers, I was surprised by the number of sellers who didn't have voice mail or an answering machine. That means their advertising money was wasted. Don't let that happen to you. Be sure you're phone rings to an answering machine or a voice mail service. And it's always best to return calls as quickly as possible. You never know which caller will be the one who ends up buying your house.

8. Set Up Specific Times To Show Your House: I don't run to the house every time I get a call from someone who says they want to see it, especially since at least 1 out of 4 won't even bother to show up! It can be frustrating to say the least. I usually tell everyone they can "see the house on Saturday from 11 am to 2 pm or on Sunday from 1 pm to 4 pm". These are my ?Open House' days. Showing the house only on these days helps me stay in control of my own time (and my sanity). It also has the advantage of creating somewhat of a 'competition' among potential buyers that works to my favor.

9. Brush Up On Your Negotiating Skills: If you have to lower your price in negotiation, make your first price cut is the biggest, and your second price cut (if necessary) should be smaller still, so that your buyer knows you've gone about as far as you're going! And keep in mind that price is not the only thing you can negotiate on. Maybe instead of dropping the price, you might offer your buyer a home warranty instead. You also will want to consider what items you intend to might include with the sale of the house. Items such as the refrigerator, washer/dryer, patio furniture, closing dates ... all can be a part of your negotiation strategy.

10. Patience Required: Don't expect a whirlwind of activity the moment you put your For Sale sign out in the yard. Sure, you may get lucky and have the perfect buyer show up at your door within just days of your sign going up, but don't bet the farm on it. It's possible that it could take several weeks, or even 3 or 4+ months if you're in a slow moving market and you're trying to get a retail price.

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