How to Sell A Mobile Home By-Owner
Selling a mobile home by-owner can be a smart decision. Many real-estate agents don't spend as much time and effort working to sell mobile homes because mobile homes fetch less money than traditional homes and the agent receives smaller commissions in the end. It's just not worth it for many agents. Savvy sellers can successfully market a mobile home by themselves, cutting out the agent's commission and saving money in the long run. Unfortunately, selling by-owner has much higher upfront costs. You won't have to pay a commission to a real-estate agent, but you'll be fronting all the money for advertising and promoting. Therefore, you need to sell faster and more efficiently than a seller using an agent. Selling a mobile home is just like selling a traditional home, but you'll want to use lower-cost advertising techniques, as mobile homes often do not turn as high a profit and don't warrant spending a lot on marketing.
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Invest in a sign. Don't underestimate the possibility of a drive-by buyer or perhaps a neighbor who knows somebody in the market for a mobile home. "For Sale by Owner" signs can be obtained at most hardware stores; make sure to include contact information on the sign.
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Use print advertising. This does not necessarily mean an ad in the local paper, although this could work if the price isn't too high. To keep costs low, look to unconventional print mediums: Post fliers on a supermarket or community bulletin board. Also consider posting print materials at nearby college campuses. Soon-to-graduate students may be in the market for a low-cost housing option.
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Post ads on the Internet. The Internet is making it easier for sellers to list homes. Popular classifieds sites like Craigslist.org offer free listing and reasonable rates. Other sites also offer paid listing services. For example, MobileHomeClassifieds.com offers low listings fees and modest exposure. ForSaleByOwner.com is a bit pricier but may be effective for selling higher-end mobile homes.
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Network with real-estate agents. Call local real-estate offices, pass out fliers and subtly talk up your property while visiting competing open houses. If you snag an interested buyer, you have one possibility for a sale; an interested real-estate agent, however, may be working with several buyers, thereby giving you several opportunities to make a sale.
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Hold open houses. Advertise in print and Internet sources the week before you plan to hold the open house. Make sure the house is clean and presentable.
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Do the legwork for the buyer. Convenience is important; make sure you take extra steps to provide potential buyers with the best information possible. It's easy, quick and free to research some statistics on the Internet about area schools, average mobile home prices, local crime rates and other important information that buyers will be considering as they search for a new mobile home. This extra effort goes a long way in impressing buyers, and solid housing research makes for a useful handout at open houses.
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