While these methods of sale are perfectly viable, they are not designed to sell your home fast. If your priority is a fast sale, we recommend avoiding these methods entirely.
For Sale By Owner
As the name implies, For Sale by Owner (FSBO) is when you sell your home yourself without an agent. Only 8% of recent sellers went the FSBO route. Of those who did it alone, 51% already knew the buyer of their home before the transaction.
Why Avoid FSBO
FSBO is extremely slow in generating buyer interest. You are in charge of all of the marketing, the paperwork, and generating buyer interest.
“You don’t have someone double checking the paperwork. You’re on your own. If you’re not an expert, that might be tough,” Kusay said.
Short Sale
A short sale is anything but. The “short” in the name does not refer to the time it takes to sell your home, but rather the money you’ll get for it.
A short sale is when your lender agrees to let you sell your home for less than you owe on your mortgage. It is usually used as a last resort to avoid foreclosure. The owner doesn’t get the money from the sale — the lender does.
They’re not common either. Short sales make up only 1% of total home sales in 2018.
Why Avoid Short Sales
Short sales are a last resort option. They’re not fast and you won’t see a cent from the sale. The only benefit from them is you avoid foreclosure, thus you avoid decreasing your credit score.
Auction
A home auction is perhaps one of the slowest ways to sell your home. While it can save luxury properties from lingering on the market for years, auctions are not ideal for the average family home. The benefits of selling your home at auction include the potential of a high sale, a known selling date, and the potential of setting the minimum bid to avoid any low ball offers.
Why Avoid Selling at Auction
For the average home, the disadvantages of an auction far outweigh the benefits. Firstly, auctions have a negative stigma attached to them. Many potential buyers believe homes at auction are foreclosed and in horrible condition. This will lower buyer interest and the potential perceived market value.
You also have to do everything you would if you listed your home with an agent and would still have the same 30- to 45-day closing period.
“It’s just slow,” Maurer said. “It’s difficult. You have to market it too. All the things that you’re going to do in the process of selling your home in the first place, you have to do all of that, then wait to have the auction, then the inspection — it’s a really slow process.“
Some methods of selling your home, such as auctions, listing it For Sale By Owner (FSBO), and short sales, are not designed for fast sales. The exception is if you have a buyer already lined up with FSBO.