Today we’re going to talk about how to list on all the websites that matter for all you NYC homeowners who want to For Sale By Owner. This is no easy task mind you, as the buyer search universe is extremely fragmented. As we’ve previously discussed, you’ll want to hit the main free websites such as Zillow and Trulia. You’ll also want to be listed on StreetEasy, which increasingly has become the most popular real estate search website in NYC. Lastly, you’ll want to find a cheap and efficient way to also list on the Manhattan MLS and OLR. Now you can do this individually for the free ones or use a free service called Postlets which is actually owned by Zillow. My personal favorite method is to use a listing service like Hauseit to list your property on StreetEasy, Zillow, Trulia, Manhattan MLS and OLR - basically every major real estate website in one go. A service like Hauseit basically enables you to borrow a broker’s listing technology for a discounted flat fee. I personally recommend these guys because the fee they charge is only a few hundred dollars which you earn back in one month because StreetEasy will charge you that amount to list just on their site for only one month. The downside of using Postlets is that it only goes to a handful of sites, the most important of which is Zillow, but it doesn’t get you to the multiple listing service. One thing to note is, no matter which service you use, be prepared to sign some sort of listing agreement to be able to list on the multiple listing service and OLR. The reason you need to sign an agreement is because StreetEasy and databases like OLR want to maintain their data integrity. They obviously do not want multiple brokers listing the same property. They call this an open listing which is banned on StreetEasy and OLR. You should search your property address to make sure brokers aren’t advertising your property without your permission. If you find out that they are doing this, they are in effect using you as an open listing to source leads for themselves. You should contact them or complain to the search website and tell them that they have listed your home without your permission. Now even after I’ve said this, I know a lot of you out there trying to sell by owner are control freaks at heart. You don’t want someone else to list your property even if you’re not paying them 6%. It’s really a give and take. I of course also enjoy having complete control over my listing, however there are many advantages to going with a listing service. One of the benefits besides saving you a lot of time listing each website individually, is that you’ll have the protection of a listing broker. By going through a discount broker or listing service, other brokers will assume you have already signed an exclusive with that broker. By default you will get less harassment because you have already signed on with someone else. I’ve have found that this saves me a lot of painful cold call from junior brokers. Let me know if you have any questions and please check out the rest of my blog for other posts on how you can for sale by owner in NYC.
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JACK RAMONENYC FSBO Survivor, writer and Father Archives
September 2016
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