Real Estate Investor · MD · Member since 2008 · 103 posts · 2 votes
18y
Heather...I'm sure there are a number of us that would like to know this! LOL!
The book is available, but before I purchase it I wanted to get a little more feedback. I know that the method involves the auction process...there is a free forum of people with testimonials about whether or not the method worked, etc. Just google 5day forum. If you purchase anything please let me know. I'd like to hear your feedback.
I would like to know some additional information as well. I'm trying to sell my home, however, it is zoned commercial so I'm thinking this might not apply. :-) But it can't hurt to try that is for sure!
Real Estate Investor · MD · Member since 2008 · 103 posts · 2 votes
18y
James,
Where are you located? See the note I wrote to Heather and get on the forum. It may help you before you purchase the book. I know that this is an auction type method. Please keep me posted.
Real Estate Consultant · St Petersburg, FL · Member since 2008 · 50 posts · 2 votes
18y
I read the five day auction method book years ago. It is a method that works but you may need to do some tweaking for your market.
This method works best with single family homes that are in great condition. I helped a friend with a five day auction. He has tweaked it to a professional level. There were 11 houses for sale on the street, and I think over 34 for sale in the subdivision. We had close to 200 people at the two day open house. An agent was holding an open house two doors down and she got a few people from our open house and that was it. She came down to our open house to see what we were doing. The property didnt go because the owner wanted to get every last penny out of it but there were good solid offers made.
You have to be a bit flexible in the price and terms for best results and really go all out in your marketing. This is a great way to sell a house, especially if you have other properties because you end up with a fairly good list of back up buyers.
Compared to paying thousands of dollars for a boot camp, the book is cheap. Check for used copies or the library if price is an issue for you. You may have to try it several times before you get your buyer, but people are using it in the Tampa/St Pete area with great success.
Real Estate Consultant · St Petersburg, FL · Member since 2008 · 50 posts · 2 votes
18y
Hey Tyra,
We recommend starting your marketing with the 5 day method because it gives the most bang for the buck. It only takes about a week to go through the process.
If you dont sell the house, you can then fall back to all the traditional methods like Open Houses, hiring a realtor, or go further afield with eBay or an essay contest. But doing the five day lets you know very quickly what the true market value of your house is.
Real Estate Investor · MD · Member since 2008 · 103 posts · 2 votes
18y
Hi Barbara,
You mentioned that your friend tweaked the method to a more professional level. Do you mind sharing some of the enhancements that he made? I am interested in using this method for clients and want to be certain that it is executed with the highest degree of excellence.
Real Estate Investor · Waynesboro, MS · Member since 2008 · 26 posts · 0 votes
18y
Tyra,
It's not that hard to do when you advertise your house for sale
"Owner Finance 5% Down No Bank Qualifying". You then do a simultaneous closing with a note buyer. Check out the details below.
Real Estate Consultant · St Petersburg, FL · Member since 2008 · 50 posts · 2 votes
18y
Hey Tyra,
He uses 50 - 100 bandit signs and the internet to help drive traffic to the open house. The signs are done in different colors --psychological buying reasons behind all of them. It has been a while since I read the book, but I think he has updated it for the internet and for this down market. I am not sure anymore what was in the book. One thing I know he does is not give out the address of the house until the day before the open house. That way, people have to show up when he wants them to. The trick is to get as many people there at one time so that people feel like there is something special about the house and it fosters competition among them.
I am pretty sure the book tells you to start the bidding at 50 - 60 percent of what you think a fair sales price would be. You do that because that brings people to your open house. It is the opening bid. Remember -- you dont have to sell the house if you dont get your price. You also put in there that you will take the highest and best price. In this market, cash is preferred over anyone who needs to get financing because financing is tight to non-existent.
My friends course sells for under 1,000.00 but if you are on a budget, the book will get you started. I dont think we are supposed to market anything on the forum so I wont.
The reason you start with an auction event is that it will at the very least give you a realistic idea of what your property will actually bring in an open market. You may not want to sell it at that price, but at least you know what you are dealing with. It also gives you a list of people who are at least interested in buying a property. Maybe the property they looked at isnt what they want, but you or your friends may have other properties you can show them.
Tucson, AZ · Member since 2008 · 945 posts · 45 votes
17y
Oct 28, 2008
I decided to do a 5-day sale. Most of the needed info is on a forum, but a $10.00 book is available, too. I did buy it. All the generally required info is there and the contents makes it easier to find the wanted information.
That $1000 course is probably not necessary, (at least afaic), and bandit signs are not recommended by the author. He suggests targetted ads, in newspapers, print and online, and a few internet sites, including Craig'sList.
The book gives clear, step by step directions.
I had a prelisting inspection, and am glad I did. He found several situations that need addressed. Most can be done by a handyman.
Those include simple items to a few warranted items, and more costly, such as some cabinet repair, some exterior rear door jamb/framing repair, and including my not warranted thermal windows with condensation. Not so expensive a few months ago, but I had a security door installed, and they did not do a good job. I had asked about replacing the door trim, the handyman said no. I should have insisted. Now the door needs removed before the work can begin. So triple the cost...
ofgift
I'm not going to do anything about the windows, and maybe not the exterior rear door, It's worth the cost of the inspection to be able to address these areas before the sale, so that the sale proceeds quickly.
Real Estate Investor · pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2008 · 13 posts · 0 votes
17y
I did an auction last year. You need to be careful you don't look like you are selling the home or a local real estate agent will go after you for selling without a license. You need to get an agreement signed by seller showing you are merely assisting in marketing the home and are charging a commission or some other contract protecting your interests.
Tucson, AZ · Member since 2008 · 945 posts · 45 votes
17y
Originally posted by Stephen Sarocky:
I did an auction last year. You need to be careful you don't look like you are selling the home or a local real estate agent will go after you for selling without a license. You need to get an agreement signed by seller showing you are merely assisting in marketing the home and are charging a commission or some other contract protecting your interests.
That would be for agents, right? I am selling my own home.
ofgift
Developer · Santa Clarita, CA · Member since 2008 · 15k+ posts · 10k+ votes
17y
Correct, anyone can sell there own house, they do not need a license and other brokers can not go after you, hence the FSBO. An auction is still a FSBO or you could use an auction company to do it for you.
Real Estate Consultant · St Petersburg, FL · Member since 2008 · 50 posts · 2 votes
17y
People in my area are taking an short term option on a property and then marketing it using the auction method. The option gives you an equitable interest in the property and therefore you are able, at least in Florida, to market the property.
Laws probably vary state to state so check with your real estate attorney.
Tucson, AZ · Member since 2008 · 945 posts · 45 votes
16y
I put two houses up for sale using Bill’s 5Day sale method. On the first, though the response was wonderful, the highest bid was way short of reasonable market value. I moved into it, and put my former residence up. There was only one response to it. I did sell it, for less than market value, because I really did not want to rent it.
There is a website regarding this method,
http://www.howtosellyourhomein5days.com/
I sold my house at 12% less than asking, which is better than what many recent members have implied their highest bids are. An agent would take about 6%, and do all the advertising. I chose this method of selling oven using an agent only because I refused to be tied into the RE contracts being offered here locally.
Remember that people sell at auction hoping/expecting to get a higher price, while people BUY at auction, hoping/expecting to pay much less than market value. And typically, for the houses in the recent market, few of the members have come close to what they want or need, and did not sell.
The bids in this method are NOT sealed. They are on a sheet of paper for everyone to see. Everything is transparent and in the open.
The advertising method recommended even by Bill Effros is changing. If you read the archives of that forum, you will see few people having success with newspaper advertising. Using internet sites (I had ONE response from Craigslist for my second house) bandit signs, fliers to the local area, etc have been more successful.
Using this method, people do not “lower†their offer, they drop out of the bidding.
His book, even his website, gives info on how to do this. The book is availabale at local bookstores, and I think is about $15.00.
Even if one decides to sell standard FSBO, wwhich is how I did sell my house, the abook gives all the info â€"or most of itâ€"on how to do that.
For up to the minute info on these sales, go to the website and read the recent activity. Then go back into the archives.
IIRC, many people who have sold recently have taken a huge cut from their listed/hoped for price.
I won’t rain on your parade by answering your last question generally, but in my two cases, as I said, on the first, 30K less than lowest expected market sales price, I moved into it. On the second, 20K less, because I really did not want to rent, I did sell, only because the buyers increased their offer by 6K, and I had been considering lowering my price. If they had not, I would have rented it, and planned to keep it rented for at least 3 years.
People doing this are to make clear that the bids are OFFERS, and nothing is binding until papers are signed. I had that on every piece of paper so that no one could come back later and say they did not know. I did not advertise mine as “will be sold to highest bidder,†but rather, “will be OFFERED to best bidder†I made it very clear that there was a reserve price (in accordance w/state law)that unless specifically noted that there is no reserve, there is a reserve.
Ofgift
Real Estate Investor · Kahuku, HI · Member since 2009 · 148 posts · 25 votes
16y
I sold a property using this method. I cant speak for your area , but in my market the 5 Day Sale method will end up being about 10% below the current comps.
Rental Property Investor · Phoenix, AZ · Member since 2016 · 19 posts · 9 votes
10y
I used the 5 Day selling method by Bill Effros and sold my house for $15k more than my reserve. It worked for me... and I'd recommend it to others looking for an alternative way to sell their home. No agent commissions... and we had multiple offers... and backup offers. We ended up selling it to a backup bidder.
Flipper/Rehabber · Austin, TX · Member since 2009 · 405 posts · 168 votes
9y
The market has changed significantly since this first post. I remember when I first studied the results people shared, the properties were sold still below what the buyer wanted. I wonder who wiles beside @Jay Hawthorn has done this recently?
Given we are now in "good times", is it worth revisiting?