How Should You Call an FSBO Property for an Appointment?

By Tamara Lamore

Tamara Lamore has been an agent since 2002 and is the founder and leader of BKT Northwest, powered by PLACE real estate team, based in Everett, Washington.

Are you struggling to get appointments when you call for-sale-by-owner listings? You aren’t alone. More agents have been looking for ways to find low-cost lead sources in this market, and FSBO properties are a popular option. However, there’s a problem: Most FSBO listings are trying to sell their homes themselves for a reason, and getting calls from a ton of real estate agents offering to help can be frustrating. This makes it difficult to get an appointment and earn their business.

Fortunately, there’s good news. When every other agent is running similar scripts and following the same strategies when calling FSBOs, you can have an opportunity to stand out. Here are three of my best tips to help you get more appointments when calling FSBOs:

1. Don’t go in with assumptions. Most real estate agents assume that FSBO property owners don’t like them. After all, why else would they try to sell their homes themselves? However, the truth is that FSBO sellers have a wide range of reasons for selling themselves. For example, they might view selling their home as a project and wanted to see if they could take on the challenge. Whatever their reason for listing by themselves is, don’t go in with negative expectations, or you’ll set yourself up for failure before you begin.

2. Be patient. Instead of trying to pitch the seller on dropping everything and giving the sale over to you on the spot, try to cultivate a long-term relationship. Working with an FSBO seller is a marathon, not a sprint. There’s a reason most homeowners decide not to sell themselves: It’s time-consuming, difficult, and frustrating. But if you cultivate a long-term relationship, you will be the first person they turn to when they finally decide to give up and turn the sale over to a Realtor.

3. Be a professional, not a salesperson. When you first reach out to an FSBO property, don’t come into the conversation expecting them to hand you over the sale on the spot. If they do, it’s a nice bonus, but you need to remember that your goal should be to cultivate a long-term relationship. That’s why I recommend calling them as an experienced agent in the area who is trying to learn more about local homes for sale for your buyer clients. This sets you up nicely to start talking about the details of the home and their experience trying to sell it. Plus, it presents you as a knowledgeable expert in your area. Once they decide to work with an agent instead of selling themselves, you’ll be the first person they call.

At the end of the day, calling FBSO sellers doesn’t have to be a chore. Instead, it’s a fantastic way to build a long-term pipeline of potential sellers for almost zero cost. However, learning how to build long-term relationships is difficult if you don’t have a ton of experience. That’s why I encourage you to reach out to us about our training options and what we do on our team. I look forward to hearing from you!