1. How will this site help me Buy a home?
2. How will this site help me Sell a home?
3. As a seller, how much can I save by selling my home myself?
4. If I am buying or selling a FSBO property, how do I protect myself without the help of an agent or broker?
5. Where can I find advice about how to best market my home?
6. What is the most important information to include in a listing?
7. As a potential buyer, what do I do if I have questions or want more information about a home listed on the web site?
8. How do I list a property for sale?
9. Where can I get yard signs for my home?
10. If I provide you with my email address, will I be protected from SPAM and other solicitations?
11. How can I edit my ad once it is listed on the website?
12. Can I advertise my listing on your website in the local newspaper?
13. How will people know about your website? Will my ad be seen by many people?
14. Will I find these homes if I use a realtor, or use a web site that has access to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) system?
15. I already have an ad posted on another FSBO web site.  Why should I use fsboTheDistrict.com?
16. I found a property on fsboTheDistrict.com that I really like, and I want to make an offer.  What do I do?
17. Why do I need to register and what's in it for me?

On this site, where buyers can always browse for free, you will find properties that you won't find on the traditional realtor-owned Multiple Listing Service (MLS).   And, because these sellers are not paying realtor commissions, you're likely to find better values!   We have also included a Buyer's Guide to inform you of the basic steps involved with the homebuying process, and a Buying a FSBO Home guide that highlights for buyers the key differences between a FSBO sale versus an agent-assisted transaction, and what you need to know.   We also provide listings for key professionals you'll want to use, such as attorneys, inspectors and mortgage lenders.

By greatly expanding the visibility of your home for sale!   Buyers looking for FSBO properties in the D.C., Northern Virginia and Maryland areas will certainly find this website, and this your listing!   We also intend to pursue an aggressive local marketing campaign to drive further traffic to our site.   If you are new to the FSBO process, we have also included a Seller's Guide to provide fundamental information about this process.   We have provided other resources as well -- legal forms, listings for real estate professionals such as attorneys, appraisers and title companies, and links to helpful sites and online materials.

Sellers traditionally pay the real estate "commissions" for both themselves and the buyer's agent.   These commissions are typically 6-7% of the sale price of the home.   That means if you are selling a home valued at $400,000, the commissions would cost you $24,000-$28,000.   Commissions for a $800,000 home would be $48,000-$56,000.   In contrast, what a FSBO seller might spend on a real estate attorney, title company, etc, can be measured in the hundreds of dollars, not tens of thousands.   More than 770,000 people sold their homes in 2006 alone; you can join them and save yourself tens of thousands of dollars.

We encourage you to hire an experienced real estate attorney to provide you with sound legal advice, for a reasonable fee.   Again, this will cost you a fraction of what an agent would charge, and no one can dispense better legal advice than an attorney.   You will also need to conduct plenty of research about how to make/accept an offer, how to negotiate closing costs, how to price your home, etc, but there is ample material available in the public domain (Internet, bookstores, etc) to assist you.   If you are buying a home, you will need to find a home inspector to make sure the home is not in poor condition (just as you would if you were using an agent), and your lender will most likely require you to have an appraisal of the home completed.   You can find all of these providers in our "Real Estate Services Directory", or consult your local Yellow Pages for additional ideas.

The Internet or your local bookstore are your best bets for finding such advice.   Perhaps the most complex step of selling your own home is setting the price.   Many sellers (both with and without agents) often make the mistake of setting their price too high, particularly in a "buyer's market" as we have in the Washington D.C. area where the inventory of homes for sale is robust.   Be sure to research your own neighborhood and area, find out what kinds of houses are on the market, their age and condition, how much they are selling for, and use that information to establish a reasonable price for your home.

Research shows that buyers are most interested in location, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and the age of the home.   Kitchens, master bedrooms and bathrooms are key factors, but be sure to include other information such as age/condition of the roof, appliances, windows, HVAC, water heater, electrical, and plumbing.

Each listing has an email address for the seller, and, if they choose, a phone number.  Please contact the seller directly.  We cannot answer your questions about a home for sale, only the seller can.

Click on the "Sell a Home" tab and follow the step-by-step directions.   You will need to accept the Terms & Conditions .   Once you fill out the on-line listing form, upload your photographs, and submit your payment, your ad will be available to the public.   At anytime you may go back and edit your listing, including the sale price and photos.   This process is EASY and FAST.

Hardware and home improvement stores will sell the standard red/white "For Sale By Owner" signs.  For about $200-$300, you can also have a sign store such as Signs By Tomorrow prepare a custom, full-size real estate sign (with a post) in less than a few days.

We will not share your email address or other contact information with anyone without your permission.

You may log into your fsboTheDistrict account and make changes to your listing anytime.

Absolutely, and we recommend doing so.  It is a small investment to make but will increase traffic flow to your listing.

We intend to pursue an aggressive local marketing campaign to publicize the launching of this web site, and will continue in the initial months until fsboTheDistrict.com becomes a well-known commodity in the D.C. area.  In the old days, buyers needed real estate agents to access the MLS system, and thus, buyers were completely reliant on agents to do their market research.  But surveys have proven that a huge percentage of home buyers are now doing their own research on the Internet, surfing the web day and night to find an affordable and appealing home.  And that is the beauty of an Internet ad -- it is up 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  You can be living in the D.C. area, or anywhere else in the world with plans to relocate to our area.  And you don't need an agent to find a home for you.

No.   Because homeowners are selling their homes without an agent, they are choosing not to list them with the MLS.   Therefore, an agent is not going to have any better access to these homes than you will on your own.

None of those other FSBO sites are designed for and marketed exclusively for the Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia and Maryland suburban areas.   They are not doing any local marketing, so they are highly unlikely to receive any noteworthy traffic from buyers on their sites.   But even if you do have an ad posted on another site, you will only increase your visibility by posting a listing on our site, and at this time, you can do it for no additional cost!

You can contact the seller directly and make your offer (see our Buyer's Guide).   If you are new to this process, we strongly encourage you to familiarize yourself as much as possible with what is involved with the purchase of a home.   Much of this can be found on this site, the Internet, or a bookstore.   You can also consult with real estate professionals, such as an attorney, for a reasonable fee.