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Selling a house without a realtor limits your options for listing, as you won’t have access to your local multiple listing service (MLS). Many cost-conscious FSBO sellers instead turn to Craigslist, leveraging its free listing feature.
However, while Craigslist offers ease and cost-effectiveness, selling on the platform doesn’t make sense for everyone. While it generates a staggering 257 million page views per month, the platform may not attract serious homebuyers or those willing to pay premium prices.1 Craigslist tends to attract investors and bargain hunters. While these buyers may offer non-contingent, all-cash deals, they might not offer top dollar for the property.
Craigslist is also known for its scammer problem, requiring careful screening of inquiries and potential buyers. Dealing with spam and scams can consume significant time and effort, adding to the challenges of selling FSBO.
For those looking to avoid realtor fees while receiving comprehensive support, partnering with a low commission real estate company like Real Estate Witch may offer a more appealing solution. With Real Estate Witch, sellers can save thousands on their home sale while benefiting from the expertise and assistance of a top local agent. Find a top agent in your area today!
» JUMP TO: Should I sell on Craigslist? | Pros and cons | Alternative options | Step-by-step guide | Tips and advice | Scams and safety | Vetting buyers
Should I sell a house on Craigslist?
Selling a house on Craigslist is an option some sellers consider, but it’s not suitable for everyone.
Craigslist may work for sellers who:
- Want to avoid real estate agent commission fees on the listing agent side, which average 2.83% nationwide.
- Have distressed or fixer-upper properties appealing to investors or bargain hunters.
- Are familiar with and comfortable navigating the FSBO process.
- Don’t mind vetting buyers and dealing with spam or non-serious inquiries.
- Prefer a quick sale over maximizing sale price.
Craigslist might not be the best choice for sellers who:
- Aren’t familiar with the FSBO process.
- Struggle to sell their property on traditional platforms and could benefit from professional assistance.
- Seek to save on commission fees while still achieving a good sales price (consider alternative options like flat fee MLS packages or discount brokerages).
If the FSBO process doesn’t seem suitable, but you still aim to save on commission fees, consider partnering with a low commission real estate brokerage.
Pros of selling your house on Craigslist
Pros
- Fast, easy, and free. It doesn’t cost anything to post on Craigslist, and it just takes a few minutes. Additionally, Craigslist’s user-friendly platform simplifies the posting process, making it accessible to anyone with an internet connection.
- You have full listing control. Unlike with a traditional flat fee MLS service, you don’t need to ask your broker for a tweak or pay a fee for each change. With Craigslist, you have complete control over your listing, allowing you to make adjustments or updates whenever necessary without any additional costs.
- There’s no commitment to sign. Feel like taking your house off the market? Delete the listing. Since you’re not working with an agent, there’s no listing agreement to worry about. You have the freedom to remove your listing at any time without any contractual obligations.
- You’ll reach buyers looking for a quick sale. There’s a built-in pool of cash buyers and investors actively seeking fixer-uppers and distressed homes specifically on Craigslist.
- You won’t pay a seller’s agent commission. You eliminate the need to pay realtor fees to a listing agent. Also, if you connect with a buyer who doesn’t have representation, you can bypass paying a buyer’s agent commission, potentially saving even more money.
Cons
- Limited visibility. Most buyers and agents primarily utilize websites like Zillow, which aggregates listings from MLS databases. With Craigslist, only individuals actively browsing the site will come across your listing.
- Buyer vetting required. You’ll need to weed through serious offers and casual inquiries, separating genuine interest from those who may not be financially qualified or sincere about purchasing.
- Potential for unsolicited calls. Some agents actively search FSBO listings and may reach out to sellers, aiming to secure your business.
- Outdated search features and interface. Compared to larger platforms, Craigslist has have less user-friendly navigation and aesthetics.
- Scams and spam. Craigslist’s open platform can attract fraudulent activity and unwanted spam messages, requiring the seller to stay alert.
- Lowball offers. Craigslist tends to appeal more to investors and bargain hunters rather than luxury property buyers, potentially resulting in offers below market value.
🛠 After Repair Value |
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Investors typically offer no more than 70% of a home's after repair value (ARV). So if an investor believes a house is worth $250,000 after it's been repaired but needs $10,000 worth of work, they would offer a maximum of $165,000 ($250,000 x 0.70 - $10,000 = $165,000). » MORE: How Much Will an Investor Pay for My House? |
Alternatives to selling real estate on Craigslist
Alternative | Best for |
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Flat fee MLS companies | Inexpensive MLS access |
Discount brokers | Affordable expert help |
"We buy houses" companies | Offloading unwanted houses quickly |
Other FSBO websites | Free options |
Flat fee MLS companies
You need an agent to access the MLS, which significantly enhances your chances of finding a buyer. It’s the top choice for listing homes, with 86% of all sellers utilizing it, far surpassing methods like yard signs.
Flat fee MLS companies facilitate this by having a licensed broker post your home on the local MLS for a fee ranging from $299 to $399, ensuring exposure on major sites like Zillow and realtor.com.
While some may offer additional services like assistance with closing paperwork, these often incur extra costs. With basic packages, however, support is typically limited, requiring sellers to take on most of the FSBO workload.
» LEARN: What you need to know about flat fee MLS services
Discount brokers
A trustworthy discount real estate brokerage offers sellers a complete agent service while reducing commission expenses. However, fee structures and service quality can vary significantly among discount brokers, so it’s essential to carefully assess to find the best match.
» MORE: The best discount real estate brokers
“We Buy Houses” companies
These companies specialize in purchasing distressed properties swiftly for cash, typically offering only 50–70% of the home’s after-repair value (ARV), or what the home is likely worth after getting fixed up.
While numerous companies operate under this model, it’s crucial to vet them thoroughly for legitimacy and always have any contracts reviewed by legal professionals.
» MORE: Our rankings of the best cash home buyers
Other FSBO websites
While Craigslist remains a popular choice, several FSBO websites offer improved services, albeit sometimes with associated costs or regional restrictions. In our research, we ranked these platforms, with Craigslist placing second-to-last. Check out our best FSBO website rankings.
How to sell a house on Craigslist: Step-by-step guide
Click “Get Started” to see how to post a home on Craigslist
- Select “create a posting” on the main page.
- Select “housing offered” (not “for sale by owner”).
- Select “real estate – by owner”
- Write your listing (get tips here).
- Use the dropdown menus to include the property type, number of beds and bathrooms, etc.
- You can set dates for an open house or a future date when the home will officially be on the market. Neither are required.
- Check the location
- If you don’t input an exact address, you’ll be shown a general zone.
- Upload your pictures.
- You can upload up to 24 images (pro tip: use PNG or JPEG files). Large images will be automatically resized to 600 by 450 pixels.
- The first image is the featured one; you can drag and drop their order.
- Review your listing and publish.
- You can make changes at any time, even after it’s published.
- The post will stay live for 45 days, and you can repost your listing every 48 hours.
- Don’t spam your post, but refresh it when it drops off the first few pages.
- Check your email and confirm
- This is important — if you don’t confirm, your listing won’t post!
Tips for selling a house on Craigslist
» JUMP TO: Pricing your home | What investors pay | Taking photos | Writing a home listing | Writing an investment listing | Scams and safety | Vetting buyers | Disclosure laws
Know what your house is worth
Knowing your home’s value as a FSBO seller is one of the biggest challenges you’ll face. Price too high, and you won’t find a buyer. Price too low, and you may cheat yourself out of a good deal (and, let’s face it, Craigslist is full of buyers looking for a steal.)
Here’s how to accurately price your house without an agent:
- Use a home value estimator. You’ll get a ballpark price for your house, but it’s not going to be accurate — you’ll need to do additional work.
- Run your own comparative market analysis (CMA) report. Find recently sold (within a few months), comparable properties in similar conditions and with similar features. Note that if your home is in disrepair, it could be more difficult to accurately price the property.
- Pay for an appraisal. This is the easiest and most accurate method, although it will cost $200–500 or more depending on the property, and it may take a few weeks to complete.
💸 Did you know? Research shows that the median FSBO home sells for 18.2% less than the median agent-assisted home. That cancels out commission savings — and then some.2
At Real Estate Witch, you’ll get a full-service agent to help you sell your home for top dollar — while paying a low 1.5% listing fee. Find a top local agent and save thousands on commission fees!
Take honest photos
It costs an average of $165 to have your home professionally photographed — and it can help your house sell faster and for more money.3 But if you don’t want to spend the cash, just try to do better than what’s already on Craigslist. Follow these tips:
- Take photos on a sunny day.
- Declutter and clean.
- Open all the blinds and drapes.
- Take wide-angle shots of the front of the house, the bedrooms, kitchen, and living room.
Take lots of photos and select the best ones — you can feature up to 24 photos on Craigslist when selling your house.
📷 Tips for taking photos of fixer-uppers and distressed properties |
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You don’t need glamorous photos for these homes. You’re targeting investors, so the photos mainly need to show the home’s condition, warts and all. Show potential investors what they’ll need to fix, but also showcase what’s still good. |
Write a listing that speaks to your buyers
Tailor your listing to the type of buyer that will be interested in your property. Investors are looking for different information than traditional home buyers.
Here are some tips for writing a listing on Craigslist:
- Don’t lie or exaggerate. If there are any hidden surprises, like a shared driveway, include that information.
- Check for spelling and grammar. You can use a free online tool like Grammarly.
- Write “no real estate agents” to avoid working with a buyer’s agent. It should cut down on unsolicited calls from agents looking to represent you and buyers who have an agent.
- Use the “available on” section to set a future date for when you’re taking offers. The idea here is to accumulate enough interest, get a whole bunch of offers at once, and encourage a bidding war. However, this will only work if the market is hot and the property is desirable.
Traditional listings
Traditional buyers are would-be homeowners who probably don’t want to do serious rehab work. Here are some tips for attracting their attention:
- For the title, you’ll want to write something specific that stands out. Don’t just write “house for sale.” Instead, write “Historic Craftsman with amazing kitchen near Mid City.” There’s a 70-character limit in titles, but the price, number of bedrooms, and square footage will automatically be included no matter what.
- Highlight any updates, renovations, and features you love.
- Is the home close to good schools? Great food? A local attraction? Include it.
One of the disadvantages of listing on Craigslist is its lackluster search feature, so make a point to include everything notable. You can just list out highlights: “Has covered porch, big windows, home office, garage, built-in bookshelves,” etc.
Here’s an example of a good listing to attract traditional buyers:
Also, remember that Craigslist is rife with scams, so make your listing look authentic so you don’t scare off potential buyers.
- Don’t ask people to text you a code word.
- Post lots of photos.
- Include a walk-through video. You can post a plaintext link (meaning non-clickable) in your Craigslist ad, redirecting buyers to a place like YouTube or Google Drive.
Investor listings
One of the advantages of selling a house on Craigslist is the large pool of investors.
In the title, make it clear what kind of property it is — use words like “fix and flip,” “distressed,” “short sale,” “investment opportunity,” etc., as well as a general location.
Don’t shy away from any issues the home has. Include major problems in the listing, as well as its highlights — “has a solid foundation and good roof but needs a new HVAC and flooded last year.”
For searchers, include words like “as-is,” “condemned,” “buy and hold,” “repairs,” “fast” “equity” “handyman” and “rental.” Here’s a good example:
Check out the “housing wanted” section
Some people post “wanted” ads for houses, which can be an opportunity to find buyers.
Go to your local Craigslist, and on the front page, click “housing wanted” under the “housing” section. Select “house” from the “housing type” drop-down menu on the left-hand side and start looking for potential buyers.
If you find multiple investors or “we buy houses” companies, meet with them individually and compare offers.
How to sell your house safely on Craigslist
Craigslist is notorious for being a scammer’s playground. Plus, there are a lot of window shoppers, so it’s important to be able to spot real offers.
Avoid “buyers” who:
- Won’t give their full name or number.
- Ask for a deposit of any kind.
- Insist on using a particular online escrow company (fake escrow companies are a real issue)
- Give you a check without a good reason — it could be fake.
- Send messages from odd-looking email addresses or international numbers.
- Query you with vague messages full of spelling errors.
- Include links in their email or texts — they’re probably phishing.
- Try to get you to send them your mortgage payment at a “reduced” rate. They’re mortgage relief scammers.
Protect your identity
- Use the proxy Craigslist email address provided and remove identifying information from your email signature.
- Don’t give out any financial information, like your bank account number.
- Never sign a contract without reading it thoroughly. We highly recommend paying a real estate attorney to review and draft the contracts.
- You don’t need to plug in your home’s exact address on Craigslist. You can provide it once the buyer is vetted.
🚨 Be safe! Don’t show your home alone. Bring a friend or family member when meeting buyers and keep your phone close. |
Ask for proof of financing and earnest money
Traditional buyers using a mortgage should show you pre-approval letters, or at the very least, proof of prequalification.
For cash buyers, you’ll want a proof of funds letter — a signed statement from the bank saying they have the money to close the deal.
Serious buyers will offer earnest money. This is typically 1–3% of the purchase price, but it can be as high as 10% in some markets. If the buyer backs out of the sale without the proper contingencies, they forfeit the earnest money.
❗ Don’t hold the deposit yourself! Use a third party like an escrow agent or title company to handle the funds. If the deal falls through, you don’t want to get into a legal quagmire. |
Know your state’s disclosure laws and legal requirements
In many states, you’re required to have a real estate lawyer present at closing, so budget for that if you’ll need or want an attorney. But if you choose to forgo legal help, you’ll need to understand your state’s disclosure laws and legal requirements.
Disclosure laws vary by state, with some being more stringent than others. However, most states require sellers to disclose known and significant problems, like prior flooding events, boundary disputes, or foundational defects.
If you’re selling a house built before 1978, you have to comply with the federal Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992. That applies to all sellers, regardless of state.
Check your state’s disclosure laws and consult with an attorney if you have questions. Remember, failure to comply with disclosure laws can be grounds for serious legal trouble — don’t try to wing it!
» MORE: How to Sell a House by Owner: Necessary Paperwork
Rethinking listing your home on Craigslist?
If listing your home on Craigslist — or selling without an agent in general — is feeling overwhelming, you can always turn to a professional. The FSBO route takes up a lot of time, can be incredibly stressful, and often is less profitable.
Since a Craigslist post is free and can be removed whenever it’s easy to change course if listing on the site ends up being a bad fit for your situation. You have other options that will provide professional support and still save you money on listing commissions.
FAQs
Is selling your house on Craigslist free?
It's free to sell a house on Craigslist. However, your property will only be seen by people who use Craigslist — and the buyer pool is mostly property investors.
The best way to find a potential buyer is by posting your home to the MLS with the help of a real estate agent. Learn more about the best low commission real estate agents near you.
Is selling a house on Craigslist worth it?
If you're selling your house for sale by owner (FSBO), Craigslist can be a helpful tool to try and attract more buyers. But Craigslist works best if you're targeting investors or cash buyers, and these buyers may not be willing to pay full price for your home.
For sellers who want to get top dollar for their homes, a better option is to list with a traditional real estate agent. A professional realtor will be able to market your home using your local multiple listing service (MLS), ensuring that your listing reaches the most potential buyers in your area.
Is selling a house on Craigslist safe?
There are definitely scams on Craigslist. Keep your personal information private and take the necessary precautions when inviting a stranger into your home. If you're careful, you should be fine.
Can I sell my house on Craigslist while a realtor is also selling it?
If you have signed a contract with an agent, you can ask them to post your home to Craigslist — but they may recommend against it. And know if you have an agent and find a buyer via Craigslist, you'll still owe that agent the agreed-upon listing commission at closing. Learn more about how to negotiate realtor fees.
Sources
- SEMRush. “Craigslist.org, March 2024 Traffic Stats.” Accessed April 30, 2024. ↩︎
- National Association of Realtors. “2023 Highlights from the Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers.” Accessed April 30, 2024. ↩︎
- Redfin. “Homes Listed with Professional Real Estate Photos Sell Quicker and For More Money. This Is Why.” Accessed April 30, 2024. ↩︎
Linda Blanchard says
Good suggestions. Selling Waterfront in Eastern Virginia is difficult. So I need all the help I can get.
The Real Estate Witch says
Thanks for reading! I’m glad you found them helpful and I wish you the best of luck! Let me know if you think of some other topics I should cover.
-Ryan
Donna says
Thanks so much for the Craig’s list tutorial and all your advice. Much appreciated!
Ryan says
No problem, Donna! I’m glad you enjoyed and best of luck with your home sale. Don’t hesitate to write in if you have any questions or insights to share from your experiences.
Richard Glover says
Hello everyone ,
We selling our home we own outright. We live in a great park wall mantanice we live on one largest conner lot in park it’s a step out back door and the playground&pool,it’s a 3 bedroom with a large family room kitchen been redone,Hampton Beach 15 min down Road mountains are hour or so north so asking 75 thousand need to
Contact us [email protected]
Thanks Richard&Sheila Glover
Penelope Smith says
This is some really good information about selling a house. My sister is wanting to move, and she needs to sell her home soon. I liked that you pointed out that it would be smart to post your listing on a weekday.
Marie E Abbott says
If I have a property in south Florida that I want to advertise in Canada Craig’s List, is there a way to do that?
Great tips by the way, thank you.
Karen says
Thank you for the very informative tips!
Jim says
Thanks Ryan for helpful suggestion. I have never sell house on Craigslist..Just because I don’t think that Craig list is a real estate website. we may use Zillow, realtors for selling a house.