Once you make a decision and you are actually in the process of selling your home, you'll quickly discover that there's a gap in what happens next. I say "a gap" because most people just don't think too much about what happens next at all. They start looking at the calendars and looking at their watches and wondering if the phone is going to ring. Well, here's the truth - your phone is probably not going to ring unless you do something proactive to make it happen.

And I mean you personally, not an agent you've hired to put your home on the local multiple listing service. You are the one who will care more about the phone ringing than anyone else, so you are the one who needs to make it happen. Many people believe that they have no actual right to advertise their home themselves. When you are selling your home, it's still your home. You can do whatever it takes to find a buyer for yourself. If you have signed an Exclusive Right To Sell Agreement with a broker you will still owe a real estate commission to him or her, but at least you will have a buyer.

Finding a buyer is only a small part of what your real estate broker does for you. Helping your buyer get financing and shepherding the transaction through the closing process is where an agent really earns his or her commission. So, finding a buyer is part of the process that you can participate in to move things along. The first and most important place to advertise when you are selling your home is craigslist.com. I know people who have actually made a living selling homes on craigslist, and I know dozens who sell homes there regularly.

What I'm talking about here is not a luxury activity, a "nice to do it if I have time" sort of thing. It's a crucial necessity. And your real estate agent is not in a position to do what you can do for yourself. Here's why - one of the features of craigslist is that you have to identify yourself as the owner or a broker. Brokers cannot list as owners, it's against craigslist rules.

That fact has proven to be very lucrative for me and other people I know who list their own real estate for sale because (I know this doesn't seem fair, and it's not, but it's the truth) people would rather deal with the owner than a broker. So, when you're selling your home through a broker or on your own, be sure to post it on craigslist for maximum exposure.