For Sale By Owner Canada - Homes for Sale Canada Homes / Houses for Sale Canada

For Sale By Owner - FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

About our Services

For Sale by Owner Real Estate - General Questions

Using our Website (Sellers)

Using our Website (Buyers)

Advertising with us

About our Professional Services Directory (For Businesses)

ABOUT OUR SERVICES

  • Is adding a listing really free? If so, how do you make money?
    Adding a listing is free, but we have other services that are paid. Please see the below chart for more information.

    DESCRIPTION FREE PAID
    Post unlimited listings, whether by private seller or real estate agent. Free Not Paid
    Enhance your listing with optional add-ons to make it stand out. Not Free Paid
    Order a "For Sale" lawn sign to put on your property Not Free Paid
    Promote your business in our Professional Services Directory. Not Free Paid

  • How many listings can I post?
    As many as you like! There are no limits, as long as each listing is for a different property. Duplicated listings that are active will be deleted by an administrator.

  • How many photos can I upload to my listing?
    Currently, you can upload a maximum of 10 photos per listing for free. However, we have a Media Package that increases this value - see the details on our Media Package Listing Enhancement page.

  • Do you have an option to list through the MLS® System of a real estate board?
    We are currently in the process of adding this feature. However, you may still post your listing with us in the meantime, as our site receives around 1000 visits everyday. These visitors comprise mainly of buyers looking for their next home, making us us one of the busiest free listing options available in Canada today. Setting up your listing only takes a few minutes and there are no mandatory fees or hidden costs.

    The trademarks MLS®, Multiple Listing Service® and the associated logos are owned by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify the quality of services provided by real estate professionals who are members of CREA.

  • Do you provide "For Sale" lawn signs?
    Yes, you can order them as an enhancement to your listing. Full details can be found on our listing enhancements page.

  • Are sellers bound by terms and conditions once they add a listing?
    No. However, at our discretion, we may delete listings and/or accounts that seem spammy or abuse fairness. You are also welcome and encouraged to list your property on other real estate or classified websites to get as much exposure as possible, so you are not restricted to only listing with us.

  • Are you associated with other For Sale By Owner companies?
    No. We only operate forsalebyowner.ca and fsbo.ca, so if you have been dealing with any other company, we do not have any association with them.

FOR SALE BY OWNER REAL ESTATE - GENERAL QUESTIONS

  • Do I need a lawyer to buy or sell a property?
    Yes - you need a lawyer in order to complete any kind of property transaction, whether you are the buyer or the seller. Please refer to our Seller's Guide - Steps for a Successful Sale for more information.

  • Do you have legal forms available for download?
    Since legal forms (such as offer sheets) vary by province and get updated frequently, it's best to get physical copies from the lawyer who will be representing you in the sale. Many registry agents also have these forms available for purchase.

  • Do you have any tips or advice on selling a property privately?
    Yes - please refer to our Seller's Guide - Steps for a Successful Sale for helpful tips.

USING OUR WEBSITE (SELLERS)

  • How do I add a listing?
    Watch our detailed video tutorial on How to Add a Listing, or see below.
    1. Create your account at the registration page.
    2. Once you create your account, an email confirmation will be sent to you. Follow the instructions in your email to confirm your account.
    3. Log in, then click on the "Add Listing" link in the light brown bar. This page walks you through how to add your property, then your listing is instantly live on our site.

  • How do I edit my listing?
    Watch our detailed video tutorial on How to Edit your Listing, or see below.
    1. Please log in to your account by using the login page.
    2. Click on the "My Listings" link in the sub-navigation near the top of the screen in the light brown bar. (You can also access this page by clicking on the "My Listings" link in the dropdown menu under "My Account" in the top navigation.)
    3. Select the listing you wish to edit by clicking on the "Edit" button next to it.
    4. You will be presented with a screen showing all the areas that are editable. Go ahead and make the changes directly in these areas.
    5. When you're done, click on the green "Submit" button in the bottom right corner to instantly save your changes.

  • My Google Map pointer is incorrect. How do I fix it?
    By default, the Google Map pointer is positioned according to the postal code used in your listing. We recently launched a map editor that allows you to drag the marker position yourself to the exact position it should be in, in case of any inaccuracies. Here's how to change it:

    1. Please log in to your account by using the login page.
    2. Click on the "My Listings" link in the sub-navigation near the top of the screen in the light brown bar. (You can also access this page by clicking on the "My Listings" link in the dropdown menu under "My Account" in the top navigation.)
    3. Select the listing you wish to edit by clicking on the "Edit" button next to it.
    4. Go to the section called "Map Location" near the bottom right corner.
    5. Click on the link that says "Click Here to Launch Map Editor". (A new window will open.)
    6. Follow the instructions on that page to change the marker position.

  • I have a property listed in an area that is close to another city. Can I show up in searches for that nearby city?
    Yes - simply select up to 5 cities in the field called "Nearby Cities" when adding or editing your listing. Not only will your listing show up in search results for the location you posted it in, but you will equally show up in search results for those nearby cities. Please note that searchers have the option to disable results from nearby cities, but this is always enabled by default.

  • My listing belongs to more than 1 property type, can I specify more than 1?
    Absolutely - in addition to your main property type, you can select up to 2 additional property types in the field called "Additional Property Types" when adding or editing your listing. Not only will your listing show up in search results for the main property type you selected, but you will equally show up in search results for the additional categories. This is very handy when there are crossovers between property types; for instance, a large empty lot may also be considered an acreage as well as land for sale.

  • I want my property for sale to also be listed for rent. How can I do this?
    After choosing your primary ad type, which is usually "For Sale", there is a section under the price field called "Other Pricing Options" when editing or adding your listing. You can specify pricing for any other combination of ad types, such as for rent, rent-to-own, and for lease. If any prices are specified, they will show up on your listing page in a box called "Other Pricing Options".

    Another benefit to having more than 1 pricing option is that your listing will be tailored to the searcher's criteria if they specify an ad type. For example, if someone is searching for rental homes in Toronto, and you've added a rental price in your "Other Pricing Options", your listing will show up as a rental property in the search result. Once they click on your listing, they will then see your sale price along with the rental price.

  • I purchased manual re-post credits to enhance my listing. How do I use the credits?
    Go back to the order page you were on when you added the credits, and you'll see a highlighted area indicating your credit count. Click on the link that says "click here to use one now" and follow the confirmation instructions. (If you don't remember how you got there, first go to My Listings, then click on the "Enhance this Listing" button.)

    Re-Post Credits
  • Can I embed a video into my listing page?
    Yes, for a small fee. Please see our Media Package Listing Enhancement page for pricing. If you have a video of your property on another website, such as a virtual tour, you can paste in the direct URL to your video when editing your listing. Make sure you add the URL to the section called "Embed a Video". This is a great way to get buyers more interested in your property.

  • I embedded a video but it doesn't work when I try to open it. What's wrong?
    1. Make sure the direct URL to your video is correct. Did you copy and paste it properly?
    2. For agent profiles and business listings, we only support videos from YouTube, Vimeo, Daily Motion, or Flickr, so the first thing to check is if your video is hosted on one of those websites.
    3. Make sure your video is public to allow sharing and embedding
      • If your video is from YouTube, you need to enable embedding in your YouTube video settings. To do this, log in to YouTube and go to your Video Manager. Edit your video and click on the "Advanced Settings" tab. Check off the checkbox next to "Enable Embedding".
    4. If your video still won't play, please contact us for help.

  • How does the open house schedule work?
    When you add a new listing or edit an existing one, you will see a form to edit the hours and dates of your open house. For the hours, it gives you every day of the week, so you simply select a start and end time by clicking into each field, only for the days that you plan on having the open house on. For the date range, you select a start date and end date. This date range allows you to show the open house details for as long as you plan on having it, whether it's for 1 weekend or for multiple weeks.

    Once you add your information, a bright blue "OPEN HOUSE" banner will appear over your listing's thumbnail in search results, as long as your start date is 1 week away or sooner. On your actual listing page, the open house schedule is displayed immediately below your photos.

    Your open house schedule will be deleted automatically on the night of your end date, so you can "set it and forget it"!

  • When will my listing expire?
    Currently, your listing will remain on our website for 1 year from the date you posted it. If you decide to renew your listing, it will be good for another year. However, if your listing expires, it is permanently deleted from our system and cannot be recovered.

  • How do I renew my listing?
    You will be notified by email 2 weeks ahead of time when your listing is about to expire. During this time period, you can instantly renew your listing with the click of a button, as explained in the notification email. (Please note that you will only get the email if your listing status is set to "Active".)

    Renew Listing
  • How do I delete my listing or mark it as "Sold" before it expires?
    1. Please log in to your account by using the login page.
    2. Click on the "My Listings" link in the sub-navigation near the top of the screen in the light brown bar. (You can also access this page by clicking on the "My Listings" link in the dropdown menu under "My Account" in the top navigation.)
    3. Select the listing you wish to delete by clicking on the "X" button next to it.
    4. You are now on the listing status page - use the dropdown menu to change the status to "Sold", "Rented", or "Inactive".
    5. When you're done, click on the green "Submit" button to instantly save your status change.

  • When I reply to a listing inquiry email with my cell phone, the reply-to address is not the sender's. What's going on?
    This is an issue with only some cell phones that are unable to correctly process the email headers. These devices omit the "reply-to" address, which is the sender's email address. If you have one of these devices and press "Reply", it will go to "no-reply@forsalebyowner.ca", which is where the website sent the email from. This will not directly go to the sender, but a site administrator will forward this off to the correct person when they see the email come through.

    As a temporary solution, you'll see the sender's actual email address in the body of the email. Simply click on that to send a new email to them. A better solution would be to keep your mobile device up-to-date to see if a newer version can correctly indentify the "reply-to" address.

  • Why do my photos appear pixelated or blurry on my listing page?
    This usually means you uploaded photos that are much too small for proper viewing on your listing page, most likely thumbnails or photos from a mobile device with a low resolution. The photo slideshow needs a minimum size of 460px wide or 345px high, otherwise any smaller photos will be enlarged to fit the area.

  • I don't have a postal code for my listing. What do I do since it's a required field?
    Use Canada Post's online tool to find a postal code. An address is not required as you can simply type in the city or town name and select the province to see what is available. Use the postal code that is closest to your property, then you can always adjust the map's marker location after.

  • Why is my listing description displaying oddly (or not at all) after I copy and paste it in?
    You can test that the editor works by manually typing in to it. However, display problems with the text box can be caused from copying the text from elsewhere and then pasting it in, because it retains hidden HTML formatting from the other source. In some cases, the copied formatting can cause your text to display abnormally or not at all. There are a few solutions to fix this:

    • Option A) Remove the formatting. Select all your text and then press the "Remove Format" button in the toolbar (it's an underlined "T" icon with a small "x")
    • Option B) Paste as plain text. Clear your description box, copy your text from the external source, then press the "Paste as plain text" button in the toolbar (it's a clipboard icon with a "T")
    • Option C) Paste from Word. Clear your description box, copy your text from Microsoft Word (if applicable), then press the "Paste from word" button in the toolbar (it's a clipboard icon with a "W")

    Additional formatting, if needed, can then be done within the editor itself.

USING OUR WEBSITE (BUYERS)

  • Do I need to sign up in order to search for properties?
    Not at all. Anyone can search properties on our website whether they have an account with us or not.

  • Do I need to sign up in order to email sellers about their listings?
    No - you can go right ahead and email sellers without needing to sign up or log in first.

  • What are the benefits of signing up for an account as a buyer?
    Even though you can search for properties and email sellers without an account, signing up is very handy if you wish to mark certain listings as your "Favorites". You can then review your favorite listings in one area of your account instead of trying to find the listings again that caught your attention.

    You can also save your search criteria in order to receive email notifications when new or updated listings match your criteria. This can be done on the Advanced Search page.

  • When searching for properties in a specific city, the checkbox for "Include Nearby Cities" doesn't always include everything close by. How come?
    Sellers have the option to specify up to 5 additional cities that are close to the location of their property. If they do not choose a nearby city, they will not show up for any city other than the one their property resides in. Also, this feature was added to the site at a later date which means that several sellers may not have recently logged in and noticed this addition.

ADVERTISING WITH US

  • What advertising options do you have?
    • Professional Services Directory (*NEW*) - Add your business that helps home buyers and sellers with various stages of the process. Categories include real estate agents, accountants, appliances, appraisers, builders, home inspectors, household goods, interior design, landscaping, mortgages, tools, and many more.

    ABOUT OUR PROFESSIONAL SERVICES DIRECTORY (FOR BUSINESSES)

    • Which factors determine the businesses that show up in the featured showcases?
      This is explained on the info page, please take a look there for all the details.

    • My business location is in an area that is close to another city. Can I show up in business searches for that nearby city?
      Yes - simply select up to 5 cities in the field called "Nearby Cities" when creating or editing your profile. Not only will your Professional Services profile show up in search results for the location you posted it in, but you will equally show up in search results for those nearby cities. Please note that searchers have the option to disable results from nearby cities, but this is always enabled by default.

    • Can I embed a video into my business page?
      You bet. If you uploaded a video about your business to YouTube, Vimeo, Daily Motion, or Flickr, you can paste in the direct URL to your video when adding or editing your business. Make sure you add the URL to the section called "Embed a Video". This is a great way to get buyers and sellers more interested in your services.

    • I embedded a video but it doesn't work when I try to open it. What's wrong?
      1. Make sure the direct URL to your video is correct. Did you copy and paste it properly?
      2. For agent profiles and business listings, we only support videos from YouTube, Vimeo, Daily Motion, or Flickr, so the first thing to check is if your video is hosted on one of those websites.
      3. Make sure your video is public to allow sharing and embedding
        • If your video is from YouTube, you need to enable embedding in your YouTube video settings. To do this, log in to YouTube and go to your Video Manager. Edit your video and click on the "Advanced Settings" tab. Check off the checkbox next to "Enable Embedding".
      4. If your video still won't play, please contact us for help.