Are you planning on selling your house? If so, you might be tempted to not hire a real estate agent to maximize your profits since you don’t have to pay for an agent’s commission. Doing all the work all by yourself means you’ll get the most money out of the transaction. Sounds really good right? Well, not really.
Selling a home with an agent’s help will actually give you higher and better profits than doing the work all by yourself. In reality, you’ll get enough funds to cover the agent’s commission and more profits for yourself. Not convinced? Well, we have statistical data to back it up. National Association of Realtor’s says that the average FSBO (For Sale By Owner) sales price in 2016 was $185,000. On the other hand, a home sold through the help of a realtor had a sale price of $245,000. That’s a whopping $60,000 price difference!
A seller may or may not have the capabilities to negotiate the deal in his favor. While a realtor will surely get you covered when it comes to negotiation. And since you’d be relying on your own skills on finalizing a contract, you’re risking potential legal problems and smaller profits after all the extra effort and time spent.
Below are some of the top reasons why FSBO transactions can be more pain than gain.
Online marketing of a property for sale isn’t as easy as it may seem.
Most buyers will search online for houses for sale. The biggest advantage of having a real estate agent is they can offer a widespread exposure for your listing as they have access to multiple listing services. Moreover, they can promote your house to fellow agents to share with their clients. On the other hand, FSBO sellers will need to spend a lot on advertising and might not still be able to reach the same quality audience that a real estate agent can.
FSBO houses can be priced incorrectly.
FSBO sellers tend to set price merely based on online assessment tools or whatever amount a friend or a neighbor suggested because it was either offered to them or they were able to sell their property at that price. These methods are actually totally unreliable and it can risk the price being way off. Nothing can compare to actual and timely market knowledge that real estates have.
Overpricing a home can actually be dangerous as it will languish in the market leaving buyers to wonder why. Worst is nothing will change even if you reduce the price later. In addition, if your house has been in the market for an extended period of time, buyers are more likely to negotiate to get the property at a much lower price.
Only real estate agents would be able to provide an accurate value of your property which is based on comprehensive market analysis. This in turn, will help you arrive at the reasonable listing price – not too expensive to put buyers off but not too low to leave you with less profits out of the sale.
You might not be able to properly estimate how much money you should spend on curb appeal.
In general, inexperienced home sellers don’t know how to properly stage their property for the broadest audience which can turn off potential buyers. May it be because of an amateur paint job, an unmaintained yard or landscape or a broken door.
Having a real estate agent by your side can actually help you a lot since they have an eye for detail and will usually recommend simple and budget-friendly staging steps allowing you to spend the least amount of money for the best possible outcome that can help you present your home at the best possible light.
Showings can be tiresome.
Scheduling and attending showings can be really draining. This is something FSBO sellers don’t realize until they’ve already gone several meetings. Unfortunately, novice home sellers are prone to deal with people who don’t really have the intention to buy as well as investors that are looking into flipping the property for a profit.
On the other hand, having an agent will free up your time that will allow you to focus on other things like tidying up and vacating the place. Moreover, buyers are observed to be uncomfortable with sellers hanging around during showings.
Paperwork isn’t as easy as you think.
Paperwork can really be tricky. And if you have no background in contracts or law, better leave it to the pros if you don’t want to end up with lawsuits after the sale. On the other hand, agents got everything covered for you. They will handle all property disclosures and necessary documentation to ensure you won’t be faced with liabilities in the future.
With all the above compelling reasons, I hope it’s clear now that real estate agents can play a vital role in home-selling. Don’t make the same mistakes new sellers make. Let the pros play the game they now very well.
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