Here’s what probably no one else will tell you. You’re shooting yourself in the foot!
There are 3 primary types of people that consider selling their home on their own. Those that think they are saving money, those that have had a bad experience with an agent in the past, and those that think selling their home is easy.
Are you saving money?
A lot of sellers think they are ‘saving’ money by not paying a commission when selling a home. After all, there is a commission, 5-7% or whatever it is. Right? However, even average agents get a 13% higher selling price than going FSBO. Google it! So even an average agent is going to NET you more money in your pocket than if you tried selling on your own. If you think you’re saving money by going FSBO, you’ll save the commission, but you’re also going to have a much lower sales price. So you’re shooting yourself in the foot! And this doesn’t factor in all sorts of other things mentioned below.
Have a bad experience with an agent in the past?
Join the club! I bought my first home when I was 20 and my experience was awful. If I told you what happened to me, you wouldn’t believe it. Years later, I became a real estate investor (house flipping) and worked with agents on a daily basis. There are some good agents out there, but working with the rest of them was one of the hardest components of my business. It doesn’t mean that we’re all the same. I am VERY different than other agents and because of the unique experience I’ve had, I have a very unique approach to real estate and my clients benefit tremendously from it.
Think it’s easy to sell your home?
How do you know where to price it? An appraiser can’t do that. Even an appraiser knows that your home is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. I’ve sold countless homes for way more than they appraised for. Then it comes down to marketing. Do you have the marketing savvy to bring out the best in your property? Getting an accepted offer is just the beginning of the home-sale process. A professional will be able to properly vet the buyer/offer, the financing method, help ensure the offer is written and accepted in a way that is favorable for you, negotiate through the inspections, use their relationships with related vendors like title companies and others to leverage discounts and help get you the best service possible, and do all the other things required to bring you, the seller/client, to a successful close. Common obstacles are involved in the inspections, appraisal process (what if the home doesn’t appraise high enough, etc.), titlework, and other negotiations. I handle ALL of this for you.
Darrell and his team were a pleasure to work with. His well-executed plan for selling our commercial property went smoothly from start to finish, and we were able to sell the property for more than I had hoped. I would highly recommend Darrell to anyone looking to sell a property.
Greg H.
Other factors to consider.
Most people who try selling their home regret it. Most make mistakes, get into a pinch, and end up hiring an agent anyway. If you’re more likely to hire an agent anyway at some point, you might as well do it right away and spare potential problems with mispricing the home, a problem with a contract or buyer, problems with appraisals, etc.
Why NOT hire a professional? If you found the right professional that has the experience, marketing ability, professionalism, communication and everything else that you deserve, why wouldn’t you hire them? After all, your home is probably the most valuable asset you own. You hire other professionals when it comes to other areas of your life. You deserve a professional when it comes to selling or buying a home.
Your safety. Your family’s safety comes first, especially in today’s era with Coronavirus. When you sell your home FSBO, it can be difficult to manage and control entry in your home. A good agent will have the proper protocols in place to protect your belongings and your family’s well-being. This includes a lot of things, but starts with ensuring only preapproved buyers enter your home (before they show up!), regulating the number of people in your home, facilitating virtual tours, and agents are on top of current best practices.
Most buyers do not look at FSBO’s. Most buyers look for traditionally listed homes for sale and when they see FSBO’s, they ignore them. The reasons for this are many but include the unorthodox manner in which properties like this are marketed and offered for sale and the unknowns and perception of difficulties the buyer may have if they pursued a FSBO. The goal here is NOT to be ignored, but to get noticed. It’s marketing. Exposure! Further, most buyers have real estate agents… which brings me to my next point.
Most agents are NOT willing to tell their buyers about and/or show or pursue FSBO’s. Some agents would say they would consider it, but the dirty secret is most don’t. Agents face a lot of unnecessary complications and unknowns when approaching a FSBO. Starting with the obvious… one of the paramount issues is if the agent is going to get paid and how. In addition, FSBO’s usually (not always, but usually) involve owners/ sellers with strong personalities that make it far more difficult to get simple things done. And the list of random things that can happen when working with a FSBO is endless. After 20 years in the business and after a ton of experience with FSBO’s, I can see why most agents avoid them. I’m a rare agent who will consider helping my buyers with FSBO homes that fit their criteria. I usually help my buyers a few times a year with FSBO’s. In each experience, my buyer wins, and big. The disadvantage the seller has in not having a professional represent them in that transaction is big.
Attracting a buyer begins with a powerful online strategy. 44% of all buyers started their home search online according to a recent study. Once they start the process, that increases to 93%! A good agent has developed a strong internet and social media strategy that promotes your home, in order to put your home in front of the buyers.
Are you ready to negotiate with everyone? Negotiating and getting an accepted offer with a buyer and/or their agent is only the first negotiation. Are you ready to negotiate with the buyer’s agent through the process over other details, the inspector (who works for the buyer), the appraiser if there’s an issue over the value, title fees and closing costs? A good agent is a good negotiator.
Your home has a much higher chance of not appraising for the purchase price. If this happens, either you come down in price and lose money, the buyer somehow comes up with the difference (which is rare), or the buyer loses the home and you start over. If you decide to start over, the worst part is in many instances, the appraised value “sticks” with the property for a certain amount of time, usually several months. This means the next appraiser might appraise it higher, but it won’t matter- that lower value will trump the higher value. Appraisers on homes with a FSBO are more likely to be conservative in their appraised value because of the concern of a lack of “arms-length” between the buyer and seller- given the lack of a normal professional real estate agent in the transaction. This market is appreciating so rapidly and there are so few homes for sale that appraisers are having a harder time finding “comps” (sold comparable sales). So it’s common for appraisals to come in lower than a sales price. But it’s even a higher probability with a FSBO. There’s a process that even few agents are aware of and/or are experienced with called an appraisal rebuttal. I am very experienced with the appraisal rebuttal process and I am very successful in getting appraisers to adjust to the values we need them to for my seller clients. What would you do if your appraisal came in $20,000 lower than the agreed-to price? Having a good experienced agent who knows how to navigate this and persuade the appraiser to do what needs to be done for your benefit is critical.
How would you know if the buyer is qualified for a mortgage? It does no good to have an accepted offer on a home if the buyer isn’t qualified. Some lenders are known for being reliable… for closing transactions on time, for having good communication. Others… are known for not being reliable, not fully qualifying their buyers (your potential buyer!), not meeting closing deadlines, and causing all sorts of problems in real estate transactions. A good agent knows not only how to ensure the buyer is qualified, but vet the buyer… and their lender. A good agent knows who the good lenders are and has relationships with them to help get the backstory on how qualified the buyer really is.
You have significant risk when you leave key components out of a transaction. There’s a lot to a real estate transaction. The documentation involved in the selling process has increased dramatically as more and more disclosures and regulations have become mandatory. The percentage of people selling their home FSBO has decreased substantially from 19% to 8% over the past several years and this is a big reason why. Check out this video from a local lender on this subject: https://www.facebook.com/danmymortgageman/videos/694625627407579/ )
I’m anything but average.
I enlisted Darrell's help in selling my home on the recommendation of friends who spoke very highly about his abilities as a Realtor and I am happy I did. Aside from being a friendly and personable man, he was an extremely competent Realtor who looked out for my best interests. He answered all of my questions. He advised me of what should be done to the house to make it sell well and what could be left alone. He recommended what I thought was a high selling price and the house sold for much more than I expected. It also sold in less than a month. He was on my side for the entire transaction. He handled and negotiated any situation that came up to my benefit and satisfaction. All of my calls to him or his staff (also pleasant and competent) were answered or returned promptly. I have no regrets about choosing him and would do it again. I very highly recommend Darrell whether selling or buying. He works only for you.
Kathy C.
