There’s an age-old question when it comes to selling your home: Can I do it myself or should I hire an agent to do it for me? Agents are expensive, but the statistics say that you are leaving lots of money on the table if you try and take on this monumental task by yourself. As a matter of fact, only 11% of seller’s who are selling their home For Sale By Owner (FSBO) actually succeed in getting their home under contract and through settlement. The 11% that do succeed, on average, sell their home for 26% less than if they were to sell it through an agent. What if there was another way?
It’s all about the money
Ok, you decide you want to sell your home yourself. You’ve decided to take the leap and sell as a For Sale By Owner (FSBO). What are the issues and problems you are going to face and what are the positives for taking it on? Obviously, the number one positive everyone thinks about when doing FSBO is that they can save a ton of money in commission. That can be true, but not entirely. The majority of Listing Brokerages are going to charge between 5-7% commission to list your home. Out of that 5-7%, generally half of it goes to the Listing Agent/Brokerage and half is co-opted to a Buyers Agent for bringing the buyer, writing the contract, etc…So, if you’re doing a FSBO, you have some things to think about. You are obviously saving on the listing side but what are you going to do about the buyers side (Buyer’s Agent)? We find that most buyers in the market are represented by Buyer’s Agents. Are you going to pay them? That’s the most obvious and only real positive we can come up with.
How hard is it to sell your house yourself?
Now, let’s look at the negatives. What strategy will you use to sell/price your home? Yes, there are some tools on the internet available to help, but the art of interpreting all the data out there is an acquired skill set developed over many years and much experience. Where do you get the paperwork for disclosing and writing a contract, and how do you fill it out correctly? Maybe, a buyer’s agent will help, or maybe they’ll use your lack of experience as a way to help their buyer?
How to get your house on the MLS
Most importantly, how are you going to get the word that your house is for sale out there? The most important tool a listing agent has at his/her disposal is the MLS (Multiple Listing Service). The MLS is a database that publishes your listing out to the masses. So, I’ll put my FSBO on the MLS? Not so fast. Only Licensed REALTORS® and Brokerages can list homes on the MLS. And how do most buyers find homes to buy? By either going directly to the MLS to search, or to one of the many real estate websites out there that receives the data published by the MLS. As you can see, once you sit down and really think about it, FSBO isn’t as easy or lucrative as it might seem.
The traditional agent
After thinking about it, maybe you make a better decision and decide to hire a full service/traditional real estate agent. However, just like selling your home as a FSBO, selling with an agent has its benefits and disadvantages. For starters, the cost. A listing agent/brokerage is generally going to charge 5-7% to sell your home and that can equate to tens of thousands of dollars in costs to you. Another issue we hear again and again is that everyone and their Mom is an agent. You probably have family and/or close friends that are in the real estate business. How do you choose who to list with without hurting anyone’s feelings? Oftentimes, your cousin who’s an agent but does it part time isn’t the best person to pick to sell your home. Now you’re in a bad spot with a bad agent handling your most prized and pricy possession. Working with a Listing Agent also means working on their timeframe and that can be really tough, especially if you like things done the way you like them done.
The positives
Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s not all bad. There are many positives when using an agent to sell your home. Assuming they know what they’re doing, they’ll provide excellent advice on strategy and pricing. They’ll be able to analyze the data out there and help you make an informed decision about what to do and how to do it. You’ll be able to rest easy knowing that the paperwork, contract and disclosures are being carefully looked at by a professional who handles real estate paperwork and know’s what’s required. However, most importantly b/c you chose to work with a Licensed REALTOR®, you’ll be able market your property through the MLS, the most important tool used to sell your home.
There’s got to be a better way
Remember when I asked, “What if there was another way?” Besides all or nothing? Take it or leave it? FSBO or Agent? What if I told you that now there is an alternative option. An option that takes the best of the FSBO and pairs it with the best of using an Agent. A new type of Real Estate Brokerage that allows you to pay for only what you need. Mr Lister Realty is a brokerage that has reimagined how real estate is sold in America, making it cheaper, easier, more convenient, and without the pitfalls of not having an agent to lean on when needed.
Tiered pricing system
This new brokerage offers an easy-to-understand tiered pricing system that encompasses all levels of seller ability and seller desire to take on as much or as little as they’d like. Each tier can be easily upgraded and/or supplemented with a menu of add-on options and services that might be needed throughout the process of selling your home. Sellers don’t have to come meet an agent at their office; they simply go online and everything can be done quickly and securely through the Mr Lister website. Listings are guaranteed to be up within 24 hours and generally are up much faster than that. Mr Lister is the new, high-tech way to list your house for less with as much or more support than any brokerage out there.
Bottom Line: Real estate is no longer a one-size-fits-all business arrangement. Mr Lister takes into account that every individual comes to us with a unique set of skills and needs. Why risk getting into legal hot water by listing on your own OR overpaying an agent for tasks you can do yourself? Mr Lister offers you the best of both worlds. If you’re thinking about listing your home for sale, follow us on social media @MrListerRealty or check out our website at mrlisterrealty.com
