You see "For Sale By Owner" signs popping everwhere and there is a barage of new property selling services that allow you to market your home on realtor.ca and you think to yourself... "I can do this, I can sell my own house and save me all the money I otherwise would have spent in Realtor commission fees." Here are a few things you should consider before venturing down the very complicated path of selling your own home.
1. The exposure your home will receive is extremely limited. There is much more to selling a home than simply posting it on realtor.ca. You are limiting your exposure to potential buyers and their agents which will result in it taking longer to sell your home which in turn will result in lower offers.
2. Negotiating is not a fun experience for most people. Buyers find it extremely awkward to sit accross the table from a Seller and tell them what they think their house is worth. They will either avoid for-sale-by-owner properties all together or the savvy home buyer will hire they're own Buyer Agent who is going to negotiate on thier behalf. The first thing the Buyer Agent is going to do is negotiate a commission, then they are going to advise their Buyer client to deduct 5% off the asking price before even contemplating putting in an offer. How much have you saved yourself now?
3. The legalities of the contract are complicated. It is one thing to get an offer, but will that offer be able to stand up to the scrutiny of lawyers and will the deal actually close? If you use a lawyer to review all offers before making them firm, you will pay substantial legal fees for this service.
4. The inconvenience of trying to sell your own home is mind boggling. You have to be home for all appointments and if your home is not easily accessible for viewings you stand a very good chance of losing a potential Buyer. As if the inconvenience is not bad enough, you also have to concern yourself with safety, are you really comfortable opening your door to complete strangers who are not accompanied by a prefoessional Realtor to peruse through your home and your belongings?
1. The exposure your home will receive is extremely limited. There is much more to selling a home than simply posting it on realtor.ca. You are limiting your exposure to potential buyers and their agents which will result in it taking longer to sell your home which in turn will result in lower offers.
2. Negotiating is not a fun experience for most people. Buyers find it extremely awkward to sit accross the table from a Seller and tell them what they think their house is worth. They will either avoid for-sale-by-owner properties all together or the savvy home buyer will hire they're own Buyer Agent who is going to negotiate on thier behalf. The first thing the Buyer Agent is going to do is negotiate a commission, then they are going to advise their Buyer client to deduct 5% off the asking price before even contemplating putting in an offer. How much have you saved yourself now?
3. The legalities of the contract are complicated. It is one thing to get an offer, but will that offer be able to stand up to the scrutiny of lawyers and will the deal actually close? If you use a lawyer to review all offers before making them firm, you will pay substantial legal fees for this service.
4. The inconvenience of trying to sell your own home is mind boggling. You have to be home for all appointments and if your home is not easily accessible for viewings you stand a very good chance of losing a potential Buyer. As if the inconvenience is not bad enough, you also have to concern yourself with safety, are you really comfortable opening your door to complete strangers who are not accompanied by a prefoessional Realtor to peruse through your home and your belongings?
If that's not enough...let's do the math:
| For-Sale-By-Owner Asking Price: $300,000.00 Price Reduction #1: - $10,000.00 Price Reduction #2: - $10,000.00 Offer: $260,000.00 Agent Commission: - $6,500.00 Legal Fees: - $3,000.00 TOTAL: $250,500.00 | Using a Realtor Asking Price: $280,000.00 Marketing: FREE! Price Reductions: NONE! Offer: $275,000.00 Commission: - $13,750.00 Legal Fees: -$900.00 TOTAL: $260,350.00 |
As always... thanks for reading.
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