Selling Your Home Yourself? Think Again

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When you consider all the information about almost any subject available for all to see on the internet, you may begin to think that you don't need professionals at all. You can diagnose your own medical issues, fix your own appliances and sell your home yourself. While it is technically possible to do all those things, it is not advisable. There is a good reason professionals exist, and you might only figure that out the hard way if you persist in carrying that do-it-yourself idea a bit too far. If you are trying to sell your home, read on to learn the many reasons why you need the expertise of an real estate agent on your side.

A Polished Internet Presence

Back in the day, you could plant a sign in your front lawn, place an ad in the newspaper and wait for people to come knocking at your door. Selling a home that way was never very successful, but nowadays trying to do so would be waste of time. Buyers expect to find homes online; that is where they turn first and that is where your marketing focus should be. One look at a few slick and professionally-done real estate sites should tell you that replicating that yourself is nearly impossible. A short description and some blurry photos on Craigslist cannot compare with the gorgeous photography and wealth of information offered by these sites. With 92% of buyers shopping for their homes online, you cannot just ignore that facet of marketing your home, and a professional real estate agent can help you get that valuable exposure.

It Could Cost You More to Sell it Yourself

If you asked seller what the main motivator for attempting to sell it themselves are, you will likely hear about how much they are saving on real estate commissions. The commission is a percentage amount deducted from the profit on the home that goes to pay the agent (and their broker, in most cases). The amount of the percentage is entirely negotiable, but you will find out quickly that you get what you pay for. Studies have shown that homes sold by a real estate agent vs. homes sold by owners garner higher selling prices on average. As the National Association of Realtors found, "the typical FSBO home sold for $185,000 compared to $240,000 for agent-assisted home sales."

Showing a Home is Only Part of the Process

For those about to embark on this venture, take some time to consider the other, less fun aspects of being a seller and agent at the same time. Are you really willing to be home at all hours and every day for that interested buyer to look at your home? Having an agent can mean giving them access to your home for showing, whether you are there or not. Additionally, there is a lot more to do when selling than just pointing out the finer points of your new kitchen cabinets. For example:

1. Home Inspections: There is no such thing as a perfect home, no matter how well taken care of yours is. When an issue arises with the home inspection, and it probably will, a real estate knows how to settle the buyer and help get negotiations to address the issues back on track.
2. Property Appraisals: Lenders will require that the home appraise at a particular amount, depending on the loan amount. An agent knows their way around appraisals and can smooth over any issues by having another appraisal done or working with the buyers and lenders.

6 January 2018