Putting your house up as FSBO (For Sale by Owner) may seem like an attractive option for a number of reasons, such as having full control over every part of the selling process and saving money on the commission you normally have to pay an agent at closing time. However, these paltry benefits pale in comparison to the potential risks that come along with venturing into the real estate market on your own. Here are 5 reasons that make selling by owner a terrible idea regardless of the circumstances.
You Can’t Weed Out Window Shoppers
As your realtor, we are able to verify your buyer’s pre-approval status to make sure that they are seriously interested in the house, and actually able to pay for it at closing time. This is probably something that you are unable to do on your own. This means that you’ll have dozens of unqualified buyers that monopolize your time just for the fun of it. Even worse, you could have a buyer that’s all set to close and the bank denies their loan at the final stage. Having pre-approved buyers minimizes that risk, allowing you to close on the sale of your home successfully.
You’re More Vulnerable to Slick Agents
No matter how you look at it, real estate is a competitive business. Unless you have some serious real-estate knowledge on your own, a realtor with any decent negotiation experience will be able to chip you down to a fraction of your asking price regardless of how good of a negotiator you think you are.
You’re More Vulnerable to Criminals
Sadly, powerful realtors aren’t the worst thing that can happen to you by a long shot. There are plenty of criminals in the world who see your FSBO status as an open invitation to help themselves. A realtor can provide an additional layer of protection such as having the personal information of visitors on file or simply being an extra set of eyes to catch anything strange.
Statistics Show You’ll Close for Less
The biggest downside of selling your home on your own is that statistically you are very likely to sell your home for 15% less than you could have if you had used a realtor. In addition, you will lose much more time and expend much more effort trying to sell the house without any help.
Agents Don’t Cost a Lot
Overall, real estate agents don’t cost much at all. The typical charge is 5-7% of the total price of the house when it is sold. This means that our fees come out of your home, not your pocket at any point.
There’s really no good reason not to have a realtor, call us today to help you get started on the sale of your home!