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During a Slow Market, Plenty of Reasons to List Your Home with an Experienced Agent - 2007-06-30 |
A friend called recently asking whether I thought they should sell their home "by owner" or list with a real estate agent. I replied that "it depends" on their circumstances.
In today's world of real estate, a seller has more options than ever. You can list with a traditional real estate agent and pay a typical commission of 6% or 7% of the purchase price, or you can go it alone and try to save the commission. In addition, there are many brokers who offer services somewhere in between, charging different fees for various services you might select.
If you are trying to make the same decision about how to sell your house, here are some topics we talked about. You will likely want to list your home with a traditional real estate agent if:
* If you are in a hurry to sell your home. Let's say your spouse has been transferred to Chicago and he's already there living in a hotel, and the only thing keeping you here is the house, you need the full benefits of a full-time professional to get your home sold as quickly as possible.
Remember that a significant part of the buying market is being transferred into Atlanta, and those buyers work almost exclusively with agents. These are the hottest buyers in town, with a high motivation to purchase quickly and cash in their pockets. And those buyers usually don't view homes listed "by owner."
* If you have never sold a house before, and you simply don't have a comfort level with the transaction and the steps needed to make the sale happen.
Getting a buyer to agree to pay a certain price is just the beginning. And if you've not sold a home before, you can easily miss an important part of the process, putting your entire sale in jeopardy. Effective agents specialize in getting the sale to the closing table.
* If your home situation makes the prospect of showing your home to strangers an uncomfortable task, you will welcome the agent's presence when your home is shown.
Fortunately, reports of crime associated with home sales and open houses are rare, but anytime you open your home to the public, it's smart to anticipate potential problems. You'll want to screen prospective purchasers, and make sure you are not "home alone" when showing your home to interested parties.
* If you are trying to sell in a slow market, like the one we are in now, and even a small advantage in marketing may make the difference between a sale and another sixty days on the market.
For example, agents are members of the local multiple listing services, and that's where other agents go to find prospective matches for their buyers needs. Having your home listed in the MLS is a huge advantage over simply having a "for sale" sign in the yard.
In addition, many MLS listings are automatically placed on national listing websites like realtor.com, where out-of-town buyers are more likely to view them.
* If your time is better spent doing whatever it is you do than answering lots of unqualified callers' questions about your house and how low you might be willing to go.
Some folks are simply so busy with their current job that they really have no business taking on the task of trying to sell their own home. Answering calls and returning inquiries is time consuming, not to mention the obligatory open houses you will want to hold on the weekends. In contrast, agents are set up to handle this type of volume, and have systems in place to convert leads into buyers.
* If your skin is so thin that you will be personally offended when a prospective buyer makes fun of your decorating, then you need someone else to handle the sale. Buyers come from all backgrounds and walks of life, and everybody's got an opinion about your paint colors and your furniture. To make matters worse, they will want to poke their head into every nook and cranny of your house. If you have skeletons in the closet, they will come out.
Part of the selling process is encouraging buyers to visualize themselves living in your home, asking them how they might make changes to better reflect their own likes and dislikes. If that process will offend you, call an agent.
And finally,
* If the idea of negotiating prices back and forth with the purchaser is distasteful to you, you should probably hire an agent.
Most buyers in today's market expect the seller to haggle at least a little bit, and it's not unusual for buyers to make initial offers well below what they are truly willing to pay. Yet our society discourages the process of price negotiation that is so common in other parts of the world.
Agents receive training in how to handle these back and forth negotiations, trying to bring the parties to a meeting of the minds, and getting to a final acceptable price. If the thought of that process makes you queasy, you probably need to list your house with a traditional agent.
NEXT WEEK: When you might want to try selling on your own
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Upcoming Events
BUYING FORECLOSURES IN GEORGIA
NEW for 2008: Bank-Owned Home Bonanza
This seminar has been updated and revised for 2008 to reflect the dramatic changes in the Georgia foreclosure marketplace. We are literally facing a flood of foreclosure properties, and there is profit to be made in each and every one of these homes.
Whether you want to build a portfolio of homes for your retirement or you simply want to find a better home for yourself and your family, this program is for YOU.
LAST CHANCE THIS MONTH!!
• Saturday, Oct. 11th, 2:00 P.M. until 5:00 P.M. - Renaissance Waverly Hotel in the Cobb Galleria
This COMPLETELY NEW SEMINAR examines the roots of today's foreclosure meltdown and explains how you can take advantage of this opportunity in your spare time.
Advance Tickets: $69; bring a friend for an additional $30.
Couples share materials.
Detailed information available under the “Seminars” button
This course approved for 3 hours of Continuing Education credit by the Georgia Real Estate Commission.
The Real Estate Investor's Institute will be held at Emory University on
November 22, 23 & 24, 2008. Make plans to attend.
Detailed information is
available under "Seminars."
This course is approved by the Georgia Real Estate Commission for 12
hours of Continuing Education Credit. Agents must bring license number.
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