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Old 06-07-2011, 07:09 PM
 
412 posts, read 912,724 times
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I was "thinking about" selling my home later this year or next year and a real estate agent sent letters to people in the area who had homes of a certain size range and layout. I decided to call her and she says she's interested in my home and wants to come over to see the interior before deciding on making an offer. It would be contingent on the sale of her existing home. She says she will price her home very aggressively, so it should sell very quickly.

Selling to the realtor should be cheaper allowing me to net more of the proceeds since there will be no commissions involved. Since the buyer would be a realtor with experience with the sales paperwork, it would be easier than a typical FSBO, but I wonder about the realtor drafting a one sided contract.
Assuming she makes an offer I'm willing to accept, I'm wondering what aspects of selling to a realtor I should be wary of and what I should look out for in the paperwork.
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Old 06-07-2011, 07:28 PM
 
Location: Cary, NC
43,046 posts, read 76,570,629 times
Reputation: 45353
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tires View Post
I was "thinking about" selling my home later this year or next year and a real estate agent sent letters to people in the area who had homes of a certain size range and layout. I decided to call her and she says she's interested in my home and wants to come over to see the interior before deciding on making an offer. It would be contingent on the sale of her existing home. She says she will price her home very aggressively, so it should sell very quickly.

Selling to the realtor should be cheaper allowing me to net more of the proceeds since there will be no commissions involved. Since the buyer would be a realtor with experience with the sales paperwork, it would be easier than a typical FSBO, but I wonder about the realtor drafting a one sided contract.
Assuming she makes an offer I'm willing to accept, I'm wondering what aspects of selling to a realtor I should be wary of and what I should look out for in the paperwork.
Level the playing field.
Either engage an agent to represent you, or an attorney to advise you.
Or both.
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Old 06-07-2011, 07:30 PM
 
Location: The Triad
34,091 posts, read 82,498,922 times
Reputation: 43648
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tires View Post
Assuming she makes an offer I'm willing to accept, I'm wondering what aspects of selling to a realtor I should be wary of and what I should look out for in the paperwork.
Let YOUR attorney worry about the paperwork.

Until you see an offer IN WRITING (which you scurry on down to his office with upon receipt) all you have is a conversation about the idea of maybe selling depending on this, that and the other.

as to that conversation... let them do most of it.
nods, hmmm, oh? and similar monosyllabic's will be your best friend
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Old 06-07-2011, 07:56 PM
 
4,567 posts, read 10,598,746 times
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Quote:
Selling to the realtor should be cheaper allowing me to net more of the proceeds since there will be no commissions involved.
Saving $2,000 in commission but loosing $25,000 because you priced it too low. Ouch. If the realtor is drooling over your property, its probably priced way too low. Invite another real estate agent from another company to give you a free estimate of what the property is worth.

If the realtor does have a offer, you can always hire a local real estate lawyer to protect you before you sign the paperwork. Shouldn't cost much.
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Old 06-07-2011, 08:26 PM
 
412 posts, read 912,724 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 399083453 View Post
Saving $2,000 in commission but loosing $25,000 because you priced it too low. Ouch. If the realtor is drooling over your property, its probably priced way too low. Invite another real estate agent from another company to give you a free estimate of what the property is worth.

If the realtor does have a offer, you can always hire a local real estate lawyer to protect you before you sign the paperwork. Shouldn't cost much.
There is no pricing dollar amounts talked about. The real estate agent just wants a house similar to mine in this neighborhood and will talk about price after seeing the interior.
I have been following home listings in the neighborhood for the last several months while I debated on whether I should sell and move or refinance at a lower rate and just stay. So, I have seen what similar homes in the neighborhood have been listed for and what they have sold for and I will be able to recognize an offer that is too low based on recent comps.
I've walked by the outsides and seen pics of the interiors of recent comps, so if she points to the lowest comps and tries to make a similar offer, I will know that the lower priced homes were in bad condition inside and out needing 10's of thousands of dollars of rehabbing to really be comparable.
Since I will also be flexible about waiting for her existing home to sell and timing the closing so it will be convenient for her to move directly from house to house, I will also expect a money premium for that.
I can enroll in a group discount attorney service through my employer, but if I signed up tomorrow, it wouldn't take effect until July 1. I would have to pay an attorney full price unless I delayed the process until after that date.
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Old 06-07-2011, 08:45 PM
 
Location: The Triad
34,091 posts, read 82,498,922 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tires View Post
I would have to pay an attorney full price unless I delayed the process until after that date.
Make a call or three to line up an attorney who will be available when (if) she comes through with a contract.
You really don't want to wait until then to start looking for one.

And "full price" shouldn't be all that much anyway.
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Old 06-07-2011, 08:58 PM
 
412 posts, read 912,724 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrRational View Post
Make a call or three to line up an attorney who will be available when (if) she comes through with a contract.
You really don't want to wait until then to start looking for one.

And "full price" shouldn't be all that much anyway.
So, about $200-350 per hour for a a hour or two for a simple sale transaction? I assume it is not in any way related or based to the sales price.
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Old 06-07-2011, 09:14 PM
 
Location: The Triad
34,091 posts, read 82,498,922 times
Reputation: 43648
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tires View Post
So, about $200-350 per hour for a a hour or two for a simple sale transaction? I assume it is not in any way related or based to the sales price.
I had my RE attorney handle my recent purchase closing.
In addition to about twenty other things that he did related to this transaction his modest fee included reviewing the standard NC agent contract boilerplate that all the T's and I's were done in my best interest and suggesting a few particular things be done a certain way before I signed it... all of that was about $500.

Money well spent.
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Old 06-07-2011, 09:26 PM
 
Location: NJ
17,574 posts, read 45,989,151 times
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I have used an attorney twice recently for purchases. It was never more than $500. And that covered quite a bit of work.

Don't cheap out on this. You will most likely come to regret it if you do.
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Old 06-07-2011, 11:36 PM
 
Location: Columbia, SC
10,901 posts, read 21,858,378 times
Reputation: 10524
An appraisal and attorney could do the trick here, or you could find an agent willing to work for a small flat rate to price and negotiate for you since you already have a buyer. Either could be a fine solution.
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