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I wouldnt waste my time selling with out an agent. In this market, you have basically no chance of selling. Even homes listed by agents are only selling if they are well below the competition in price.
And you will have to pay a buyer's agent fee either way. 99% of QUALIFIED
Buyers are represtented by an agent.
Also You will usually sell for much less when you don't have an agent. The buyers agent will take advantage of the fact that you don't have one, and beat you at the negotiating table.
Having a listing agent pays for itself...
I'm always perplexed at this: "...You will usually sell for much less when you don't have an agent." How is it in the best interest of the agent to get the owner more for his house? Isn't the realtor's interest to just make the deal happen?
Quote:
Originally Posted by clark33
I wouldnt waste my time selling with out an agent. In this market, you have basically no chance of selling. Even homes listed by agents are only selling if they are well below the competition in price.
And you will have to pay a buyer's agent fee either way. 99% of QUALIFIED
Buyers are represtented by an agent.
Also You will usually sell for much less when you don't have an agent. The buyers agent will take advantage of the fact that you don't have one, and beat you at the negotiating table.
Having a listing agent pays for itself...
Essentially, you do a for sale by owner, but you pay a fee to have it listed in the MLS. I think some companies also send you all of the listing contracts/paperwork, as well as a lockbox, and signage. Anyone do this? Did it work out for you? Is there a specific company you used? What was your experience with them?
I am a licenced realtor, but not working with a Broker. I have been out of the business for awhile, although still legally licensed, but I don't want to get back into it--just want to sell my condo, and do not want to hire a listing agent.
TIA!
As a licensed agent you have the knowledge to do well in selling your own home. Many non licensees don't have that knowledge. Some do.
There are many people who will look for FSBO properties. In my experience, most of them start out being over priced. Many people who do make offers on FSBO homes are experienced at buying and they are going to want to buy the house below market value, and then they are going to go after another 6% reduction. They feel the FSBO is an easy mark because they are not represented by a professional. These type buyers are very astute and very knowledgeable.
The buyers reason that the seller has saved around 6% by doing it themselves and they feel that amount should be passed along to the buyer.
On another one of these forums there is an ex-real estate agent turned investor who only buys FSBO homes. He picks out one and then backs off until he knows the home isn't going to sell and feels the seller is getting close to listing it. Now he goes in and makes a low offer. After several rounds of negotiation, and getting close, he will then go after 5 or 6% more reduction by stating that this amount of savings should be passed on to the buyer.
So, unfortunately, many people who sell on their own don't realize in advance that they're going to end up giving that commission away to a savvy buyer who is going to demand and get it. And all the time the seller has done all of the work without representation.
Before I became a realtor I had sold several homes on my own, simply because I enjoyed doing all of that type work. That was a long time ago when contracts were a very simple one page agreement and our society wasn't such a litigous society. So I have both emphathy and respect for anyone trying to go it on their own.
With the complexities of the Arizona 9 page contract and standard addendums, where there is a pitfall waiting to get the buyer, seller, and/or agent in trouble with each paragraph, and being acutely aware of all these land mines, I would never attempt to sell a home on my own today.
However, that's because I know what I know now. If I weren't a professional real estate agent, then I probably wouldn't know what I know now.
Everytime I start to venture into something new, I'm reminded of this very accurate saying: "you don't know what you don't know".
So I wish every one attempting to sell on their own the best of success,
I've read this sort of advice and similar in newspapers and elsewhere and I think it's great information. However, although this analogy isn't perfect one wouldn't take car buying advice from a car salesman. Right? With all due respect I can't see how a seller would give in to a buyer's suggestion that the 6% is somehow due to them. If I were a seller my net gain from a real estate transaction is irrelevant to a buyer. We either agree on a selling price based on market conditions or we don't. What I pay people to cut my lawn is of no business to the buyer.
I also don't feel there's "representation" to a seller as you've mentioned below. This is not like an attorney-client relationship - at least not in California. The Realtors best interest is to make the deal happen. The first property I sold in California was way below the asking price and market value (in my opinion) and I was heavily lobbied by my Realtor to take the offer. And it makes complete sense too - his difference in commission was negligible and it would be a risk for him to wait 1 or 2 or 3 more weeks to hopefully make a deal.
You're absolutely right about not knowing what you don't know. Either way, FSBO or with a realtor, the seller must know the market conditions and negotiation strategies or he will be yielding either to his own agent or the buyer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Captain Bill
As a licensed agent you have the knowledge to do well in selling your own home. Many non licensees don't have that knowledge. Some do.
There are many people who will look for FSBO properties. In my experience, most of them start out being over priced. Many people who do make offers on FSBO homes are experienced at buying and they are going to want to buy the house below market value, and then they are going to go after another 6% reduction. They feel the FSBO is an easy mark because they are not represented by a professional. These type buyers are very astute and very knowledgeable.
The buyers reason that the seller has saved around 6% by doing it themselves and they feel that amount should be passed along to the buyer.
On another one of these forums there is an ex-real estate agent turned investor who only buys FSBO homes. He picks out one and then backs off until he knows the home isn't going to sell and feels the seller is getting close to listing it. Now he goes in and makes a low offer. After several rounds of negotiation, and getting close, he will then go after 5 or 6% more reduction by stating that this amount of savings should be passed on to the buyer.
So, unfortunately, many people who sell on their own don't realize in advance that they're going to end up giving that commission away to a savvy buyer who is going to demand and get it. And all the time the seller has done all of the work without representation.
Before I became a realtor I had sold several homes on my own, simply because I enjoyed doing all of that type work. That was a long time ago when contracts were a very simple one page agreement and our society wasn't such a litigous society. So I have both emphathy and respect for anyone trying to go it on their own.
With the complexities of the Arizona 9 page contract and standard addendums, where there is a pitfall waiting to get the buyer, seller, and/or agent in trouble with each paragraph, and being acutely aware of all these land mines, I would never attempt to sell a home on my own today.
However, that's because I know what I know now. If I weren't a professional real estate agent, then I probably wouldn't know what I know now.
Everytime I start to venture into something new, I'm reminded of this very accurate saying: "you don't know what you don't know".
So I wish every one attempting to sell on their own the best of success,
Well said! In my opinion using a realtor to purchase makes sense, but for
selling not so. The realtor's utility is very different than yours. Putting some
numbers to your argument:
If you sell your property for $300K the commission to agents is $18K
and you get $282K.
If you seel your property for $320K the commission to agents is $19.2K
and you get $300K.
But in the long run, a smart/successful realtor will take the lower sales price and
move onto a new property and commission to sell rather than waiting
and getting just an extra $600 or so dollars each.
No doubt realtors will argue with this analysis, but the figures speak volume.
Quote:
Originally Posted by moovin
I've read this sort of advice and similar in newspapers and elsewhere and I think it's great information. However, although this analogy isn't perfect one wouldn't take car buying advice from a car salesman. Right? With all due respect I can't see how a seller would give in to a buyer's suggestion that the 6% is somehow due to them. If I were a seller my net gain from a real estate transaction is irrelevant to a buyer. We either agree on a selling price brased on market conditions or we don't. What I pay people to cut my lawn is of no business to the buyer.
I also don't feel there's "representation" to a seller as you've mentioned below. This is not like an attorney-client relationship - at least not in California. The Realtors best interest is to make the deal happen. The first property I sold in California was way below the asking price and market value (in my opinion) and I was heavily lobbied by my Realtor to take the offer. And it makes complete sense too - his difference in commission was negligible and it would be a risk for him to wait 1 or 2 or 3 more weeks to hopefully make a deal.
You're absolutely right about not knowing what you don't know. Either way, FSBO or with a realtor, the seller must know the market conditions and negotiation strategies or he will be yielding either to his own agent or the buyer.
Well said! In my opinion using a realtor to purchase makes sense, but for
selling not so. The realtor's utility is very different than yours. Putting some
numbers to your argument:
If you sell your property for $300K the commission to agents is $18K
and you get $282K.
If you seel your property for $320K the commission to agents is $19.2K
and you get $300K.
But in the long run, a smart/successful realtor will take the lower sales price and
move onto a new property and commission to sell rather than waiting
and getting just an extra $600 or so dollars each.
No doubt realtors will argue with this analysis, but the figures speak volume.
inpd, Your numbers are correct.
However, the question is, would you be able to get the $320, and if you could, then why would you sell for $300?
The agents job is to get the seller the most money in the minimum amount of time, and that can be translated into getting you the "market price" in the "average days on market" of homes that sell in your area. But the agent can only play with the hand he's dealt. He has four cards, your home, your decisions, the market condition, and the buyers offers.
It is you, the seller who makes the ultimate decision to sell or to not sell.
In your example, it seems that you're stating that the agent makes the decision to accept an offer, when that is not the case.
When the home is first listed, you and the agent should have arrived at, and agreed on, the market price. If the agent showed you that the value was $300 and you insisted on $320, which is the case many times, the agent may have accepted the listing hoping that he was in error.
But after 20 to 30 days (when your home will have the most traffic) the agent is obligated to tell you again that the home is over priced and in order to help you sell it, should produce comps to again show you the current value.
It's the agent's job to know the market value of homes in your area and advise you of that value. If fact it is a serious violation of the Realtor Code of Ethics to misrepresent the value of a property to anyone.
If your realtor is telling you, and confirming by the comps, and by the offers, or lack of offers you're getting, that the value is $300 then he/she is doing their job. But the final decison to sell is up to you the seller, and that decision should be based on knowledge of the market in your immediate area.
Your agent should be negotiating with any buyers agent who presents an offer to get that agent to produce comps to substantiate the offer, and to show that agent why your property is priced right. If it is priced high, then your agent is holding a weak negotiating hand.
I always place the best interest of my clients above all else. Someone recently called me to list their home, whose wife had passed away a month ago. His daughters wanted him to move to a different state close to them. He didn't want to move but was trying to appease his daughters.
I told him that I did not want to sell his house and have him later decide he made the wrong decision, and I advised him to take his time before making such a decision. He agreed to wait 6 months and do some planning in the interim. He may eventually list with someone else, but at least I have the satisfaction of knowing that I did the right thing.
On a different matter, I had a listing that was over priced and I told my client that it would never sell at that price. She insisted on listing it at $449 when the comps showed $415. She did get the property into top showing condition so I agreed, and gave it my best marketing effort.
After 35 days I received one offer of $400, and my seller called it a low ball offer. I reminded her and showed her new comps that the market price was $415, and the offer was a serious offer in the ball park.
The seller balked, wanted to cancel the listing and rent the home for 5 years (after having spent $15k to remodel).
So I showed her on paper how she would be financially ahead if she sold today and put the money in a cd for 5 years rather than renting and selling in 5, with the resultant landlord headaches for an absentee landlord.
I also advisised her that if she did sell the home for $449 that it would have to appraise for that amount, or the sale would fall through. She decided to get an appraisal before making a decision, and it came in at $317.
I was not concerned with my commission. I was very concerned that my buyer was making a very bad mistake, and it was my fiduciary duty to be perfectly honest and loyal to her and disclose all the facts to her. She finally agreed to negoatiate and the house was sold for $315.
The house had been vacant for 8 months before I took the listing over, and the owner lives out of state. By having her finally understand that she was making a mistake in the pricing, and that it was an economical mistake thinking about renting the home for 5 years, she is now able to get this property behind her and move on with her retired life in another state.
In my experience it is always best to put my clients interest first. Even if it costs me a current commission. Because in the long run it will come back to me in referrals from very satisfied clients, and future business.
Thanks Dmensha, but I left California for Arizona and don't want to look back. Come on over to AZ and I'll consider your offer.
Bill
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