Top reasons why you should not sell your home as “for sale by the owner”, mainly because some property owners are opting to sell their homes on their own. However, most homeowners do not have either knowledge about the current market or the time to learn about their current market. As soon as you make your decision to sell your home, it is absolutely necessary to sit with an experienced real estate agent and let them help you to tackle the difficult situations you are going to face, rather than listing “For Sale by Owner” (FSBO).
Some people think that they are going to save money by choosing the FSBO path. Others assume they’re smart enough to not need any sort of professional help to sell the home. But, being smart doesn’t change the need for dozens upon dozens of hours spent marketing, showing, and following the contract process of selling a home.
According to a survey by the National Association of Realtors, the percentage of successful FSBO home sales is less than 10 percent. The majority of FSBO homes fail to sell for the following reasons:
Massive numbers of people and interactions necessary to sell the home
People deciding to list their property FSBO need to intermix with a huge number of people, either from contacting marketing companies, showing the home to buyers themselves, explaining the state of the home to the buyer’s real estate agent, talking to title companies, arranging the home inspection and then negotiating with the buyer on any results of the home inspection, various other contingencies, and home tests, gathering mortgage information, and more. Most homeowners do not have the networks available to them to properly market their homes that real estate agents have.
The difficulty of screening buyers:
While most owners know to look for a pre-approval letter or proof of funds, many FSBO homes face offers beyond conventional mortgages. If someone offered you a land contract, would you understand the interest rate, what money down you’d need, what credit score and credit history would be acceptable to you to enter a contract, or how many years you want the contract to be?
Inability to negotiate smoothly and efficiently:
Real estate agents are trained, licensed, and experienced in handling negotiations. While you may know what you want to get for your home, a trained agent is the best route to be able to achieve your goal. They are knowledgeable of common concessions and compromises that are approachable and likely to make the buyer and you happy.
Failure to understand the contract and procedures:
Once again, the extensive training and experience licensed agents have are very important in the selling process. Knowing how many days you have from the date of the signed contract until the home inspection must be done is important, as is knowing who’s responsible for having inspections done. Miss the deadline and your contract could be canceled. For Sale by Owner, properties lose out on chances for marketing, negotiation, finding the right buyers, and having a smoother closing process. Using a licensed agent greatly increases a home’s ability to sell for a price that makes the homeowner happy.
Get a FREE Market Analysis
Get more tips about Selling a home or Buying a home on our real estate blog
Call me today and have my teamwork for you. You will be thankful that you did! EdConstable.com Team Your Realtor for LIFE
Do you want your home selling experience to be made easy?
Ed Constable is a top Realtor in Fenton, MI, and surrounding areas!
Ed Constable works hard to provide the best experience he can for buyers and sellers, simply because his goal is to be reliable, persistent, and passionate in all areas of life.