Are you a homeowner ready to sell your home? Thinking of being a For Sale By Owner (FSBO) without the assistance of an real estate agent? Lets go through the Pros and Cons on how to sell your own house.
Pros on FSBO
- You save money on commission because you do not have to pay a commission fee.
- You are in control. You get to pick the appointment times, how to negotiate with the buyer, and so on.
- You get to choose the price of your own real estate listing.
Cons on FSBO
- You will probably sell your house for less than what it is actually worth. Without broker representation, it is difficult to price your house right without all the tools and resources that an agent has.
- You may have some venues to promote your house but it will not get the best exposure on the real estate market. Real estate agents have programs, devices, and methods about how to get your home fully exposed and seen while on the market.
- You do not get reliable feedback on how your listing is being represented. Other industry professionals may be nice but not always honest about how your home could improve to get it sold faster.
- You are responsible for all legal forms and you take the risk of financial and legal liability.
- Things can also get very complicated in a real estate transaction, so you need to educate yourself in all areas of selling a house. You will need to know who to contact for legal advise, home repairs, title companies, inspections, etc.
- It will be difficult for you to decide who is an interested and qualified buyer, without prior experience.
- When you do find a qualified buyer, it will be difficult for you to negotiate and easily close the deal since the buyers have a professional representative negotiating for them and you do not.
- Almost all transactions have some hiccup or skew that complicates the deal. This is where a professional agent really becomes helpful because their job is to keep everything smooth and weed out these complications with their real estate knowledge. Selling your own home without an agent can be stressful and be difficult from listing it, all the way through contracting and closing it.
Yes, there does seem to be more Cons then Pros when it comes to selling your home through FSBO. However, do not be discouraged if you still want to do For Sale By Owner. Just try to become as well educated about real estate and transactions as you can and realize you have a lot of work ahead of you. It is highly recommended that you do hire a professional if possible. The process will be less stressful and complicated for you, making it an enjoyable experience to sell your house.
