Thoughts on selling a house w/o a realtor?

PhoenixM3

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All,

As the Flu-Manchu continues to develop, conditions in my area prevent a real estate agent from showing a home unless it is under contract. As I see it, the owner of the home (me) is not a licensed agent, and not under the same restriction as a realtor.

We've never sold a home without an agent, but the market conditions for home sales are still pretty hot right now. The allure of not paying upwards of $37K in realtors' fees is pretty attractive too.

Thoughts from people who've actually sold real estate without an agent are welcome.

Thanks!
 

me32

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You could do it. Only issue i see is that you maybe dealing with alot of deals falling through or getting delayed past the dead lines. So if your in no rush and willing to deal with all the issues that may arise go for it. Personally for me i would use a realtor that i have had prior good experience with.
 

nxhappy

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don't cheap out ...get a good realtor. my house sold in 7 days during this virus I feel we dodged a bullet ....

ps LIST RIGHT NOW....
 

FIVEHOE

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lol everyone thinks they can do it themselves until its on the market and they have zero bites for weeks/months. My neighbor put theirs up and its been sitting 2+ months. Every other house in my neighborhood has gone pending within 30 days (even during the pandemic). I only see their listing on zillow, haven't seen it on any other listing site, which I imagine from that alone you're losing so many potential buyers.

Pony up the money and have no regerts.
 

Blk04L

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There's a chance a realtor might miss your listing due to their MLS not showing by owner sales, or so I'm told.

Long story short, a month into trying to sell my home I saw our same model down the street go up on Zillow for 14 k less than our price, selling by owner. They had the bigger lot, and imo nicer interior designs. So I thought we were screwed if we wanted to get out asap.

Two weeks later we get a showing, people love our house, and we found out they didn't stop at the other house*. The next day they gave us an offer, we counter and agreed to a deal in two days.

The other house eventually got a realtor and 6 months later sold for 33k under our selling price. Maybe they got desperate and had to move.

*Our realtor said that house wasn't showing up on MLS listings and the other realtor said he showed our house and two different models in the neighborhood.
 

Lambeau

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I paid to get our house inspected and FSBO'd. Made a sign, put it in the front yard. Within 3 weeks it was sold. Turns out the buyer saw our sign and told the Realtor they were using. They paid for all the paperwork.

Good luck.
 

Rb0891

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We did it with a limited listing. Was like $700 and they do very limited services, but they get it on the MLS. The buyer had a realtor so we compensated the standard amount and she was pretty helpful as well to close the deal. Just have to realize she is representing the other side when it comes to some of the details. I am not sure all states allow this type of limited listing.
 

nxhappy

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the realtors know the pricing, and they won't BS you with fake numbers. Do you want to sell within weeks or do you want to roll the dice ?? I can tell you during this shit storm virus a realtor WILL be needed to sell.
 

tistan

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Realtors are overpaid and I think they’re completely outdated but I would be hesitant to sell on my own unless I was absolutely sure I could do without them.


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I agree. With the average price of homes hitting 4-500k in most areas and average closing time of 30 days or less, why is a realtor getting 6% for every sale? On a half million dollar home, that is $1k a day for their services. On top of that every time I buy a house, they don't think I should ask for closing cost. Every time I sell a house they think I need to concede closing cost. In a hot market like we had, I don't see the value in a realtor.

Redfin isn't in all areas yet, but I will probably use them next time I sell a house.
 

13COBRA

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If your house is in the middle to low size value of the area, you can sell it. If it's on the high side, hire a realtor and negotiate their rate.
 

coposrv

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I agree. With the average price of homes hitting 4-500k in most areas and average closing time of 30 days or less, why is a realtor getting 6% for every sale? On a half million dollar home, that is $1k a day for their services. On top of that every time I buy a house, they don't think I should ask for closing cost. Every time I sell a house they think I need to concede closing cost. In a hot market like we had, I don't see the value in a realtor.

Redfin isn't in all areas yet, but I will probably use them next time I sell a house.

I get annoyed with a realtor who makes as much as I do. A 600k new spec build I put in 20/25 grand of my own money to see a profit of 5k and some ass clown opens the door with no skin in the game and collects a check.


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Outlaw99

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Real Estate here is thriving. March Alone got 1.3M under contract and another $850K in the pipeline.

As a realtor, of course I am going to advise you to have representation. Is it possible to do it without one? Sure if you know what your doing. So many times I have talked with people about their horror stories and ask me if they have any legal recourse...the answer is no. You can't unring a bell.

Do you know what your states laws are regarding what you are responsible for? There is so much involved and so many moving parts.

Would rather see you represented than add to my disaster stories.

Sent from my S20 Plus
 
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Outlaw99

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This past september, a young couple I go to church with, pulled me aside and asked me for advice. They decided to buy a house unrepresented. They wanted to take the cheapest route possible to buy a house. Who doesnt right? About 90 days after closing, they received certified mail that stated a lien had been placed against their property for roughly $62,000. The sellers of the home told them they wouldnt need title insurance at closing. Title insurance was $112.00. The sellers of the home, never disclosed the lien that was headed their way and after consulting with an attorney, they have 0 legal options and are stuck with the lien. This was a 100% preventable situation. Sure, they can go to court and sue the former owners. Who knows how much that will cost.

You can also go to court and represent yourself, but would you? shit, most of you hire an atty to handle speeding tickets.

OP, google selling on your own and make sure after days of research that is something you want to juggle.

when it goes bad, and chances are something will come up that will be a nightmare for you, you can just argue that guys on SVTP said it would be different.
 

KingBlack

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I get annoyed with a realtor who makes as much as I do. A 600k new spec build I put in 20/25 grand of my own money to see a profit of 5k and some ass clown opens the door with no skin in the game and collects a check.


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And how is that the realtors fault? This honestly sounds like a personal issue based on nothing. You have every right to stop what you're doing and become a realtor why don't you do that instead of hating someone for following the rules?
 

wowsers

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IMHO with a little bit of research you are going to be more informed about your home’s value than most realtors.

We sold our house last May and it was in a nice neighborhood surrounded by the ghetto. I met with 4 realtors who swore up and down that our home was worth 20k less than we wanted to list it for (We thought ~210k). 2 of them wouldn’t even consider trying to list it for what we wanted. They would use comparables that we’re on the shitty side of town. I finally convinced one to list it for 200k...it sold for 208k in less than a week.

Houses are like cars. If yours stands out it will sell. Now, the legal stuff might be a headache, but the realtor fee is not worth it.


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jrandy

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This past september, a young couple I go to church with, pulled me aside and asked me for advice. They decided to buy a house unrepresented. They wanted to take the cheapest route possible to buy a house. Who doesnt right? About 90 days after closing, they received certified mail that stated a lien had been placed against their property for roughly $62,000. The sellers of the home told them they wouldnt need title insurance at closing. Title insurance was $112.00. The sellers of the home, never disclosed the lien that was headed their way and after consulting with an attorney, they have 0 legal options and are stuck with the lien. This was a 100% preventable situation. Sure, they can go to court and sue the former owners. Who knows how much that will cost.

You can also go to court and represent yourself, but would you? shit, most of you hire an atty to handle speeding tickets.

OP, google selling on your own and make sure after days of research that is something you want to juggle.

when it goes bad, and chances are something will come up that will be a nightmare for you, you can just argue that guys on SVTP said it would be different.

This right here is what realtors are still needed for. Buying and selling can be easy. However, buying and selling can get messy real quick with all the loopholes and regulations. Not to mention the potential for someone trying to mislead or deceiving you.

While I do agree that realtor's fees can be way too high (especially in the Bay Area with $1m homes as a norm), I think of realtors like insurance. A good realtor can pay for themselves while a bad one will just sit back and collect a check.
 

2000GTSTANG

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Find a flat fee broker that will list your house on the MLS for a fraction of the cost. Find a RE attorney to represent you and read through paperwork if need be and agree to pay the buyers agent their 3% or only offer 2-2.5% if you want to be really cheap.

Agreed that realtors are an outdated thing now. They do have a benefit in that they will handle all the paperwork and appointments needed to sell a house, but what they get paid to do so is outrageous IMO. Especially when pretty much all the forms are fill in the blanks.

I love when I see realtors saying I sold this house in two days for above market value. All you did was put in an offer that the other side accepted. Big whoop.
 

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