For sale by owner, often abbreviated as FSBO, is when a homeowner forgoes using a real estate agent when they put their home on the market. There’s often some debate about whether it is more advantageous to use a real estate agent when selling your home. Should you sell you Summit or Park County home FSBO? A lot of research has been done on this topic and there are many good reasons to utilize a professional Realtor. One major one is monetary. This may surprise some homeowners.
Dollars and Cents
According to the National Association of Realtors, the average FSBO ends up selling for 35.5% less than if that seller had an agent working for them. If you talk to most individuals who want to forego using an agent, it is because they want to save on commission costs, which are paid by the seller. What they may not realize is commission costs are typically only at 6% across the board, which is far better than 35-36% off the purchase price when selling FSBO!
Using a Realtor who knows and understands the local market can set you up for success from the beginning. They will negotiate and advocate for you throughout the entire process. But this isn’t the only reason to work with a Realtor.
Additional Considerations
Realtors have a good understanding of the legal contracts, the local market, and the negotiation skills needed to close a sale. If you sell your property on your own you will take all the liability and risk for listing and selling related items which may be deemed as misrepresentation or fraudulent since you are not represented by a Realtor.
Other things to consider when you’re deciding whether to hire a Realtor or list your home FSBO are staging and marketing. One of the greatest things about a knowledgeable local Realtor is their social network! They have an insider’s look at the market and often times have worked with or know of the Realtor on the other side of the transaction. Additionally, they will be able to tell you what improvements or adjustments need to be done to the house before listing. This will maximize your profit margin!
FSBOs tend to miss out on so much because they lack the time and knowledge needed to maximize their profit margin. We also see locally that FSBOs will sit on the market much longer than listings represented by a Realtor. The majority of people that go on the market this way typically end up hiring a Realtor in the end anyway. Leave it to the professionals to sell your home for the highest dollar and within the timeframe you want.
How Can We Help?
We hope that you’ve found this information on selling your home FSBO useful. If you need buying or selling guidance or help in the Summit or Park County area please reach out! We will also continue to provide you with relevant and up-to-date information here on our blog.
If you would like more information on how the Summit and Park County real estate market is doing, you can also sign up for our detailed monthly market report by clicking this link.
Best Regards,
Scott & Anne Lindblom
Broker Associates
[email protected]
[email protected]
Scott: 970-485-4065
Anne: 608-345-2734
www.LindblomGroupe.com