It may occur to you, as a seller, that the best thing to do during these tough, economic times is to forgo the services of a realtor in exchange for selling your North Dallas home FSBO. After all, with your home selling for less it only makes sense to save money and sell it yourself, right?

Well, not so fast.

Let me preface this by first saying that some people do successfully sell their North Dallas homes FSBO but, unfortunately, this is not the norm. Most individuals, particularly in today’s market, are better off using the services of a qualified real estate agent, and here’s why:

• Only licensed real estate agents and brokers can list their home in the MLS. The multiple list service, also known as the MLS, is the industry’s centerpiece when it comes to homes for sale. If you’re selling your home FSBO, you will be left to advertise your home through other sources, most of which simply aren’t seen by home buyers.

The bottom line is that more than 90 percent of buyers who search for a home are going directly to the MLS to do it. And if your home isn’t on that list, the vast majority of home buyers will simply be unaware that you are selling your home.

• Most real estate agents will not show a FSBO home because they don’t receive a percentage of the commission. Because there is no listing agent for a FSBO home, there is no commission from which to draw from for a buyer’s agent. Some FSBO sellers may offer the buyer’s agent a commission, but the long and short of it is that most real estate agents simply don’t want to be bothered going through a transaction when there is a potentially uneducated seller calling the shots.
• Many buyers are hesitant to look at FSBO homes. Because the homeowner acts as the listing agent, he or she will likely be present during a showing. Many buyers simply feel uneasy when touring a home with the homeowner present. Buyers may feel quite uncomfortable really looking at a home under the watchful eye of the homeowner, which likely means that the buyer will not take the time to really view the home and appreciate its features.

Tags: fsbo, Home Sellers

This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 17th, 2009 at 10:30 am and is filed under Seller Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.