For Sale By Owner: Good Idea?

It’s the age-old question: why sell my home through a real estate broker when I can sell it myself and save the money? If you’ve ever found yourself in this mindset, let’s talk about the pro’s and con’s to selling your home as a “FSBO” (For Sale By Owner).

There are many reasons why someone would choose to sell their property on their own:

• “I want to save the commission on it.”
• “I want to have more control over my listing.”
• “I don’t like dealing with real estate agents.”

And to these points, maybe these are the most important factors to you in deciding how to sell your property; that is for you to decide. But before you make a final decision, consider these facts going forward:

• Across the nation, only 7% of all home sales are sold by owner.
• On average, a FSBO home is sold for 18.3% less than one sold by a licensed agent.
• 57% of all FSBO sales are sold to a friend, relative, or neighbor.

When bringing a Realtor to the table, you gain:

• Knowledge and experience of Federal and state laws that could impact your sale.
• Access to posting your home on the local Multiple Listing Service, so all other real estate agents can see your home and market to their clients.
• Marketing expertise to make sure your home is seen by as many brokers as possible.
  • Depending on the market, your property can be seen as many as 20,000 times by potential buyers among several dozen websites and magazines.
• Strategic pricing assistance to help ensure you are making the most for your property.

Real Life Scenario

Back in March 2022, I was given a call by some clients who I had been working with for several months. Very sweet couple, and I had spent countless hours showing them several properties. They had decided to sell their two homes, and move forward with other opportunities in the same area. They called me to look at their homes and give some feedback on how much they would sell for in the current market. I gave some numbers, but they decided to sell them on their own.

Not much time had passed until I saw the homes on Facebook Marketplace, and the listing price was lower than what I had given them as a projection. Before you know it, they had three offers, and they had chosen one to move forward with. I decided to step in when the deal started falling apart with them, and immediately showed the sellers the value of having an experienced agent on their side. The buyer ultimately chose to terminate the sale, and the sellers decided to use me as their agent.

Within 24 hours we had pictures taken for both homes, they were listed separately for $50,000 more each, and we were already scheduling showings. The next day we started seeing offers, many more than they had seen while selling on their own. The sellers chose two offers on the homes and sold the homes separately for a total of $150,000 more than they would have back when they were selling them as a FSBO. In the meantime, they were able to keep an additional parcel of land which would have been included in the original sale.

In this case, these sellers were happy to pay the commissions on these homes. And they were glad they chose me to be their agent, rather than selling it as a true FSBO. As always, this is only one story of many that other agents can tell about their clients, and my clients have given permission for me to share their story. Everyone’s situation and property is different, so know that your story will differ from these clients. I always recommend seeking council from your trusted real estate professional when looking to buy or sell your home.

For more tips on selling your home, click here.

To read Isaac’s Quarterly Update on the real estate market, click here.