5 Pros and Cons to Using a Real Estate Agent to Sell Your Home

To Realtor or Not to Realtor?  That is the question....

As I explored the benefits of using a Real Estate Agent and not using a Real Estate Agent the bottom line was this; there certainly are people who are qualified to sell their own homes but if you take a look at the FAQ on most for sale by owners websites, it suggests that the process is not as simple as you may think.  I’ve been doing mortgage for 20 years and my wisdom suggests it is well worth what you will pay, to have a professional on your side.  With that said…. Here is a list of what you will want to consider when putting your house up for sale.

1-      A good realtor has a sense of the market.  They have insider information on the hot trends and what really “sells”.  They can give you a report of comparable homes for sale and the historic data for your neighborhood.  Of course, you can also do some of this research online ….. you just need to know what you are looking for and you will want to weigh how much of your time will be spent “figuring out” what you are looking for.  A good agent won’t have to figure it out, they will know and be able to guide you through the process.

2-      Negotiating a real estate deal can be tricky business.   A good agent knows which part of the deal to negotiate on…. Whether it is closing costs, purchase price or repairs…. A real estate agent knows where they can best “push” the deal.  Negotiating the purchase of a new home can be emotional and it’s nice to have a third party to help you navigate this process.  Of course there are online tools to help you do this on your own, but having a professional handle the details will ensure that you don’t miss any of the little details of the contract and wind up losing your earnest money because of one of these small details.

3-      Real Estate agents know all the different avenues to find and sell homes.  Depending on the agent you are using, a realtor may have the inside scoop on homes that haven’t even hit the MLS yet.  Through their relationships, realtors may be able to leverage their networks in order to sell your home more aggressively to other agents within their network.    The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS studies show that 82% of real estate sales are the result of agent relationships through previous clients, friends, family, referrals and personal contacts.  Of course your sphere of influence is a great place for you to begin your own marketing efforts but hiring an agent that “does this for a living” will have more people expecting them to have what they need…. And hopefully that will be YOUR home!

4-      Selling your home can take longer if you don’t have the time to do open houses and showings often…. And those last minute showings in the middle of the day can begin to stress you out.  Real estate agents can be a lifesaver when it comes to getting potential buyers in and out of your house during your work hours.  An agent can also help you stage your home so that prospective buyers can “see” themselves in your house and also point out all the benefits to your home to potential buyers.  Realtors know what is selling in your area and can give you advice of what your home may need to compete with what’s “hot” in your area.

5-      When buying or selling a house, you may need to hire additional professional services… this may include a painter, lawyer, inspector, a title company and more.  Your real estate agent does this for a living and has developed relationships with these professionals.  You may even be able to get better pricing because of the referral relationships some agents have created with these type of professionals.  You can google yourself any of these professionals but we all know that having a referral from a trusted source usually pays off both ways…. Better customer service satisfaction because they want to continue to be referred by these partners. 

What it boils down to is how much time and effort are you willing to put into selling your house.   Yes, there are many sources available for you to do this on your own but my personal opinion is you will save yourself a lot of time, frustration and unknown questions on contracts/paperwork by having a professional on your side.

Sheri Joi, email sherijoi1972 at gmail dot com