^{DO I REALLY NEED AN AGENT?}

Introduction

For well over a century real estate firms have been assisting homeowners in selling property. It's estimated that 90% of all real estate sales occur through the Multiple Listing Service in any area. The remaining 10% of sales comes from Exclusive Listings, new home construction and finally, private sales.

Most homeowners who decide to market their properties themselves do so for one reason. They want to save the commission that they would otherwise pay a Broker for marketing the home, locating a willing buyer, and negotiating a sale. They are hoping that they can net more dollars from the sale of the property. That seems fair enough. Although it cannot be denied that some sellers have success, for most, selling privately becomes an expensive experiment.

For most Americans, their home represents their largest asset. They have more money invested in their property than in anything else. Homeowners should take great care in weighing the pros and cons, as well as the odds of selling their homes without the assistance of an agent.

Only you can determine whether or not you're qualified & able to take on the challenge of selling real estate by yourself. While some people have the time, knowledge and skills necessary to market a home successfully, others clearly do not and seriously undermine their best interests by doing so.  Even those that have some specialized skills in marketing, sales and human relations forgo the use of some valuable sales tools in marketing their homes privately. Let's look at some of the challenges that all private sellers face.
For well over a century real estate firms have been assisting homeowners in selling property. It's estimated that 90% of all real estate sales occur through the Multiple Listing Service in any area. The remaining 10% of sales comes from Exclusive Listings, new home construction and finally, private sales.

Most homeowners who decide to market their properties themselves do so for one reason. They want to save the commission that they would otherwise pay a Broker for marketing the home, locating a willing buyer, and negotiating a sale. They are hoping that they can net more dollars from the sale of the property. That seems fair enough. Although it cannot be denied that some sellers have success, for most, selling privately becomes an expensive experiment.

For most Americans, their home represents their largest asset. They have more money invested in their property than in anything else. Homeowners should take great care in weighing the pros and cons, as well as the odds of selling their homes without the assistance of an agent.

Only you can determine whether or not you're qualified & able to take on the challenge of selling real estate by yourself. While some people have the time, knowledge and skills necessary to market a home successfully, others clearly do not and seriously undermine their best interests by doing so.  Even those that have some specialized skills in marketing, sales and human relations forgo the use of some valuable sales tools in marketing their homes privately. Let's look at some of the challenges that all private sellers face.

A Difficult and Limited Base of BuyersA Difficult and Limited Base of Buyers

When a potential homebuyer decides to purchase property they have a couple of options to choose from. They can find an agent to assist them in the purchase of a listed home or they can shop the private market. If they choose to work with an agent they have access to over 90% of all homes for sale. They have someone working for them that can locate properties, arrange viewings, assist in preparing offers and help arrange mortgage financing, home inspections and appraisals. They can expect guidance in determining a home's fair market value. They have access to information on other similar homes that have sold and can often obtain historical information about homes. Finally, they have a third party negotiator that will handle all of the stresses associated with the transaction. All of these services are available to them without cost because the listing broker typically offers the buyers broker compensation for negotiating a purchase.  A purchaser that buys privately handles all of these duties themselves. So, what could possibly motivate a homebuyer to forgo these free services and take on this monumental task? Most buyers that shop the private market want to save the very same commission that you would hope to save by marketing it yourself. There is only one commission to be saved. The big question is, who will save it. Many private sellers spend months marketing their homes, finally giving up their commission savings and more to a ruthless purchaser because they must sell now!

Limited Exposure Means Limited Demand
There's a universal law of economics that states, "the greater the demand for a product, the more valuable it becomes." This is a real problem that private sellers have always been faced with. Their means of providing exposure for the home are limited. They can place ads in the classified section of newspapers, post flyers on public bulletin boards, and post signs on the home itself. Most of these methods are very limited in their ability to create demand. On the other hand, details of a listed property are quickly available to many real estate agents through the Multiple Listing Service. These homes receive exposure in higher profile, targeted homes publications. They are often featured on television and large Internet sites. These homes also have the advantage of being able to reach prospects that are relocating from other areas through the relocation services offered by most real estate firms. In a hot real estate market it's not unusual for listed properties to receive multiple offers, bidding up the price. These occurrences are extremely rare with private sales. It would be difficult to deny that the level of exposure and demand is much higher for listed properties.

Workload Adds Emotional StressWorkload Adds Emotional Stress
With these points in mind, a private seller should ask themselves the following questions: