Buying a home is an exciting time in your life. Selling a home can also be very stressful and overwhelming. It’s essential to take the proper steps to sell your home, so you get the most out of it, both financially and emotionally.
One great way to do this is by using a professional real estate agent. In this article, we’ll discuss seven reasons you should use one when looking to sell your home.
Going solo with the sale of your home can certainly be tempting financially. That’s because, on average, a real estate agent will earn a commission between 5% and 6%, translating to upwards of $15,000 on a $250,000 home. That’s some serious money that pretty much anyone would rather have in their pocket.
But the reality is that, when selling a home on your own, you’ll have to take care of all the heavy lifting. That includes everything from putting together an attractive listing (with great pictures and video) to taking calls for showings etc., in addition to worrying about any potential legal ramifications.
Simply put, there are many nuances to sell a home that can cost you simply due to a lack of knowledge on the intricacies of selling a home.
When it comes to selling your home, you’ll want to work with an agent who has experience. That’s because they are knowledgeable about the market and know how to price a property for maximum profit while also considering their client’s needs. They can take care of all the little details that can make or break a sale.
Real estate agents are professionals and don’t make emotional selling decisions.
Selling your home is an inherently emotional process that gets more emotional the longer you have lived in it. An experienced real estate agent will not allow their emotions to interfere with the promise of bringing you a fair market price for your home.
Feelings, while healthy, are unproductive when selling a home. For example, being invested in the work you’ve done on your home increases your likelihood of committing a terrible home selling mistake like overpricing your home or refusing to counter an offer that you feel is too low.
There’s also the personal sting of rejection when a potential buyer rejects your home.
Selling a home is a full-time job. A Real estate agent’s sole focus is to sell your home.
It’s not just about putting up a For Sale sign and waiting for the phone to ring. You’ll want to do your homework in pricing, home staging, marketing strategy, etc. before you even think about meeting with prospective buyers or listing your property on the MLS (Multiple Listing Service).
The big reason why real estate agents command such high commission rates is because of just how much work and rejection they have to deal with before they can finally sell your home.
Depending on how the local real estate market is, the average experienced realtor is likely to sell only 15-20 homes a year. That’s not even two a month.
Factor in all licensed realtors and the reality is that the vast majority of realtors won’t close over six transactions a year. The number of homes sold is so low for most realtors because selling a home is difficult and takes a lot of time and people skills as you work the negotiations.
Real estate agents weed out unqualified buyers
With so few home sellers, you’re going to get a lot of people trying to buy your house on some level. And the vast majority of these will be unqualified buyers. When you sell by owner, you will have to field every call of interest on your property.
Phone calls can take an incredible amount of your time, energy, and patience. Also, homeowners who choose to sell on their own are likely to receive dozens of calls from people who do not have financing in place or may ask for owner financing after you show them the home, insisting it’s the only way they can buy.
Pre-screening potential buyers can waste hours of your time every week. Preferably, a real estate agent can field the calls and pre-qualify potential buyers to ensure they are a good candidate for purchasing your home.
A real estate agent’s expertise is pricing your home right to sell.
If you want the best price for your home, you need to hire a professional. Real Estate Agents can determine the best way to sell your home quickly by pricing your home correctly to attract the most offers.
An experienced real estate agent can provide insight into what homes in your area have been selling for recently as well as local market trends so that they can price your home to sell from day one.
Real estate agents are skilled at marketing your home
A Real Estate Agent will also help you market your home to show potential buyers all that it has to offer. Agents have various tools at their disposal for getting your house out there, including social media advertising and personal mailings to nearby neighbors. They can even create flyers or a video tour so people can see your home virtually.
Realistically, the buyer pool is simply more extensive with a Realtor. Real estate agents list and promote your home on multiple listing services. The MLS (Multiple Listing Service) allows them to reach other real estate agents representing homebuyers who may be interested in your house. With the MLS, real estate agents can target buyers who live nearby or actively search online listings like Zillow and Trulia. They’re also reaching out to people looking in neighboring towns too.
When it comes to getting your home in front of more eyeballs, a real estate agent is your best bet.
A real estate agent will reduce your exposure to legal risks.
You can indeed sell your home on your own. However, there are several legal considerations that you may not be aware of that a real estate agent would be.
Legal information about homeownership documentation, property disclosures, inspection laws, ownership transfers, and real estate taxes are some of the areas where they may be some legal pitfalls.
Having an experienced real estate agent represent you in your home sale can shield you from these legal issues.
A real estate agent will help protect you from fraud and scams.
It’s hard to know who is telling the truth these days. There are numerous scams designed to cheat homeowners out of their homes when it comes to real estate.
Fraudsters often pose as buyers or real estate investors to steal your money and valuable information about you.
It is not worth the risk of being duped by someone who could have bad intentions for all sorts of reasons when a professional will take care of everything so that you’re not a victim of a real estate scam.
Are you thinking about selling your home on your own? Please reconsider.
Selling a home can be stressful and time-consuming. That’s why at the Real Estate Exchange, we do all the work for you to sell your home for the best price! We have an experienced team of real estate agents that will help you get top dollar for your property. Plus, our real estate agents are available to answer any questions or concerns during this process.
You deserve the peace of mind of having an ally in a real estate agent when it comes to selling your home. When we work with our clients, our goal is always to make sure homeowners get the best price possible for their property while also making sure they feel confident in every decision they make along the way.
If you are considering selling your home, contact us today. We’d love to help.
