Have used realtors only when I didn;t know the area I was buying into and as buyers agent only, also when the company paid for them and they transferred me out of state. having someone who knows the area, good subdivisions and future plans for growth is required when being relocated. Have bought and sold 5 homes without realtors on my side, for insurance, bought the one year warranty every time at $400. One of the other parties brought in a realtor who I chiseled down to 2%, then when they wanted to renegotiate, I whiteled the commission down to 1%. they were trying to play me and advise their clients, Any time they called I threatened to get them htrown out of the transaction for not communicating things properly or in writing. Too much middle man and waiting between offers and answers for me. Total waste of time.
To sell your own home:
1. Ads in papers, FSBO websites, MLS if you wish.
2. have an open house every weekend same time as the realtors, place out balloons, bake cookies, make the place immaculate, fix anything questionable, look at the other open houses to see the good/bad and make everything look good.
3. RE forms are available free on line, just look for them. RE officers are bound by law to present any offer, even on a NAPKIN, so any special forms, etc. are not needed…I called the state attorney on this and if they say something like this they are lying…as usual.
4. the real work is done at the escrow office. call a few of these and sign one up for yourself to handle the transaction. You are sure to find ones who are pleasant to work with and will help you get comps if needed.
5. Get comps off the MLS on line, comp per square foot and by neighborhood. price your house accordingly to what you see around you and your situation. Middle $/sqft to sell a better home in the same area, lower $/sqft if you need to sell fast. Make sure to compare every couple of weeks to what is on the market. i had the best looking home every time and priced it just under the high that looked worse. Sold quicker every time! Saved more than 40K on the last CA transaction.
On the buyer side, don;t buy the line about the seller paying the RE fees, the buyer brings the money to the transaction….everyone is getting their money from the seller to pay their mortgage, agents, etc. without the buyer, the deal doesnt happen and without the deal, no one makes $$. It is a buyers market and I make offers at least 10-20% lower depending on the property and I write this in the offer line: “This offer includes the 3% agent fee which I am taking for myself in this transaction and is a portion off the price reflected”. This way you can reduce the agent fees on the other side if they try to get 6% from the buyer in their original contract. they will hem and haw…this makes it clear and legal!
On lenders…if you have good credit, what;s the issue? Deal with only the best lenders directly, wells fargo, etrade, bofa, all of these post their products on line and are above board and risk everything if they try to screw with you. Also, call them and talik to them about a situation and see what they can do, they have some leeway. you don;t need a stupid agent to fix you up with a shady lender where they are doing backroom deals. bad for the buyer and many conflicts fo interest across the board. Buyer beware, everyone is after your money!
Good luck and have fun selling your own home! EASY EASY EASY and the MONEY is really good too!
