selling house yourself

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ISUAlum2002

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Having a buyer's agent DOESN'T cost you anything. It costs the seller. You are still paying the price that you want for a house. I.e. You can offer $197k without an agent. But that doesn't mean you have to offer $200k with an agent. You can, and most likely will, offer $197k in both cases.

I would say that in general, a buyer is going to more or less pay the same price with our without an agent. But of course there will be exceptions like your example that certainly will happen.

If I'm a buyer and I've offered $200K through a realtor, but another prospective buyer has offered $197K without a realtor, who do you think the seller is going to sell the house to?

THAT is where it "costs" you something as a buyer.
 

im4cyclones

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We sold by owner. Listed on Zillow for 40 days. Had 6 showings. Only two didn't have an agent. The other 4 had agents, all of whom asked if we would pay their half of the commission. Luckily our buyer didn't have an agent but they definitely increased our traffic.
 

ArgentCy

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If I'm a buyer and I've offered $200K through a realtor, but another prospective buyer has offered $197K without a realtor, who do you think the seller is going to sell the house to?

THAT is where it "costs" you something as a buyer.

Tell your realtor to negotiate harder and earn their commission. This is kind of a silly argument.
 

cycloneworld

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We sold by owner. Listed on Zillow for 40 days. Had 6 showings. Only two didn't have an agent. The other 4 had agents, all of whom asked if we would pay their half of the commission. Luckily our buyer didn't have an agent but they definitely increased our traffic.

And that's all I've been saying. I hate the current system/game but you can't argue that it doesn't bring you more potential buyers if you are listing a house on your own.
 

SCNCY

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While Realtors have the benefit of increasing traffic today, I wonder how that will change when Millennials begin to start buying houses in mass? I would think there wold be a move towards more online services that bypass realtors.

How many houses do realtors sell on average per a month? It seems like if you sell 2-3 houses you are making some very good money.
 

JY07

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Tell your realtor to negotiate harder and earn their commission. This is kind of a silly argument.

At this point I'm just going to have to assume you're either a realtor yourself or are donald trump ("this is a silly argument: just make deals good")

What do you expect the realtor for buyer B to do to "negotiate harder"? Buyer B would have to offer $203k for the seller to net the same amount as Buyer A at $197k
 

cycloneworld

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While Realtors have the benefit of increasing traffic today, I wonder how that will change when Millennials begin to start buying houses in mass? I would think there wold be a move towards more online services that bypass realtors.

How many houses do realtors sell on average per a month? It seems like if you sell 2-3 houses you are making some very good money.

You would think so but so far the NAR has been able to stop any substantial changes to the system. But just like Uber, a disruption is coming (hopefully).
 

agrabes

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At this point I'm just going to have to assume you're either a realtor yourself or are donald trump ("this is a silly argument: just make deals good")

What do you expect the realtor for buyer B to do to "negotiate harder"? Buyer B would have to offer $203k for the seller to net the same amount as Buyer A at $197k

It's pretty simple isn't it? Like you said, Buyer B would have to offer a higher amount either through the direct price or through paying closing costs, etc. This is no different than any other case where buyers get into a bidding war. If that buyer is dead set on the house, they'll have to pay more than they would like, otherwise they walk away.

You have to view it in context of how a buyer would buy a home, not the eyes of a seller who is trying to save equity. Yes, in the one specific example you've used it could cost the buyer a little more money. However, it's not very often that a buyer with a buyer's agent is going up against a buyer without a buyer's agent. The only time you would save money as a buyer by not using a buyer's agent is if you are in a bidding war on a house with another buyer who is using a buyer's agent -and- the seller is not using a realtor. If the seller is using a realtor, there are no savings at all. Essentially, in a rare circumstance, you can give yourself a slight edge by not using a buyer's agent. That's just not going to be worth it to most people.
 
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JY07

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If the seller is using a realtor, there are no savings at all. Essentially, in a rare circumstance, you can give yourself a slight edge by not using a buyer's agent.

That would only be true if the buyer agreed to sign a dual representation agreement with the selling agent, or if the seller agreed to a clause in their agreement with the selling agent that they receive the buying agent's commission when there's no buyer representation.

Yes, in the one specific example you've used it could cost the buyer a little more money. However, it's not very often that a buyer with a buyer's agent is going up against a buyer without a buyer's agent.

That's my point: it shouldn't be a rare situation.

There is very little reason to have someone represent you when buying a house, if anything it hurts you: in the scenario previously outlined, and if you put your full faith in them (without researching properties yourself), you'd completely miss out on any properties like the OP's that might be for sale by owner with no commission
 
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ArgentCy

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If I'm a buyer and I've offered $200K through a realtor, but another prospective buyer has offered $197K without a realtor, who do you think the seller is going to sell the house to?

THAT is where it "costs" you something as a buyer.

Tell your realtor to negotiate harder and earn their commission. This is kind of a silly argument.
At this point I'm just going to have to assume you're either a realtor yourself or are donald trump ("this is a silly argument: just make deals good")

What do you expect the realtor for buyer B to do to "negotiate harder"? Buyer B would have to offer $203k for the seller to net the same amount as Buyer A at $197k

Nope I very much dislike the NAR as they are basically blackmailing me to help fund their organization. I'm not going to be able to convince you of this but the market price of a house does not depend on how it is sold. I see plenty of FSBO that sell at the very top end of market price, so hopefully those buyers didn't just assume they were getting a deal because there was no realtor involved.
 

ArgentCy

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That would only be true if the buyer agreed to sign a dual representation agreement with the selling agent, or if the seller agreed to a clause in their agreement with the selling agent that they receive the buying agent's commission when there's no buyer representation.



That's my point: it shouldn't be a rare situation.

There is very little reason to have someone represent you when buying a house, if anything it hurts you:
in the scenario previously outlined, and if you put your full faith in them (without researching properties yourself), you'd completely miss out on any properties like the OP's that might be for sale by owner with no commission

If the buyer is a complete moron or doesn't know the area or has never purchased a home before than they certainly do need some help. Preferably someone working for their best interest. It doesn't have to be a realtor at 3-6% commission but they most certainly could use some help.
 

CycloneErik

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Tell your realtor to negotiate harder and earn their commission. This is kind of a silly argument.


Nope I very much dislike the NAR as they are basically blackmailing me to help fund their organization. I'm not going to be able to convince you of this but the market price of a house does not depend on how it is sold. I see plenty of FSBO that sell at the very top end of market price, so hopefully those buyers didn't just assume they were getting a deal because there was no realtor involved.

It would be very easy to tell a buyer that you're saving them money by avoiding the realtor commission, and very easy for a buyer who doesn't know what to look for to believe as well. Seems like that would be a basic pitch a number of less scrupulous people I know would use.
 

agrabes

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That would only be true if the buyer agreed to sign a dual representation agreement with the selling agent, or if the seller agreed to a clause in their agreement with the selling agent that they receive the buying agent's commission when there's no buyer representation.



That's my point: it shouldn't be a rare situation.

There is very little reason to have someone represent you when buying a house, if anything it hurts you: in the scenario previously outlined, and if you put your full faith in them (without researching properties yourself), you'd completely miss out on any properties like the OP's that might be for sale by owner with no commission

I've never sold a house, just bought one, so I'm not super knowledgeable on how those agreements work. My understanding is that unless you otherwise negotiate, you're paying that 6% realtor fee to your realtor which they then split with the buyer's realtor. I know that there are some realtors who will charge less, etc, but I've always heard the standard agreement is that you pay 6% in realtor fees and if there's no buyer's agent then the seller's agent pockets the whole amount.

I don't think it hurts you at all to use a realtor as a buyer, unless you only consider buying houses they present to you. If you are the kind of person who does that, you're probably not the kind of person who has the knowledge or desire to do everything yourself. I doubt that many people do that, I definitely didn't. I did my own housing search online and supplemented with the information the realtor provided me. Since I had a realtor on my side, I didn't have to waste time negotiating with homeowners and working out those details, I just told my realtor what I wanted to offer and she made it happen. I was happy with the price that I got for the house I bought and happy with the advice I got from my realtor and the vendors for inspection services which she recommended. I could have done all this work myself, but frankly I've got better things to do with my time.
 
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ISUAlum2002

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Tell your realtor to negotiate harder and earn their commission. This is kind of a silly argument.


Nope I very much dislike the NAR as they are basically blackmailing me to help fund their organization. I'm not going to be able to convince you of this but the market price of a house does not depend on how it is sold. I see plenty of FSBO that sell at the very top end of market price, so hopefully those buyers didn't just assume they were getting a deal because there was no realtor involved.

At this point I just have to assume you're being intentionally obtuse.
 

isucy86

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IMO the issue with the real estate buy/sell process is real estate professionals are commissioned salespeople.

- They don't close, they don't eat.
- For the buyers agent, the lower the sale price, the lower their commission.

Agents do have value if they are experts in home values in their markets.
 
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BCClone

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Not exactly sure.
IMO the issue with the real estate buy/sell process is real estate professionals are commissioned salespeople.

- They don't close, they don't eat.
- For the buyers agent, the lower the sale price, the lower their commission.

Agents do have value if they are experts in home values in their markets.


Having been in the car business, point two and point one can fight each other once in awhile. Sometimes you need a sale and don't care if it's aittle less. Hamburger is better than ramen noodles.
 

alarson

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IMO the issue with the real estate buy/sell process is real estate professionals are commissioned salespeople.

- They don't close, they don't eat.
- For the buyers agent, the lower the sale price, the lower their commission.

Agents do have value if they are experts in home values in their markets.

True, but good realtors will get a lot of repeat business over the years (the realtor i use is one my family has used for a long time, i've used twice, and ive referred her to several friends as she's been great) ... and likely the second and third sales will be even bigger than the second, so some incentive to do the best job for the customer possible.
 

alarson

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Having just bought in February, i dont know that i'd operate without a buyer's agent at very least. Cost me nothing and she provided so much to make the process easier- knowing things to look for because she's viewed thousands of houses, experience negotiating with sellers, etc. In this market it would certainly be tempting to do the seller side myself though. Though even in this market when i was shopping i saw several homes sit on zillow as FSBO for months, only to see them get updated to having a realtor and disappear almost immediately. But if i had the time to burn, i might at least try FSBO for 30-60 days and if no bites, list it professionally.