Do you want to sell your house without a realtor? You can sell your house “For Sale By Owner” (FSBO) successfully in certain situations as long as you do your research and make the right decisions. Instead of selling the home FSBO, you also have the option to quickly and easily sell your house as-is to a company that buys homes, such as PPS House Buyers.
We will cover everything you need to know about how to sell your house without a realtor and whether it’s the right option for you.
Benefits of Selling a House Without a Realtor
Don’t Pay a Commission to Realtor
When you use a realtor, you will pay the realtor fees they charge for their services.
On average, you will pay a commission of 5 – 6% of the sale price of the house.
While that may not seem like a lot at first, consider that 5% of a $200,000 house comes to $10,000.
That $10,000 can come in handy during such a precarious stage of your life.
Keep in mind that even if you don’t have to pay your realtor an agent commission, you may still have to pay the buyer’s agent a real estate commission.
Increased Control
As an FSBO seller, you have complete control over the sale of your home, which may attract confident and ambitious sellers.
Real estate agents tend to do things in a very particular way, and it can conflict with your idea of the best way to sell your house.
Save Time
When you add a third party into the mix, it automatically makes communication take longer.
Selling FSBO, you only need to accommodate the schedule of the potential home buyer and not also a realtor.
There are a number of reasons that you may be motivated to sell your home quickly, including a major life change or selling before your home goes into foreclosure.
Expenses Associated With Selling a House For Sale By Owner (FSBO)
Many people make the misconception that selling a house FSBO will save them a lot of money, but they forget to consider the expenses associated with selling a house. The realtor will normally take on these responsibilities. However, the owner must eat the cost when they sell their home by themselves.
When you sell with PPS House Buyers, you won’t have to pay the realtor or, in most cases, the fees mentioned below.
Professional Fees
All buyers will want documentation of your home’s condition.
You will need to pay out of pocket for a home inspection.
You may also opt to pay for the professional services of a real estate attorney to give you legal advice and help you draw up a proper contract.
Repairs
You may want to make repairs to increase your home’s appeal to a potential buyer, especially any major repairs.
Even if you want to do as little work to your home as possible, some repairs are legal requirements.
Luckily, the repairs may significantly increase the value of your home.
Marketing
It’s difficult to promote a home for sale by owner, especially without a realtor using the MLS.
You will get more success if you invest in the marketing process by paying for professional photos and listing the home on paid advertising sites.
Some of the best free websites for you to list your home include:
- Zillow
- Trulia
- Craigslist
How to Sell a House Without a Realtor
Step One: Prepare Your Home For Market
Every home increases in value when it looks its best.
Prepare your home for market using the following simple tips:
- Remove clutter
- Deep clean entire home
- Maintain lawn
- Brighten home
- Address minor repairs, blemishes, and deferred maintenance
If you’re selling an empty house, consider home staging.
Step Two: Assess Homes Value
You will sell your home more effectively if you list it at its market value.
In order to list it at a reasonable price, you need to research how much your house is currently worth. Real estate agents will have a solid understanding of your home’s value, but you will likely need to spend more time completing your analysis to come up with an appealing yet profitable price…
You can always start your research with an automated valuation model (AVM) and the Federal Housing Financing Agency’s (FHFA) house price index (HPI) calculator, but those tools only provide you with a rough estimate.
You can also look at comparable homes to see what they sold for recently.
The best tools are a comparative market analysis (CMA) and a professional appraisal.
Keep in mind that sentimental value and your desire to make money on the sale do not increase the value of your home to buyers.
Step Three: Advertise Your Home
Once you determine a fair price for your home, you should list your house for sale and start promoting it.
Use pictures, videos, and detailed descriptions to make your home as appealing as possible in your ads.
You can also host open houses for people to come to see the house for themselves. You can advertise your open house with signs and flyers in your neighborhood, as well as posts on social media.
Step Four: Entertain Potential Buyers
When people show interest in the house, you should go out of your way to entertain the potential buyers.
Offer interested parties your personal phone number and a private showing. Also, offer to answer any and all questions they may have about the home.
This part of the process may take up more time than you originally anticipated. However, you need to ensure the buyers don’t lose interest due to a lack of communication on your part.
Step Five: Negotiate
When you get an offer for a purchase price, you have the choice to accept it or counter with a new offer.
If the offer is lower than your asking price, return with a comfortable offer somewhere in the middle of the asking price and offer.
Step Six: Complete All Paperwork
One of the hardest things about selling a house without a realtor is getting all the paperwork in order.
Documents you will need for closing include:
- Inspection reports/appraisal reports
- Survey of your property (including property boundary lines)
- Market analysis
- Sales contract
- Certificate of compliance
- Mortgage documents
- Tax documents
- Title report
- Title insurance through the title company (optional)
Also, you’ll need to adequately disclose known issues about the home. For those in Houston, special attention should be given to disclosures if you’re selling a home that was previously flooded.
Tips to Help You Sell Your House Without a Realtor
Provide Incentives For Cash Buyers
A buyer’s mortgage company may preapprove them before they get an official price, but you won’t know an interested buyer finalized their mortgage agreement with their lender until you draw up the contracts.
Cash offers bypass dealing with mortgage companies, eliminating many of the traditional steps of a real estate transaction. It’s easy and quick to verify the validity of a cash offer. You also won’t have to pay an escrow agent to secure funds until they can be released, which accrues an additional fee.
If you want to sell your home quickly, you can offer an incentive when you encounter a cash buyer.
The best way to incentivize cash buyers is to reduce the cost of the house. However, some sellers offer to cover repairs costs or closing costs.
You may decide to offer seller financing that goes through you instead of a bank. Of course, you will be the one out of luck if the buyer defaults on their loan.
Sign Up For a Multiple Listing Service
A multiple listing service (MLS) is a private real estate website that a licensed real estate agent can access to share information about a home sale.
It contains all of the information about a house you can find publicly as well as additional details and contact information for the listing agent (or owner). An MLS will also have the most up-to-date information.
You will need to pay for access to your local MLS.
Sell To Companies That Buy Houses Quickly
PPS House Buyers® make the house selling process easy by facilitating quick sales without the hassle of repairs, staging, and looking for buyers.
We offer a generous cash offer for your home, despite its condition. We also offer flexible closing with zero closing costs.
No real estate agents are necessary. It can’t get any simpler.
Contact PPS House Buyers to learn more.
Conclusion
A real estate broker may not be necessary for the sale of your home. In fact, you may save money and time by selling your home yourself. However, as the home seller of a FSBO home, be prepared to put in the time and effort it takes to prepare your home and entertain each prospective buyer. If you do run into questions throughout your sale, you can always enlist the help of a real estate professional or a real estate lawyer in a limited (and less expensive) capacity.
