People think you need an agent to sell your home, but there are options. In this post, we will describe some advantages of selling your home yourself!
These are some advantages of selling your home yourself:
NO COMMISSIONS!
Real estate agents usually charge 6% when your house gets sold, even if you end up selling it yourself. This is in addition, to the agent fees, administrative fees, marketing fees, photography costs, etc, etc. When you sell your home directly, you will save yourself thousands.
Sure you will have to all what it takes to get proper advertising and deal with the showings of your home, but when you are moving into a new house, having that additional cash can make things easier. When you are moving, there are always extra expenses that come up and that extra money can become handy.
Your Decisions
You can’t do showings this weekend? You don’t have to schedule any. When you are working with an agent, you depend on their schedule. As the owner you have the last word but the agent’s job is to bring you many potential buyers to see the house, and usually that will be happening in the evenings and during the weekends, so you may get last minute calls to reschedule showings constantly. Thus, you will have to keep the house spotless all the time so it is presentable for the visitors.
Your Terms, Your Way
An agent will always be looking at how much they will make off the transaction when your house gets sold. This means they may stand firm on certain price while you might be open to negotiation. Even if you really need to sell, an agent is always going to be trying to make as much as possible. Will it always be in your best interest?
In addition, you can pick all of the important dates, such as when the new buyers can move in, when you will be out of the house, closing date, etc.. You also can decide as to what items you will fix, what you won’t, and up to how much you can spend on getting things fixed. When you choose to sell on your own, you write the contract on your own, without input from an agent who may only have their best interest in mind.
Few Cash Sales Fall Through
As people say “cash is king.” If you find a cash buyer for your home, you will save lots of time and money. Closings typically can take only a couple weeks as opposed to few months when you work with a lender. And it will save you time you spend waiting for the buyer to get approved for a loan and to get the loan funded (that includes inspections and a check list of things that need to be fixed as per the lender’s requirement). A cash buyer will pay directly, without any special requirements from the banks. These deals rarely fall through and you end up saving a fortune on repairs, staging, commissions, and other sales related expenses.
Selling your home yourself will save you time which equates to money saved. Consider all the extra cash you will save on taxes, utilities, insurance and the mortgage by selling your home faster! While a cash offer might be lower than what you would list it for, many times you end up with more money in the long run after all of the fees, commissions , holding costs, and other expenses are taken out. Not to mention the stress and headaches of having your home on the market. (such as the stress of strangers driving by constantly some even peeking in your windows or back yard! It does happen!)