Anyone ever FSBO their house??

[AKcharger]

Good deal or Bad?...experiences??

[dads_69]

Bill, you leaving the AK?

[twodko]

Have a real estate shyster available to consult with along the way. No verbal nothing, everything hardcopy, notorized and like that. 

[histoy]

We sold our last house ourselves in just a month.   We looked at the selling prices for similar houses in our neighborhood that were for sale by realtors.  We subtracted their 6% commission from the average selling price, and that's the price we listed for our home.  The buyers got a good deal ($14,000 under market value) and we got what we would have received, if the home sold for the realtors listed price.

We did an internet search on the FSBO site and found the new home we are living in today.

[AKcharger]

Not planning on moving anytime soon...but someday

[PocketThunder]

We sold our last house ourselves in just a month.   We looked at the selling prices for similar houses in our neighborhood that were for sale by realtors.  We subtracted their 6% commission from the average selling price, and that's the price we listed for our home.  The buyers got a good deal ($14,000 under market value) and we got what we would have received, if the home sold for the realtors listed price.

We did an internet search on the FSBO site and found the new home we are living in today.

Did the buyer of your house use an agent to buy your house?  If so how did that agent get paid?

[charger Downunder]

Wow 6% commission we are lucky to get 2.5% in Australia. To save 6% i would give it a go and i am an agent.

[histoy]

The couple that bought our house didn't use an agent.  They saw our ad and came and looked at our house and signed the offer that night.

[RIDELIKEHELL]

As long as you have an "Offer to Purchase" form and get it a Lawyer to review it you have a binding and legal document....at least in Canada...well Ontario anyway. We used this method to buy our present home but used a Realtor so sell our house as the market was shyte.

[oldcarnut]

I currently have my rental house up for sale.  I used the for sale flat fee agent.  There are quite a few.  For a set fee, the house is listed on the MLA and numerous other sites that regular realtors  and people use to find homes along with some other option depending on the package you pay for. .  The only commission is a sellers agent of %2.5 which I had set.  The %3.5 difference is a huge difference for me.  The realtors contact the number on the agents add or company sign they provided and he gives them my phone number to set up appointments for showings.  They also offer the resources for paperwork or contracts.  So far the system has worked ok for me but the economy and local housing situation is the downfall.  I hope the showing tomorrow morning gets a contract but then I lose the garage for extra storage and working on the Challenger I just picked up.

[PocketThunder]

Good deal or Bad?...experiences??

I bought my first house without an agent.  The seller was a friend of a friend of a relative.  At first we were on a friendly basis with the seller, then we made what we thought was a fair offer based on an appraisal that we paid for.  Then the seller blew up because she thought the house was worth $5,000 more.  We went back and forth and eventually gave her the $5,000 more because we thought we were saving money not using an agent.  But later i come to learn that its the seller of a home that pays both the seller and agent fees.  So i didnt really save anything being the buyer.   What i did learn is that realtors were invented to be the cool and calm 3rd party in a transaction, to help both buyer and seller deal with each other across the table.

[oldcarnut]

Yep, the seller pays those commissions.  For me on the house listed at $172000 6% (3 to seller agent 3 to listing agent) is $10320.  At 2.5% its only $4300.  I've had realtors pester me a lot to list my house and they'd have it sold in no time when really they wanted that 3% easy money whether they sold it or another agent sold it for them.  It's real easy for them to ask you to drop the house price 10K for a quick sale when all they lose is $300 on their 3% side but 10K is a lot for the owner.  I'm sure there are many hard working realtors for their clients that market the house  but many I've seen after they get your listing on MLS and place a few adds,  they're waiting around on phone calls just like I do to show my house.  On the other side I see where having one to help you buy one is helpful.  I'm not bashing on realtors, I just don't understand the whole percentage thing as somewhere when people have real expensive homes, I think there should be a cap as the work is the same for a 100k as a 1 mill. home.

[AKcharger]

My old boss HATED realtors and said their's is an industry that produces NOTHING. I found them helpful when buying a home, but now that I'm a home owner I'm wondering what are they really going to do to earn $21,000 from me? (6%) I mean, from what I saw the title company did most of the heavy lifting.

[Mytur Binsdirti]

My old boss HATED realtors and said their's is an industry that produces NOTHING. I found them helpful when buying a home, but now that I'm a home owner I'm wondering what are they really going to do to earn $21,000 from me? (6%) I mean, from what I saw the title company did most of the heavy lifting.

No kidding! Plus, the average realtor is about as knowledgeable about the product they sell as a car salesman.

[Tilar]

from what I saw the title company did most of the heavy lifting.

They are the ones that do it all. I sold my house in Texas a year ago January. All I did was put a for sale sign out in the front yard and 3 days later the guy across the street comes over and offers me 5k more than I was asking, but that's another story.    Anyway, all he did was go to the bank and then go to the title company and they did everything. No realtors involved on either end.

Also sold 3 acres with a mobile home in New York a year ago.. Cash deal and basically all we did was type up a warranty deed transferring ownership to the buyer and go record it at the court house for If I remember right a $15 filing fee.

[DixieRestoParts]

We bought our house from a friend, and just had the bank handle the paperwork. It worked out great. But now, we're looking to sell and I've been considering the same thing. I agree most agents are worse than used car salesmen. Let me tell you, I've burned through a lot of them as I don't tolerate liars or idiots.

I've finally found one that I like for house hunting. He's a car guy that specializes in homes with additional garage space. While I search for the proverbial house with a garage - mahal in my price range, I've been thinking about what to do with my current house. I'm thinking of doing FSBO and running ads in all the local car club/motorcycle club magazines as it has a decent 900 sq ft secondary garage. Hopefully, among the motorhead community I can move it.

I'm also of thinking of asking my current agent if he'll list it at a reduced commission rate. If his broker won't let him do that, then I'll list it FSBO, but offer agents a fee if they sell it. Not sure on the fee I'll offer, but I'm thinking maybe 2.5% and they get it all. They don't have to split with the other agent or their broker. If none of that works, I may rent it. I'm afraid that in today's market if I list full fee with an agent, then I'll be lucky to break even when it sells, and I'm not gonna pay someone to live in my house. I'll just keep it.

Now if any of y'all want a deal on house in Georgia, gimme a call.