3 Reasons You Shouldn't Sell Your Home Yourself

Posted on: 6 January 2016

Are you preparing to sell your home? Are you thinking about selling it yourself? That may not be the wisest idea. Many people consider selling their home themselves because they want to save money on realtor commissions. They also may believe that with the power of the internet, they no longer need a realtor to market their home. However, selling your home yourself could end up costing you more money in the long run. Here are three reasons why you may want to reconsider the idea of selling your home yourself:

Unexpected issues. In a perfect world, you would find a buyer, settle on a price, and go straight to closing without any issues. However, issues can and do happen all the time in real estate transactions. What if your home appraises low and that appraisal threatens to derail the sale? Do you know how to challenge an appraisal? Would you be able to work with the buyer, convince him or her to stay with the deal, and structure it in a way that works for both parties?

Also, what if you get a home inspection that seems especially harsh? A realtor may be able to call on their network of contractors to address the problems. He or she may also be able to work with the buyer's agent on the specific issues. They could schedule follow-up inspections or negotiate which repairs are priorities. If you've never dealt with a negative home inspection before, you may not know how to resolve these issues and keep the transaction moving forward.

Time. One of the biggest advantages of using a realtor is that you have someone else available to show your house while you're busy doing other things. Can you drop everything you're doing to show your house to potential buyers? Can you give up a Sunday afternoon to host an open house? What if you have to leave work to host showings? If you lose wages, that will cut into the savings you're realizing in commissions.

Also, you could put a lockbox on your door and allow buyers to view the home on their own with their realtors. However, since you're not in the real estate industry, you may have no way of knowing whether the realtors are legitimate professionals or not. You could be making your home vulnerable to strangers. Instead, you could use a realtor who can show the home for you and verify any potential buyers' agents.

Online listings. Many buyers start their search online. There are several websites where you can list your home yourself. However, many of the major sites pull their listings from feeds generated by the local multiple listing service. In many cases, you must be a realtor to get a home on the multiple listing service. If you're selling your home yourself, you may not get your home on the major online property listings where buyers are searching. That could mean that you're missing a big segment of the market.

For more information, talk to a company such as Gilbert Realty.

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