1) Price (a): In NAR Surveys the number one For Sale By Owner (FSBO) concern is Determining The Selling Price. Too high, your home sits on the market, growing stale. Too low, you don't get your home's true value. Just right, you sell your home for the best price in the shortest time.
2) Price (b): Agents, having sophisticated software, access to Local Property Sale data and Special Sauce (working knowledge of the local market); generate a CMA (Comparative Market Analysis) for your home. Agents have the software and expertise to price your home, with all its features, to sell at the highest price in the shortest time. Zillow.com, RealEstateABC.com and other AVM's (Automated Valuation Models) are cheaper (free) and faster (seconds), but their data can be months old and often doesn't reflect the condition of your home or immediate market trends. Always get 3 estimates and find out why your Agent's price estimate differs.
3) Price (c): The Time Value of Money: On average the carrying cost of a home is 1% per month or 12% per year. Agents have the skills to price your home to sell at the highest price in the shortest time. Can you afford to wait for 1% per month?
4) Marketing (a): Agents have access to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) which sends out all current listings to all the trained and State licensed Real Estate professionals in the MLS. Their business is to sell your home. In most places it is hard or expensive for a non-agent to access the MLS.
5) Marketing (b): Agent-To-Agent Network. Since almost 90% of home sales are handled by Agents, Agents have the most qualified leads of buyers for your home. An Agent can email the top 25-50 agents in your area, who undoubtedly have the best qualified buyer leads.
6) Marketing (c): Agents know the best places to Advertise. With over 75% of home buyers starting their search for a home on the Internet (and almost 100% using the Internet at some time in their home search), do you plan to effectively advertise your home on the Internet and push it out to Google Base, Zillow.com and all the other Search Engines? Ask your Agent how he or she plans to advertise your home: with the lawn sign, in print, with flyers and on the Internet. Will your home only be on the local MLS, Realtor.com, and the company Website? Or will your home be on those sites and GoogleBase, Zillow.com and all the other major Search Engines?
7) Staging: In NAR surveys the number 2 home seller concern is correctly Staging their home for sale. Agents can give general advice, there are TV shows about staging and there are Professional Stagers. Agents I know won't put your house on the market unless it is properly staged.
8) Non-Agent Network: Selling a house can involve a lot of people, many who aren't Real Estate Agents, your Agent's Non-Agent Network: Lenders, Lawyers, Inspectors, Insurers, Contractors, Movers, Landscapers, etc. Your Agent has a working knowledge of all the potential players in your home sale and has a vested interest in the success of your sale.
9) Negotiation: Your Agent sells houses full time. You sell houses part time. Your Agent sells homes for a living. He is a Professional Negotiator. He is the best one, to get you the best price, in the best time.
10) Barbers, Bar Tenders and Real Estate Agents: Finally, your home sale can be a very personal and emotional experience. An Agent can act as a Emotional Buffer, letting you know what to expect and helping you deal with all the frustrating details. If your Agent doesn't listen, then listen to someone else. "It was just meant to be." "It just wasn't meant to be."...
11) Neighborhood Knowledge: Agents either possess intimate knowledge or they acknowledge where to find the industry buzz about your neighborhood. They can identify comparable sales and hand these facts to you, in addition to pointing you in the direction where you can find more data on schools, crime, or demographics. For example, you many know that a home down the street was on the market for $350,000, but an agent will know it had upgrades and sold at $285,000 after 65 days on the market and after twice falling out of escrow.
There has never been a better time to tap into the resources a realtor has to offer. Call Mary Jane today at 262-490-0739 for a free home market analysis or to answer any questions you have about real estate.
