5 reasons to sell a house with a real estate agent and 5 to do it on your own
Selling a house can be a complex and often overwhelming process. One of the first steps many homeowners must take is deciding whether to work with a real estate agent or sell the property on their own. Here are five reasons why we would recommend working with a real estate agent to sell a house, as well as five reasons why you might consider selling on your own. The best decision? It will depend on each owner's situation and preferences.
The following lines will list 5 reasons why selling a home through a real estate agent may be the best option:
- Knowledge of the market: Real estate agents have access to detailed market information and can provide valuable information on local market trends, property prices, and historical sales data. This knowledge can help establish a fair and competitive selling price.
- Negotiation experience: Real estate agents have negotiation experience and can help owners get the best possible selling price. They can also handle negotiations with buyers and other real estate agents on the owner's behalf.
- Broader marketing reach: Real estate agents have access to a wide range of marketing tools, including online platforms like their website or real estate portals, print advertising where potential buyers can be found, and contact networks such as their own or third-party customer databases. All of this will only increase the exposure and visibility of the property to highly qualified potential buyers.
- Paperwork handling: Real estate agents can handle the large amount of paperwork required in a property sale transaction on your behalf, which can save time and reduce stress for owners. We could certainly highlight this as one of the greatest advantages for owners and sellers as an error in any necessary documentation can ruin a secured sale.
- Industry experts: Real estate agents are experts in the real estate industry and can provide guidance and advice on any aspect of the sales process from setting the selling price to closing the transaction.
And now, so that you can see that we want to expose both sides of the coin, we list some of the advantages that you can find if you decide to manage the sale of your house on your own:
- Commission savings: Undoubtedly the biggest advantage you could expect on this list, right? By selling on their own, owners can save the real estate agent's commission, which can typically range from 4% to 7% of the selling price, depending on various conditions.
- Greater control: By selling on their own, owners have greater control over the sales process, including visit schedules, selling price, and transaction terms.
- Property knowledge: Owners are the greatest experts on the property as it is theirs (in most cases they have lived in it) and can provide detailed information about the history, development of the property, and its features to potential buyers.
- Flexibility: By selling on their own, owners can have more flexibility in terms of deadlines and transaction terms.
- Potential to save money: By selling on their own, owners can negotiate directly with buyers and avoid the additional costs that are often associated with selling through a real estate agent. While this can provide an initial advantage, it also carries a great risk, as the lack of knowledge, experience, and operation of a buying/selling process (steps, deadlines, documents, etc.) that the owner lacks can ultimately result in a greater loss of money or at least not earning it.
Ultimately, the decision to sell on your own or work with a real estate agent will depend on the individual needs and circumstances of each owner. By considering these reasons, owners can make an informed decision about the best way to sell a property.
At Portal Menorca, we can only recommend working with a real estate agent to sell a property as what seems easy, simple, stress-free, and even more economical at first, can ultimately prove not to be so. And now the question would be: "How can I differentiate real estate services and know if I am choosing the best real estate agency? Or in other words, of all the real estate agencies that work in my area, which one should I choose and how do I know? We will tell you in detail in a future post. Thank you for reading us.
