Are you looking to sell a house in Idaho and want to bypass working with a real estate agent? If you’re a veteran home seller, you may not need the help of a realtor or a real estate broker. That way, you can avoid paying real estate commission fees.
However, it is not always easy to sell a home through a For Sale By Owner (FSBO) process, as you may need to hold your own open house, pick a listing price, and post your real estate property on the multiple listing service. There are specific steps to selling a house without a realtor you will need to follow.
We will go over these steps below. Further, you can learn about more benefits of selling a house without a realtor in the guide. So, should you sell your home without using a realtor? Keep reading to find out!
Benefits of Selling a House Without a Realtor
There are numerous benefits to selling a home without a listing agent, such as reducing closing costs by avoiding the 6 percent realtor commission fee. However, you may still need to cover the buyer’s agent commission fees. FSBO sellers can also benefit from potentially attracting more home buyers.
For example, a realtor may advise you to list your house at a higher sale price aligning with your home value. However, if you list your property at a lower price, you can attract more potential buyers.
Along with avoiding the real estate agent commission costs, you can have more negotiating power and a final say in how much money you take for the house. Furthermore, FSBO homes are usually more attractive to house flippers.
As such, you won’t need to invest as much money in home upgrades and time-consuming renovations. Nonetheless, you should declutter the home before having any viewings and possibly add a fresh coat of paint to the walls.
Many cash buyers also don’t expect your residence to undergo a home inspection, which will also save you money. Also, if you can’t find your warranty on that major home appliance, cash buyers are unlikely to care since they’re likely to put in new appliances anyway.
You won’t need to worry about curb appeal or spend any money on home staging services or a professional photographer to take photos of your home. You can take the photos yourself to post them on Trulia, Redfin, Zillow, and other real estate websites. Most importantly, you’ll get to market the home yourself and won’t need to invest in marketing services.
That way, you can honestly explain the advantages of living in your neighborhood and even attract any friends who are looking to move using social media marketing. You can find plenty of free online apps to help you advertise your home. Post photos of your house on real estate websites and your own website using free design templates.
Selling a home without a realtor can also move much quicker, especially if you sell your property to house flippers or cash home buyers in Idaho. You will also find numerous FSBO resources when handling your real estate transactions.
Without a realtor, you’ll need to put your property on an MLS listing (a multiple listing service), which will showcase the house for sale to everyone looking to buy and become homeowners. Numerous real estate websites are available to market your house online.
The home selling process without a real estate agent also means you have complete control over the entire home sale. You get to decide on the final purchase price. You’ll have negotiating power with a first-time buyer or a new home cash buyer.
As such, you can answer questions more quickly and complete the selling process faster than if you had an intermediary working in-between the two parties. Due to these many benefits, you should seriously consider selling your home without the help of a seller’s agent or a brokerage firm, especially if you’re a veteran in the real estate market.
Should You Sell Your House Without a Realtor
When deciding whether to sell your home without a realtor, you will need to consider the pros and cons of selling a house by owner. First, you can attract more home buyers and list the house at a lower sale price since you won’t need to cover the costs of real estate agent commissions.
However, a disadvantage is that you’ll need to cover all the work of marketing and selling your residence by yourself. For instance, you’ll need to check out the prices of comparable homes in your neighborhood before picking an asking price.
While you’ll save on real estate commission fees, you will still need to hire a real estate attorney. You’ll need to cover those costs, as a real estate lawyer will handle the important paperwork for the purchase agreement. The attorney will put together a legal sales contract and other legal documents. Essentially, this professional will make sure everything is done by the book.
When selling a house without a realtor, you will also need to avoid potential scams. Make sure that any cash buyers, real estate investors, or house flippers have the funds necessary to buy your property.
As an FSBO seller, you will also need to determine whether you have access to competitive research in the housing market. A realtor can provide you with a comparative market analysis sheet. You’ll want to gather similar information on your own if you bypass working with a real estate agent.
Further, do you have access to a network of real estate professionals? If you’ve sold a property before, you may know who to contact when seeking a real estate photographer, a real estate attorney, a lender, and a home appraiser.
If you have the ability and time to market the house by yourself and find potential buyers, you can simply forego working with a realtor.
5 Steps To Sell a House Without a Realtor
The home sale process can proceed in a smooth manner if you follow five basic steps to selling a property without a real estate agent. The five steps to sell your residence without using a realtor include:
- Picking a realistic asking price
- Making your property ready for viewings and a real estate transaction
- Marketing your house
- Confirming the home buyer’s funds
- Hiring a real estate attorney for the sale
Also, you’ll want to choose a good time to sell a house in ID, which is usually in late spring and early summer. Most homebuyers and families aim to move to a new school district before their children start a new school year.
The first step of picking an asking price is vital. You don’t want to price the property too high since that may turn off many homebuyers. If the home price is too high, many buyers may not even come to the open house or take a peek.
Pricing the home may seem complex, but hiring a professional appraiser in the real estate market can help. Appraisal services tend to cost anywhere from $375 to $450. Further, take a look at the prices of homes in your neighborhood that recently sold. You can also look up prices on real estate websites like Realtor.com.
You will also need to make your house look market-ready. As such, you will need to declutter and organize your house, clean the floors, carpets, and countertops, remove all dust bunnies, and improve the curb appeal of your place.
Consider hiring a maid service to clean up your house. Also, make sure to remove weeds, plant a new flower bed or bush, and add a fresh coat of paint to the front door. A beautiful welcome mat can also improve the appeal of your home. You may also want to hire a professional photographer if you’re not planning to sell to a cash buyer.
When it comes to marketing your property and finding creative ways to sell a house, post your photos on social media sites like Facebook and Instagram. Ask your friends and family to share the posts as well. List your home on the MLS system.
When anyone puts an offer on the table, make sure to confirm the buyer has those funds. You may need to request a mortgage preapproval letter and determine if they have the downpayment amount to buy the house.
Lastly, you will benefit from hiring a real estate attorney experienced in FSBO sales. An attorney can help draft a legal contract for the sale, closing documents, and more.
Conclusion
After reading through the steps to selling a house without a realtor, you should now have no problem with your home sale via an FSBO process. After picking your asking price, you’ll need to declutter and clean your home, market the residence on social media, confirm the finances of the buyer, and hire a real estate lawyer.
However, you can sell a house fast in Nampa if you find real estate investors and cash home buyers. Luckily, we buy houses Boise residents love, so contact us as soon as possible.