Reasons Why You Should Never Sell With A Discount Listing Agent

Reasons Why You Should Never Sell With A Discount Listing Agent

So you’ve decided to place your home on the market. You begin to tell your friends and family that you’re moving and before you know it, everybody’s giving their two cents about what to do next. “My friend knows a friend who’s an agent” or “You can save a lot by just selling yourself!”, and lastly, “Just get one of those bargain lister’s for $100”. Sounds good, right? Sure, if you want to leave a lot of potential $$$$ on the table and be in way over your head. Let me explain why all those things aren’t going to net you the payday you could have had with a licensed Realtor.

The FSBO (for sale by owner) Method:

You decide on a list price on your own. You plunk a sign in front of your home. Now what? You don’t have tools the agents use to decide a fair market price, you didn’t list it so it’s not out in front of the correct audience to market it and you’ve got heaven knows how many looky loo’s coming through your home. With a Realtor, you are getting a knowledgeable agent who can use their many tools to come up with a price worthy of your home. They will look over your home and tell you what to do to prep it, they hire photographers at the agent’s cost to photograph it, they will run a title check to ensure it can be sold properly and that there’s no hidden liens you may not have known about, they list it in the MLS system that goes out to every local market available and heavily promote your home. Once an agent secures a buyer, they then help you decide which offer is more appealing (it isn’t always about price - there are many factors that go into what kind of an offer you receive versus how they intend to close on the deal and what type of financing or contingencies they have.) When it’s legitimately listed, other agents can vet those clients before they tour your home to prevent showings to unqualified buyers or potential scouts that may just be looking to break in later, plus they have an obligation to secure your home during and after tours. When you’re under contract, a Realtor then does all the negotiations with many entities that are involved in contracts or performance of those contracts in a timely manner until the closing. It can be tricky even for us agents, can you imagine not knowing anything about real estate on top of it all? It’s like taking a dingy out onto the open sea in a hurricane. Trust me when I say that I get at least five emails a day just on one transaction and at least that many phone calls. If you go FSBO, you will be inundated with solicitations from my fellow colleagues to list with them. Many agents won’t show FSBO’s because it’s hard to guarantee their commission will be paid and if you do sell it through a buyer’s agent, FSBO seller’s think that agent represents them too. Nope!

Another example of FSBO selling happened to one of my sellers that actually found their own replacement home from a couple who was going through a divorce and was afraid that they wouldn’t sell quick enough. They agreed to sell their home to my clients for well under value. Try not to spit out your coffee when I say that those sellers left $100,000 on the table. Yes, it was $100K under the actual value. I don’t know about you but I’m not independently wealthy enough to just throw away 100,000 and you shouldn’t either. 

Bargain Basement Listing Companies Method:

This kind of seller knows enough about real estate that he knows agents charge a certain percentage to sell your home. They know that it at least has to be on the MLS or it won’t be seen by the proper audience but still want to save a dollar. That’s like stuffing money into your pants with a gaping hole in it. You’re still not saving what you thought and it will probably take much longer than it might have with a hands on agent. There are several kinds of these listing companies that I’ll mention here. One charges you the bare minimum to ONLY list it. It’s basically like a FSBO that lists your home on the MLS, but that’s all. They don’t necessarily hang a sign at your home (I think they charge extra for that). Whatever photos you include, you have to shoot yourself and if agents have questions about it, they have to go through a call center filled with employees who are not agents. If and when you do get a return call or email, it might be too late and the buyer has moved on. You will not have an agent who will hold your hand, wade through offers, let alone help you choose one or even help you process the offer to close and transfer title. 

Another type of bargain listing company charges you a flat percentage of your home price. For example, think of certain real estate search sites that advertise to list your home for less than half what a hands on agent would normally charge. You think, YESSSSS, EUREKA!!! Once again, take a hundred dollar bill and light it on fire, because it’s not all champagne and roses. These companies will hang their sign, place your home key in a contractor’s box that is really janky and are often problematic to open, photograph your home, list it in MLS, but that’s it. They won’t market it, they won’t hold an open house, they don’t vet buyers, don’t hold your hand and you’ll get no one overseeing your transaction once it goes under contract. If anyone has questions about your home, they too are flung to a call center. A lot more goes on behind the scenes with home selling. We often have buyers that need answers to questions or we call listing agents with questions that help us determine if this listing is right for my buyer or if we should even make an offer. If there’s no agent to call or you get a call center, well good luck Chuck, getting anyone to answer. That does not help sell a home quickly, properly and as a full hands on agent, it’s infuriating, insulting and a waste of everyone’s time. Time is money as the old adage says and in real estate, they drum into you from day one, “time is of the essence”. In 2007, long before I made the leap into real estate, I made the mistake of listing my home this way. It sat on the market for 11 months and I lost all hope. I decided to list with a hands on agent and low and behold, it sold in two weeks, but the kicker was that the market had taken a dip from the previous year so I lost about $30,000. Painful lesson for anyone to learn. I will expound on this in a later blog.

Reasons To List With A Full Service Agent:

At this point, you’re asking yourself, “Well gosh Amy, why should I pick you? Why do I need to hire your kind of agent?” I get your reticence, however, let me tell you what I can do for you. I will research your home and homes like it in the area. I will strategically help you price your home in a sensible way that will attract attention and multiple offers. I will help you prep your home to make it attractive to buyers. I hire, pay for and oversee photos for your listing that will showcase your home more favorably. My team will make your listing look very desirable so that it gets major foot traffic, thus sells faster. I will market your listing vigorously and post it to every page I can, plus have my team and associates do likewise. I will answer your calls, emails, talk you down off the ledge or do the same for your buyer’s and their agents for as long as it takes to close and even beyond that. I will help you choose the most attractive offer and ensure that the best transaction coordinators, title and escrow agent’s are assigned to your deal. If your buyers go rogue and make unreasonable demands after inspection or close, I can help you decide what’s more pressing and what’s just frivolous greed. I can call on my arsenal of vendors and contractors to help with repairs and arrange to have those vendors paid at closing so you aren’t broke before your closing settlement. I will let you use my moving box truck for free to move out or move into a new home. I will help you secure a new residence to ensure you aren’t homeless and I’ll coordinate with your sale and purchase teams to make a seamless transaction on both ends. I will spoil you with gifts, both at closing and beyond and check on your progress even years later. I will love up on your babies and grandbabies (full service!) and perhaps even gain a lifelong friend out of the deal. I will set you up for success and no less. That’s why I trademark my slogan and why I stand by it always. 

• Amy Maiello

“REAL ESTATE WITHOUT THE HASSLE”