These days, there are countless ways to get your house sold. While many homeowners still decide to work with traditional agents, more and more are deciding to take matters into their own hands. Selling a house without an agent is certainly a viable option, and it comes with its share of pros and cons.
The pros can be considerable. For instance:
- You get to keep all of the profits.
- You have total control over all aspects of the sale.
- You can work on your own time and in your own way.
With that said, there are also some downsides that are worth exploring. In this post, we’ll touch on the three main drawbacks to attempting to sell your house yourself.
3 Downsides to Selling a House Without an Agent
- Getting your house sold can become a full-time job.
The biggest downside may be the time sink. Simply put, there’s a lot of work that goes into selling a house, from maintenance to advertising to pricing. And, you’ll have to conduct all the showings and open houses yourself, some of which may come at inconvenient times. For those who already have a full-time job elsewhere, trying to sell your house yourself can be a drain.
- Many agents won’t work with FSBO listings.
Most professional agents prefer to do business with other professional agents—the implication of which is that some buyer’s agents won’t even show their clients your listing unless there’s a realtor’s name attached to it. In other words, when you sell yourself, your market is limited right from the get-go.
- You don’t have all the resources or expertise.
Finally, just note that when you sell without an agent, you have to do everything, from the pricing to the legalities. This can come with a learning curve, and even a small mistake can really cost you. As such, if you go down the FSBO path, it’s critical to use all the resources and data available to you.
To that end, we’d invite anyone who’s looking to sell their home to generate their free SOLD.com report today. In it, you’ll get personalized advice on how best to get your place on the market, whether by going it alone, working with an agent, or some other option.
Get an individualized recommendation today when you request your SOLD.com report!