I'm preparing to sell a rental property in a high demand area. I would like to bypass a realtor and pay an attorney a flat fee to handle closing paperwork/title work.
I have two interested buyers already without listing the property (which I could do as FSBO on ZIllow and/or get listed on Redfin if I pay for an MLS listing).
What am I overlooking that would justify paying a realtor 3%?
Posted by MrBallistik
7 Comments
How much do you know about title law?
Nothing gained if you already have a buyer. You don’t need to list it. Lawyer has access to appropriate forms and you know how to guide the transaction reasonably. Check, check and save yourself a big $$ check.
So I’ll be honest, I’m a real estate agent. We had a buyer in a seller for a property and they wanted attorneys to handle it. The attorneys were real estate attorneys and they completely screw screwed up the paperwork. It cost a client a ton of money, they still paid me to manage it, but the reality is, they wasted money on their attorney. Your attorney needs to know what they’re doing. They need to understand contingencies and timelines and a lot of attorneys don’t do that. They also don’t get involved in negotiating value, sure you might save some money, but you might not.
If you already have buyers, skipping the realtor makes total sense. The 3% is mainly worth it for market exposure and negotiation -you don’t need either right now
>I have two interested buyers already without listing the property
I wonder how many more interested buyers you’d have if you listed the property and did full marketing? You may be underestimating demand. Sounds like competition and escalation clauses might be a good reason to use a realtor?
I’m an agent and I’m taking a client to a FSBO tomorrow. The seller isn’t doing a great job marketing the property. Photos aren’t bad, just not compelling. Write up and general marketing is bad. He is turning away buyers and doesn’t even know it.
Fewer buyers translates to fewer offers and fewer offers means less money.
So unless you think you can properly prepare your property without professional guidance as to what features sell in your particular area and then successfully market those features…you’re not going to outsell a good agent. This means less net for you.
And a good agent will cost 2.5-3%. You should still be offering to pay the buyers agent.
So I don’t see any “savings” for you.
We aren’t inherently useful. We aren’t always the solution and many of us absolutely suck. A very savvy seller who knows exactly what their home is worth, how to market it, knows what to fix, and where to spend money on their listing,and doesn’t mind the task of managing the listing themselves can absolutely navigate without a realtor. That is probably 5 to 10% of people I have met.
We aren’t worth the 3% we want, especially on the listing side. That’s just the truth. It’s very rare I feel like that’s a fair sum. The hard part is knowing that most people are extremely unequipped to buy a home, sell a home, or participate without help. Be prepared to pay a buyers agent, because most people don’t have the cash to pay one out-of-pocket, and you will have the cash available from selling your home. Interview multiple people, ask hard questions, and look at their track record of sales.