Why Use a REALTOR When I Can Sell it Myself?

By ________________ (Board President's Name Here)
President, __________________ Board/Association of REALTORS

"Why should I use a REALTOR when I can sell my house myself and save having to pay the commission?" That is probably one of the most frequently asked questions someone in the real estate business hears.

Contracting with a REALTOR to help sell a house is well worth the money paid once you fully understand the broad range of services such a real estate professional can offer.

If you want to sell your house, a REALTOR can help from the start by suggesting a listing price. Through his or her many sources, a REALTOR can find out what comparable houses in the area sold for in the recent past as well as where other houses currently on the market are priced. In addition, the REALTOR will take into consideration the particular amenities of your house and what the existing economic and financial conditions are in your region. Using all of this information, the REALTOR will suggest a price. Even though it may not be the price you had in mind, it will, more than likely, be a realistic price someone is willing to pay.

A REALTOR has access to a wide range of marketing tools to use to expose your house to the homebuying public. The most important of these is the Multiple Listing Service, a listing of homes for sale compiled by the Local Board/Association of REALTORS and made available to all of its members. Through the MLS every REALTOR in the area is able to help sell your house. Most REALTORS will supplement the MLS listing with yard signs, newspaper advertising, open houses, direct mail and other means to attract qualified buyers.

And speaking of which, a REALTOR will make sure only qualified buyers tour your home. Showing your $100,000 home to a buyer who can only afford a $60,000 home is a waste of everyone's time; however, that frequently happens when you try to sell your house yourself. A REALTOR will pre-qualify buyers, if they haven't already done so through a lending institution, and only show your house to those who can afford it.

Showing a home for sale is something many REALTORS say a homeowner shouldn't be a part of. Nothing upsets a person more than to have total strangers walking around his or her home making casual yet critical comments about the decoration, condition or layout. Yet few people would leave those strangers to tour the house unaccompanied. When a REALTOR schedules a showing, he or she suggests the homeowner go for a ride or to the mall or the movies--anywhere just to get them out of the house. That way it is the objective REALTOR who hears the remarks and can possibly allay any concerns that arise.

Once an interested buyer is found, the negotiating process can be another aggravating step. Rarely does an offer come to a seller a full asking price. And unless the seller is willing to settle for something lower, counteroffers can result. By helping the seller through this process, a REALTOR can suggest reasonable increments to take the counteroffer, other enticements to offer in place of price reductions, etc., and handle the footwork involved in getting the written offers and counteroffers into the buyers' and/or other REALTORS' hands. Remember, if the REALTOR is working on behalf of the seller, he or she will try to get the highest selling price possible. Often a REALTOR may serve no other purpose than to calm a seller's anger when an unreasonable offer comes in.

After the deal is struck, the REALTOR then assists the seller with the final aspects of the sale--any inspections, title searches, permits, notifications, or other procedural necessities. This leaves the sellers free to look at other houses, afterall, they just sold theirs!

Granted a person can handle many aspects detailed above on their own, buy why do it? To make more money on the sale of the house from not having to pay a commission? Today's buyers are savvy enough to know that someone selling his house himself is saving the commission and will offer a correspondingly lower price.

The services offered to the seller by a REALTOR can go far beyond those listed above. We encourage anyone interested in putting a home on the market to ask two or three real estate agents to make what is called a listing presentation before deciding on who will represent you. This is particularly true if you have no prior experience with a real estate agent in your area or have no recommendations from friends to consider.

Here in _______________________ (Name of city, town), there are __________ REALTORS, members of the ____________________ Board/Association of REALTORS, and each one is willing to do everything in their power to help you sell your home. You'll find the commission well worth the price!