Austin Texas Real Estate
When
selling your home, you want to get the most out of it financially that
you can. That thought process sometimes leads sellers to believe that
they will save money if they:
a)
do it themselves or
b) hire a "less than full service" firm to put their property
in the MLS (and that's all!)
While
it's true that you might possibly save money using either of these strategies,
the truth is, without knowing real estate law or being able to devote
yourself full-time to procuring and touring buyers, you might be in
for a longer than average tour on the market. The money you thought
you were saving in commissions could be eaten up in advertising costs
or legal fees.
Let's
look at what it takes to sell a home:
1.
List the home in a place where you get the most exposure to buyers.
Well, there's no place like the Multiple Listing Service to make sure
your home gets seen. Every
Realtor (that's a real estate agent that's a member of the local
Board of Realtors) that shows property or works with buyers looks there
first for homes to show. However, the only people who have access to
add homes to the MLS are Realtors, so if you're doing it yourself -
you have to advertise somewhere else and you lose the workforce of thousands
who could show your home (and do the work) for you.
2.
Make your home available for viewing. By trying to sell your home
yourself, you not only lose the assistance of thousands of Austin area
Realtors to sell your home, but you also make it hard for a potential
buyer to see your home. When a buyer wants to see a home, they usually
want to see it right now! And, unless you have ultimate flexibility
to be at a buyer's beck and call, then you could lose a potential customer
because you had to work.
Also,
are you willing to jump at every buyer's whim to see the house only
to find out later that they aren't qualified to purchase your home?
A real estate professional will pre-qualify their customers before they
take them to a home to make sure that they can afford the houses they're
being shown.
3.
Price the home right! Let's face it, we love our homes! But sometimes
the old phrase "love is blind" applies to how a seller feels
about their particular property. You love your house, but that doesn't
guarantee that what you feel it's worth is fair market value for your
area. A Realtor has access to not just the asking prices of homes in
your area, but also the SALES prices. They've also very likely seen
lots of other homes in your neighborhood and know how your property
stacks up against the others that have sold. They can help you price
your home appropriately for the time frame in which you'd like to see
your home sold.
4.
Can you write a legal contract? What most people don't understand
is that they aren't hiring a Realtor to just market their home and to
bring buyers. They are really paying for the legal expertise that a
licensed real estate agent has and can apply to the contract writing
and negotiation of the home sales process. This level of expertise extends
even beyond the sale of your home to answer any questions that come
up after the close. You wouldn't go into court without a good attorney,
so why would you take on a complex legal transaction like selling a
home without someone who knows the law?
In
the long run, hiring a professional will save you time, hassles and
yes, maybe even some money in the amount they are able to negotiate
for your home.
To
talk to a professional about a free, no obligation Current Market Analysis
to see what you're home's worth and ask about our Sell it 39 days or
FREE guarantee! Call us at (512)567-7053.
David Hood
Austin Homes & Real Estate
(512)567-7053
