It is, of course, tempting to go the for-sale-by-owner (FSBO) route instead of hiring an agent because you’ll save the 6% or so agent commission and wind up with more money in your pocket. But will you really? The truth is .. . you may actually make less on the sale. Beyond that, there are a host of other compelling reasons to work with an agent. So let’s take a look at the top 5 reasons why you should hire an agent over an FSBO in Atlanta.
1. Increased Chances ofShowings
To put it bluntly, if you don’t hire an agent, you may not get your home shown very much if at all. A buyer’s agent may be reluctant to set up a showing if she won’t be dealing with a real estate professional.
“In an FSBO deal, the buyer’s agent knows there won’t be a professional colleague on the other end of the transaction. Even if a client insists on seeing your home, the agent might discourage making an offer, citing the hassles and risks of trying to close the deal without a professional representing the seller – and without guaranteed commission.”
The fact is many buyer’s agents view FSBO sellers as unreasonable and difficult and so try to avoid dealing with them.
2. Broad Networks
Another reason to hire an agent over an FSBO in Atlanta is your agent’s broad professional network.
You can, of course, list your home yourself on such sites as Zillow and Craigslist, but you just won’t have the marketing reach that an agent will. “You don’t have relationships with clients, other agents, or a real estate agency to bring the largest pool of potential buyers to your home. A smaller pool of potential buyers means less demand for your property, which can translate into waiting longer to sell your home and possibly not getting as much money as your house is worth.”
A good Atlanta agent, on the other hand, will have a long list of names and contact information to draw on to allow for quickly spreading the word about your just-listed property. To discover more about the greater marketing reach you’ll have when you hire an agent, just call (404) 977-5054.
3. Buyer Vetting
And then there’s the matter of weeding out non-serious and unqualified buyers, another solid reason to hire an agent over an FSBO in Atlanta. Do you have the knowledge, experience, and time to vet buyers effectively? If not, you’ll waste a lot of time on mere tire kickers.
“An agent can find out whether someone who wants to view your house is really a qualified buyer or just a dreamer or curious neighbor. It’s a lot of work and a major interruption every time you have to put your life on hold, make your house look perfect, and show your home. You want to limit those hassles to the showings most likely to result in a sale.”
A good agent, through both training and experience, will know how to ask the right questions to “determine the seriousness, qualification, and motivation of a prospect.” And then your agent can “move a qualified and motivated person to the point of purchase.”
4. Negotiation Skill
This is where it really pays – literally – to hire an agent over an FSBO in Atlanta. Your agent’s negotiating skill and expertise will often get you a better deal, both price-wise and with respect to concessions.
Even if you have sales experience, do you have the specialized,industry-specific experience that negotiating a home sale calls for? If not, you’ll likely be better off hiring an agent, who will probably have experience negotiating hundreds of deals.
And then there’s the matter of emotion, which can certainly get in the way of negotiating the best deal. Many sellers, naturally, have an irrational emotional attachment to the home they’ve lived in for many years, and that can be counterproductive when it comes to negotiating. If you’re in that boat, you are “likely to be emotional about the process, and – without your own agent to point out when you’re being irrational – you’re more likely to make poor decisions.”
5. Better Marketing Tools
Finally, an agent will be marketing savvy and know how to use the best, most effective marketing tools, especially for digital marketing, which is an absolute must today. So unless you’re a digital marketing whiz, your best course is to hire an agent.
Here’s why: “91%of all [agents] make use of social media sites as a marketing tool. Just about everyone browsing their page is interested in buying a home in the local area. What’s more, [agents} are actively engaged in driving traffic to their own websites, and they also have the capacity to list homes on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).”
You can, of course, attempt this on your own, but it will cost you. For example, “[i]n order to list a home on the MLS, an FSBO seller will have to pay an outside agency several hundred dollars, as well as having to cover the cost of the buyer’s agent fee.”
For most sellers, then, it pays to hire an agent over an FSBO in Atlanta. If you’re ready to sell and enjoy the benefits that accrue when you hire an agent, contact us today at (404) 977-5054.