I would say that working with FSBO’s is one of the hardest jobs a Realtor has. I’ve spent 30 years in the real estate business, 20 of them as a real estate attorney (I’m an Associate Broker), and I can say that having seen 10,000 traps for the unwary and so many mistakes and disasters from people trying to do their own thing without a professional, I can’t imagine selling real estate without all the knowledge and experience I’ve acquired. It’s dangerous out there, and litigation catches a lot of sellers and buyers. A person can get lucky, though, and sell their house as a FSBO, and everything seems to go fine. Those are the stories that encourage a FSBO. (The national average is that 84% of FSBO’s end up listing with an agent.) On the other hand, many FSBO’s leave tens of thousands of dollars on the table, and they never know it. Many of my clients over the years ended up getting more in the end than my commission cost them compared to going FSBO. Effective marketing, negotiating price AND terms is something that takes decades to master. Reading a FSBO book will NOT a master make. Using a FSBO service or a discount service, well you don’t really get the experience and knowledge of a professional at all. As they say, you get what you pay for, or don’t in this case. For more on this subject, read my FSBO site.
Last Updated on June 6, 2024 by Chuck Marunde
