How To Sell Your House Without An Agent

When thinking about selling your Greater Cincinnati Area house, you need to know that you have options! Listing your home on the MLS is not the only way to sell your house. More and more people are learning how to sell their homes without an agent, which in turn, saves time and money! People are selling their house without an agent all over Northern Kentucky cities like Fort Thomas, Newport, Fort Wright, Florence, Erlanger, Burlington, Hebron, Independence, Fort Mitchell, Alexandria, Bellevue and other NKY cities. Learn more about it works in our latest blog!

How To Sell Your House Without An Agent in Greater Cincinnati Area

What Are The Benefits To Listing Without An Agent?

Save Money On Commissions

There are numerous benefits to eliminating the middle man. One of the biggest benefits is saving money. Both on commissions and out of pocket expenses when you go to list the home.

To be able to offer a competitive property, you will most likely need to make some repairs and upgrades to the home. If you have ever done a home repair project yourself, you will know that there are typically unforeseen costs and several trips to Home Depot.

I’m in the middle of remodeling my laundry room right now, and I because I am still an amateur DIY’er, I find the costs are my construction mistakes as well as all of the time studying and watching YouTube videos!

If you hire a pro, your costs can be significantly higher. Only take on projects you know you are capable of. This isn’t the time to start practicing your new wall texturing methods.

One benefit of not using a realtor is that you don’t have to pay anyone a commission. A direct sale between two private parties will allow you to keep the commission money in your pocket! You can expect to pay about 6% of your final sale price is commissions to the agents. This can be several thousand dollars! If you’re home is $100,000, expect to pay $6,000 in commissions. If your home is $300,000, you’ll be paying $18,000 in real estate commissions alone.

No Constrictive Listing Agreements

Also, when you work with an agent, you will typically be bound by a listing agreement, giving them the exclusive right to sell. This means, no matter how you sell the home (even if you find the buyer yourself) you will still owe a commission to your agent.

How Do I Get Started?

So, you are interested in selling your Northern Kentucky house without an agent. Let’s say you are in Florence, Fort Thomas, or Newport and want to sell your house, what are your first steps?

Set your price, but do your homework first. People often think their homes are worth more than they actually are. This is a common mistake made by FSBO sellers (For Sale By Owner). Don’t count on Zillow or other sites to give you your home value. Most realtors never go by these numbers as they often become skewed by false data.

Research is key when determining the value of your home. Look at what houses in your area are selling for. Not what they are listed at, but what the final sales prices are. You can ask a realtor to help with a CMA to get information without signing a listing agreement. What you are really trying to find our local comparables, “comps”, to help you understand what the market will pay for your NKY house.

If you try to set your price high and aren’t seeing any interest, you can always lower it. However, prospective buyers will be able to see your pricing history on the MLS and sites like Zillow and Trulia. Repeated, small drops can make you look desperate as a seller, or it could signal that something is wrong with the home. This hurts your chances of buying a home.

Think about it. If you are a buyer on Zillow or Trulia and you are scouring the internet for homes in Fort Wright, Erlanger, Burlington, Hebron or Independence KY, when you click on the Price History and see it dropping, it’s like blood in the water. You feel that buyer may be desperate and you can negotiate even a lower price.

Try to set a fair and well-thought out price from the get-go, and you won’t have to deal with lowering it or not having interest. You can always seek the opinion of a professional appraiser. This will typically cost a few hundred dollars.

Work Your Advertising Game

Pictures say a thousand words! Time and time again, you see real estate listings with poor imagery. If you want to sell your house using online advertising, you need to have great pictures! If your pictures don’t look professional, hire a pro. A professional photographer may cost you a few hundred dollars, but could significantly improve your selling price.

This might be one of the best things you do when selling your home. In addition to great pictures, you need to make sure the text gives as much detail about the property as possible. Let people know exactly what they are getting, and make sure to touch on every amenity the house offers. Be sure to be mindful of Protected Classes in all of your advertising.

Make It Happen!

You will want to prepare your house for listing. Clean like you have never cleaned before and make any noticeable repairs. Get a head start on packing by removing all clutter and personal items. People don’t like to feel as if they are intruding when they enter your home.

Make a list of selling points/upgrades to show prospective buyers. If the AC was replaced last year, and the roof the year before that, be sure to let them know. Hand out a flyer or brochure with this information, as well as your contact info. You will also want to be a “concierge” to prospective buyers. An agent can usually answer questions about the area, and you should be able to too. Make a map with important places marked. Know where schools are and how long commutes take.

You’ve Found A Buyer, Now What?

Create a contract and accept only WRITTEN offers that include a deposit. You should consult with an attorney and accept the offer only on their approval. Without an agent, you will need to handle all legal and financial paperwork. It is best to work with a lawyer, and a title company you know and trust.

Hopefully, you can do everything above and sell your house without an agent. But if it all seems to overwhelming, or it hasn’t been working for you, we can help. If you are READY TO BE DONE with your property, we will buy it from you. We buy houses all over Northern Kentucky in cities like Florence, Fort Thomas, Fort Wright, Fort Mitchell, Bellevue, Newport, Covington, Burlington, Villa Hills, Alexandria, Hebron and everywhere else in NKY. Give us a call today, and we can give you a cash offer within hours.