Berkeley Parents Network: Buying or Selling a house without a realtor

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Buying or Selling a house without a realtor

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > Housing, Neighborhoods, & Moving > Buying or Selling a house without a realtor

Buying our first house without a realtor
Considering For Sale by Owner (FSBO)
Moving to Washington; want to sell our house FSBO
Didyou consult with a realtor when you sold FSBO?
We have a buyer for our house - should we use a realtor?
More Advice about Buying and Selling

Buying our first house without a realtor

Feb 2007

My partner and I are getting ready to buy our first home. We are thinking of not using a buyer's agent but want to weigh out the +/- of doing it alone. We'd love feedback/suggestions from other first time buyers who purchased without an agent. Thanks! too risky???

Why would you want to buy your home without a Realtor? The seller pays the commission, not the buyer. You should get a good realtor. She will help you through a process that can be complex and sometimes intimidating. If you want a recommendation on a GREAT person for a first-time buyer, contact Janet Kaplan of Windemere Real Estate on Colusa in Berkeley. Her phone is 809-1719 and her email is realjk@earthlink.net. I can't say enough good things about how helpful she would be for you! anon

My wife and I bought our first house two years ago. We didn't go through an agent, but we did use a Real Estate attorney, who worked on the behalf of both seller and buyer. We split the $1500 fee with the seller. It was a good experience; we didn't have to worry about anything. We haven't had any regrets regarding the deal in any way.

I am the wife of a realtor and I can tell you that there's absolutely no reason to buy a house without one. You don't pay for them: they get paid part of the commission that the seller's agent negotiates.

And a good agent not only gives you access to homes at times when there aren't open houses, or at times that are convienent for you, but they protect your interests, help you negotiate the contract and in general take care of all of the legal, contractual and paperwork issues involved with buying a house. An agent can help you find financing that works for you since there are so many ways to finance a house (assuming you don't have a wad of cash to plunk down and buy it outright).

An agent can also help you with recommendations for services once you've purchased your place: plumbers, gardeners, handymen and the like. And a good agent is there after the fact to help with things that arise after you move in. Real Estate agents are (or should be) service-oriented, and not just out to make a buck.

You need to find an agent you're comfortable with, one who understands your wants, needs and limitations. You need to find someone who is willing to work with you and with whom you can be honest.

Not every agent out there is a sleaze ball who is going to push you into something you will feel buyer's remorse about. I can say that my husband isn't that way, and neither was the agent who helped us buy our first house before my husband changed careers.

Ultimately, if you don't use an agent you are at a disadvantage in the negotiation aspects, as well as seeing everything that is available, and are opening youself up to having the deal collapse and your deposit disappear because of any number of things that may go awry once escrow has begun.

My husband's website is www.joel-sells-homes.com and check out his testimonal page for other people's perspectives too.

Good luck and don't go it alone! Claire

You have absolutely nothing to lose by using a realtor. All realtors involved in a transaction are paid by the seller from the proceeds of the sale. It would be in your best interest to call a few realtors and at least talk to them about this. There is so much that goes into buying a home (inspections, loans, negotiations, etc), and you don't want to regret it later on. A few reccomendations: Mark and Katie Lederer at Red Oak Realty on Solano Avenue Anita Thede and Heidi Abramson at Northbrae Realty Good luck! former buyer

Not sure why you'd want to go without a buyer's agent. The seller is the one who pays their fees (you pay nothing), plus, they will teach you a lot about the process and protect your interests. buyer's agent fan

I think the post about hiring a real estate attorney is a great idea. I personally think NOT using a real estate agent, even as a buyer, is the way to go. There are so many inherent conflicts of interest in the whole process. We used one that didn't disclose a very personal relationship with the inspector they recommended and the inspector didn't reveal that he had been the same inspector on the same house for previous verbal reports (we knew about one prior written) and the whole thing left me queasy. Also, the advice real estate agents give you about what a house is worth is suspect since they have an invested interest in the particular price because of the commission and also in the overall market sustaining at current levels. A lawyer may not be able to find you an inspector but you can find a good one yourself and a lawyer will only being looking out for your interests and not ''networking'' their interests the way I think real estate agents do (with mortgage brokers, contractors, inspectors, etc.). And the Sellers will be happy to save paying your broker 2.5%. The sellers will certainly be able to do the math and ''add'' that savings to your offer if they're weighing others. Good luck!

There is a very good reason for buying your first house without the traditional realtor, and that is because it's possible to get all the perks of having professional representation by qualified realtors through an online service such as BuySide.com while getting the added financial advantage of getting a rebate of 75% of whatever commission is paid to BuySide by the seller. BuySide is something everyone buying their first house (and needing some extra cash) should know about, because the savings will add up to thousands of dollars. You can also surf the BuySide web site to see all the listings the real estate agency have access to, and you can call the agents to get answers to your questions, and get whatever level of hand-holding you might need. While I have not yet had the pleasure of dealing with BuySide, my best friend swears by them, and I heartily recommend that you at least check it out. Cynthia

Considering For Sale by Owner (FSBO)

Nov 2005

Hi - We are considering selling our N Berkeley home in order to move into a larger home. Because it is such a financial reach for us to purchase a bigger house, we are considering a ''for sale by owner,'' and would have to move very quickly. We know this is risky, and have read the posts in this newsletter archive, but are wondering: what experiences with FSBO do any of you have, particularly recently given the fact that the market seems to be at a tipping point? Would you only do FSBO if you knew of very interested buyers, or are there ways to advertise and market your home to minimize big risks? Thank you for advice! Anonymous

Hi there! I am a local Realtor and saw your questions about selling on your own and thought I might suggest a few things too!

While this may be shocking to hear, I think that anyone who wants to sell their home on their own should give it a try. But it isn't for everyone. Buying and selling a home can be one of the most stressful experiences a person can go through, even if you have an agent! If you are a great negotiator, willing to spend some time on the weekends to hold open houses, willing to take a bunch of phone calls throughout the day, and comfortable with strangers commenting on your house while you are there, you could be successful at selling your home.

My biggest suggestion in this changing market for people who are wanting to sell on their own is to retain a lawyer-not only to help with the obnoxious amounts of paperwork, but protect your interests in case of a lawsuit. For the past 8 years it has been easy for a house to sell- even a house under a freeway without any windows would sell for top dollar and in no time at all! In the past month alone houses have begun to fall out of contract more frequently and buyers are starting to make demands on the sellers. The contract is a legally binding document so if you don't retain a lawyer, make sure you understand the paperwork- there is a ton, especially in Berkeley! I REALLY can't emphasize this enough!

One aspect of my business is holding open houses for people who are selling on their own. This service is not intended to ultimately list your house; it is intended to bring you a qualified (meaning lender-approved) buyer...if you would like some more information about this, feel free to contact me. Just be sure to do your research. There are a lot of great books out there.

I hope this is helpful for you!

Best of luck! Krista Miller

Moving to Washington; want to sell our house FSBO

Feb 2004

We have decided to move to WA and will be selling our house in East Oakland in early May. We are going to try and sell it For Sale By Owner (FSBO). This is overwhelming to us so I would like to solicit for some advice from those of you who have been there and done that. The website lists a few opinions but mostly from people who already had a buyer and that is not us.
1. How did you handle the open house? Where you there? etc.
2. Did you get your house listed on a MLS list and how did you do it with without having an realtor?
3. How did you determine the selling price?
4. Did you have it set up to run credit checks on prospective buyers?
5. Did you purchse the forms from the Real Estate Board yourself or does the buyer have to go get these?
6. Did you select the Title company or did you let the buyer?
7. Did you have it inspected beforehand so that the paperwork was available for prospective buyers?
8. How do we set it up to accept offers? Do we get a fax machine, courier service, etc?
9. Where you scared the whole time that you would mess up on some part of the paperwork and the new buyers would come after you? If so, when does that go away?

Thanks so much for any help out there.

I know it's natural to say I am biased because I am a broker, but all the questions you posed are just the beginning of the concerns one can have in attempting to properly and legally sell your home yourself. If nothing else, interview 2-3 agents and ask them to justify their fee, as well as how they would get you the best price in this admittedly hot market. Good luck in any case. Tim Cannon

I didn't see the original post but I believe someone was asking for advice for ''for sale by owner.'' Essentially, this is what we did, but we also used a realtor for a small fee to do all the paperwork, escrow filings, etc. He (Hal) was amazing! The total fee was $2,200 which we split between the buyer and the seller. It saved us from a lot of legal headaches. The company is Realty Advocates located in Oakland. You can see their website at http://realtyadvocates.com/ They also do low commision advertised sales as well (I believe for 1 or 2%). Good Luck. Karen

Didyou consult with a realtor when you sold FSBO?

April 2003

I have seen this issue on the Parents' web site from 2002, however the posts don't really address my question. We were wondering if anyone who has sold their house ''without a realtor'' could recommend their realtor that they consulted with. Also, what was their hourly fee or cost? The posts on the web site are from people who already had a buyer lined up. We don't have a buyer for our house; we are thinking of selling next year. Is it difficult to find a buyer on your own? Is there a way to post on the MLS without being a realtor? Is the MLS the best way to advertise? We'd like to do as much as we can on our own as we tend to do this with all other things if possible (install our own floor tiles, fix the sprinkler pipes ourselves, restain the cabinets ourselves, change out the light fixtures and do our own small electrical fixes, etc) Anon

I'm sorry I don't have a recommendation for a Realtor for you. I am writing to give you my thoughts on this issue as an attorney. There are so many forms and disclosures that are required now for selling a home that I would recommend against selling without a Realtor, unless you REALLY know what you're doing. I have purchased property without a Realtor, but personally, I would use one if I were selling. Also, a good Realtor can often get you more money than you would be able to get on your own, which can more than offset the cost of their commission. Please call me if you would like to discuss this further. Amy

We have a buyer for our house - should we use a realtor?

Feb 2002

I and my sisters will be selling a house that the renter is interested in buying. There was a post by Michele about buying such a house, and it appears she did use a realtor as a consultant to help to some degree. I would appreciate any advice/experiences on whether we should use a realtor or not, and if not, who can we use for help? Do people negotiate a smaller percentage fee for this kind of thing? This is a small house in West Marin, and I don't think the market is as hot there as it has been here. Susan

We sold our North Oakland house about 2 years ago without realtor and it was as easy as pie. Like you, our neighbor wanted to buy our house, it was a really "hot" market, and both parties were committed to the process without a realtor. (We didn't want to stage our house (the latest requirement) and we knew we would need a flexible rent-back period while we searched for another house in an extremely competitive market.)

We bought a copy of the NOLO Press book, Buying and Selling a House in California, read the necessary chapters and used the forms included with the book. We figured out how to price our house by doing "comps" of selling prices in our neighborhood, and included a little padding should we need to hire a lawyer, or back out of the deal. We added language for the rent-back period as a separate, attached document. We hired a lawyer named John Hayes to look at the paperwork, which ended up taking about an hour of his time. The whole thing cost about $125.00 total--no staging, no open houses, no fees to a realtor (who you don't need if you already have an interested buyer), and the satisfaction of doing the transaction ourselves. The Nolo Press books are at most public libraries, and at the Nolo Press Store on Parker Street. Good luck! Claire

I bought my first house without a realtor. The seller lower the price about 4% since they wouldn't be paying a commission and we hired a realtor (she charged by the hour) to help us write the contract. We both felt better know that we were in compliance with all of the legal requirements, and the realtor was impartial and fair to both sides. - KsK.

Hi, We bought our house from a family friend without using the typical services of a realtor. Our friend had the house appraised and we agreed on the terms, the amount and scheduled and paid for an inspection ourselves. We then used Realty Advocates on Alcatraz for our paperwork. They take a smaller percenage than a typical realtor and made the paperwork very easy. I read some books on doing it w/o a realtor at all and this seemed a little more complicated but not impossible. Since this was our first home, we decided to have a little guidance and used the books to help us ask the right questions. We split the cost of the realtor with the friend we bought the house from. Good luck. (www.realtyadvocates.com)(510) 428-0757 anonymous

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