Like the title says, anyone here do it themselves and forgo the real estate agent?

I'd definitely involve a lawyer if I did it to complete the paperwork, so my biggest question is, does the cost for having a lawyer prepare the paperwork come out to be any less than the 5-6% commission I'm going to pay an agent?

Anything else to consider?

It's a pretty hot market where I'm selling so getting interest probably won't be an issue.

I'm in Michigan if that makes any difference, and yes it is legal to sell a home yourself in Michigan with or without a lawyer or agent.

Thanks,

Don

Absolutely I sell them myself. Why pay someone that doesn't know your house anywhere near as well as you do to try and sell it for you skimming off 4-6% in the process?

The functions of those helpers are different.

Few brokers know much about real estate transaction documentation. Many states empower them to prepare standard form documents without being considered practicing law without a license. That doesn't mean everything will be hunky dory.

By the same token, lawyers are not particularly trained at marketing property, although owners do it so it must be so easy even a lawyer could do it.

Even a simple transaction these days benefits from knowing what you are doing, and never more so than when something goes goofy. That's when all the right "i's" have to be dotted and "t's" crossed or someone mught not live happily ever after. If you don't know what you are doing, it might be money well spent to have those skills on your side.

Are properties moving well in your area? How about values and pricing? Is your property in an area where many properties are facially alike, or are there wide differences in size, age, quality, features? How do you know what price is likely to attract buyers, without giving away a bunch by asking too low?

Is Michigan an escrow state? Do lawyers handle closings? Home inspections? Required disclosures? Financing? Contingencies?

There can be a lot to it, depending on the parties. What about cheats?

Yes, I've done it.
But.... I'm a lawyer and used to teach a course for real estate licensing.
Having said that, you can do it.
But be aware that the contract is a legal document, enforceable by both sides.
The value of the agent is primarily in finding the buyer. If you can find a buyer yourself but have questions or concerns about the process, you may find an attorney cheaper than a real estate agent.

The paperwork is a critical component with most people unaware of all the requirements. The NAR has been coy about adding a dizzying amount of disclosures, that overlooked, can come back to bite you badly. I can't help but believe part of the motivation is to control the process and protect their commissions. They also overtly dissuade buyers from working with FSBO's by planting the same potential hazard in their minds.

Real estate attorneys usually charge around $1000, maybe $1500 from what I've seen to do the paperwork and stuff needed, provided you advertise and sell it etc. My AV rated Real Estate attorney would probably only charge me $500, but I give him a lot of free phone time answering questions about his boat. LOL......Here in Florida the forms to sell real estate are pretty lengthy, but standardized from the state, so everyone uses the same exact forms/documents no matter which realtor etc. (This is for a residential straight forward sale). But then you still have a company do the title search, etc. Also some counties are different than others, IN Broward and Dade County the buyer pays for the title search and insurance, in the rest of Florida the seller pays for it and gets it. I think it's worth it to pay the $3-500 to put it on the MLS system.

From what I've seen in at least half of the cases the property does bring more money if a realtor is selling it.....FSBO's do scare away a good amount of buyers.....they're afraid of the process and having their own realtor is very comforting to them......

NOW, in a hot market, it doesn't matter as much.

I did back in 2002. House was only on the market a few months, listed it online and had a lawyer do the contract/closing. Very easy, worked great for us at the time. It was a hot market, lower priced home in an extremely desirable area, so that played into the decision. Saved a lot of money in commissions.

My folks just sold theirs thru Zillow, and saved about $10k in realtor's fees. No lawyer, either. However, they had a cash buyer with zero contingencies, so that simplified things I imagine.

I sold myself multiple times. First, yes get a lawyer. But you can find a lawyer with a fixed flat fee for a sale. Do that. If he runs into complications you won't pay more for the extra hours.

You can also find some realtor that will list on MLS for a small fee. That is also helpful. But make sure you let them know as soon as you accept an offer as MLS rules will fine if the listing shows available and it's not.

You can lastly offer any percentage you want to buyers brokers. Sometimes buyers have their own realtor and the realtor won't touch your house. If you offer 1-3 % to buyers broker you may have more luck.

As stated, yes you can do it yourself and get a knowledgeable Real Estate lawyer.

Most agents are fuckups that have a hard time running their own lives, much less getting stuff done on your property for 3-6% of the sales price... and remember, they get paid whether it is a good or bad deal, Agents are all about the sale!!!

I've done it twice with no issues - saved about $7K the first time and $25K the second. Sure it takes more work on your end, but it's totally worth it. Both times the market was HOT, so it was pretty quick.

In a harder market, you may need assistance.

The real estate agent, appraiser, and lender triad is a mafia of it's own.

As stated, a lawyer should be handling the actual transaction if/when it happens. That's not what you would hire a broker to do.

The main job of the broker is to market the property, find buyers, and get a transaction to the point where a lawyer would take over and get the transaction through to closing.

One thing to consider is that you may be able to get the property sold yourself, but would you be getting top dollar. Could a broker possibly get you a price that's enough higher to justify their commission. I had some apartments to rent. I thought they'd be worth $1500-1600/month. A broker got me $1950-$2000/month.

Also, they'd do a lot of the work with regard to showing the house. I don't know what your work situation is, but handling customers might be a significant PITA.

I've both bought and sold w/out using a realtor. In Indiana a title company can handle the closing and the paperwork as well as your title insurance policy. Cost is variable but typically considereably less than a realtor's commission.

Do you still pay the 3% to the buyers agent?

If I am acting as a buyer's agent and submit an offer it has my commission listed as part of the offer. Depending on my contract with the buyer it is part of the selling price or a separate payment from the buyer.

Same pile of closing money, just labeled differently.

I had to sell my father's house to help accumulate money for his long term care. The house needed a lot of work that neither he nor I could afford, so I sold it "as is", well below market. A lawyer drew up the contract and advised me on the process. The buyer took his signed contract to a title company of his choice and they handled the sale from there. It was actually quite easy. Fortunately, I did have power of attorney.

quote:

Originally posted by gpbst3:
Do you still pay the 3% to the buyers agent?

From what I've read if a buyer is using an agent then yes, I'd be paying their fee, but I can negotiate it.

quote:

Originally posted by GaryBF:
I had to sell my father's house to help accumulate money for his long term care. The house needed a lot of work that neither he nor I could afford, so I sold it "as is", well below market. A lawyer drew up the contract and advised me on the process. The buyer took his signed contract to a title company of his choice and they handled the sale from there. It was actually quite easy. Fortunately, I did have power of attorney.

Did you contact the lawyer first?

quote:

Originally posted by ubelongoutside:

quote:

Originally posted by gpbst3:
Do you still pay the 3% to the buyers agent?

From what I've read if a buyer is using an agent then yes, I'd be paying their fee, but I can negotiate it.

If you're selling the property yourself, you aren't obligated to give the buyers realtor a dime. I was selling my mother's house after she passed. The couple that bought the house showed up with a realtor in tow. I made it clear from the start that if the realtor was going to get paid, none of it was coming from me. I got full value for the house. No clue if the realtor got anything.

quote:

Originally posted by gpbst3:
Do you still pay the 3% to the buyers agent?

NO, you don't have to. HOWEVER, if you don't advertise or won't pay a few, no buyers agents will show their buyers your house generally. It just depends on how well you think you can sell it without paying a commission.

I've bought two and sold one myself using an Abstract Company.

_{Property abstract. ... A property abstract is a collection of legal documents that chronicle transactions associated with a particular parcel of land. Generally included are references to deeds, mortgages, wills, probate records, court litigations, and tax sales—basically, any legal document that affects the property. - wiki}