FSBO sites: new opportunities for home sellers

It is well known fact that, traditionally, the role of the real estate broker has been to help sellers market their home to other brokers representing buyers; as compensation, the brokers keep a percentage of the final sale proceeds.

In the process, the broker shares local market data with the seller to help set the asking price, puts a sign in the yard, sends out fliers, prepares brochures, takes out ads and networks with other real estate professionals. The broker also handles queries from prospective buyers, negotiates on behalf of the seller and sees the transaction to its close.

One of the broker’s most important functions has been to list the property in the MLS, or Multiple-Listing Service, a nonpublic database that alerts buyers’ agents to what’s on the market and how much they could be paid. When a seller agrees to list his house with a full-service licensed broker who is a member of the MLS, he relinquishes control of the listing. Even if the seller finds his own buyer, he will still be required to fork over the commission.

Nowadays, sellers can perform many of those functions themselves — often at lower cost.

Sellers can tap the Internet to learn what the market conditions are and help set their price. Websites such as Trulia.com, Fizber.com, GetHappyHome.com, Catalisthomes.com and ZipRealty.com offer free information about recently sold homes, average time on market, neighborhood price trends and other market information that was previously available only to brokers.

Once a homeowner decides to sell, sites such as Fizber.com, GetHappyHome.com, Zillow and Craigslist.com offer a free platform for consumers to advertise their properties, allowing them to reach potential buyers without the MLS.

All this is making it easier for consumers to educate themselves about their local housing market in a way unimaginable even five years ago.

“With all the sources and the breadth of real estate content and with more analytical tools, and given the fact that more consumers have become skittish about overpaying, consumers will continue to use more of these tools online,” said Steve Murray, publisher of Real Trends, an industry newsletter based in Littleton, Colo.

Source http://www.latimes.com

This post was found on FSBO.FizBer.com
Follow the link to get to the orginal message.