How do I buy a house “for sale by owner” if s/he doesn’t want to work with my realtor?
We are househunting with a realtor we love, but if the house we want is FSBO and won’t work with our realtor, how do we make sure it will be a smooth transaction? Are there benefits/disadvantages to buying a FSBO home? Thanks!
Content
If you enjoyed this post, please consider to leave a comment or subscribe to the feed and get future articles delivered to your feed reader.
Comments
If you have a signed representation agreement with your agent, chances are it says you’ll pay the commission in this case.
Unrepresented sellers raise lots of questions in my mind:
Why are they so reluctant to involve professionals in such an expensive and legally complicated transaction? Are they hiding something? Are they that cheap/careless with maintaining their house?
If they’re not willing to pay for something as simple as a buyer’s agent, are they going to pay for any repairs to the house found as a result of an inspect?
Are they aware of what they’re legally required to do? (ex. perform municipal or utility inspections, where required by law or provide seller’s disclosures?)
Are they not using an agent in an attempt to save money, and if so, are they not going to be willing to negotiate?
Benefit can be a slightly lower price, because the seller doesn’t have to pay commissions. Disadvantage can be the lack of support from a realtor on the legalities and quirks of the transaction.
You can, if you choose, offer to pay your realtor’s fees yourself, which should allow the transaction to go through as sort of a mixed deal.
if you assure the Seller that all realtor costs will be paid by the buyer (you) then maybe it can work. The Seller may want to sell “as is” for a reduced price. You could have an inspection made at your own cost, and then present any repair to the Seller; however, they would not be obligated to fix them, nor would you be obligated to buy the house.
yes, you have the right to have a realtor. BUT!!!!!!!!!!! the seller doesn’t have to pay them. If you want a realtor and the seller doesn’t want to pay them then you can pay them yourself.
she doesn;t want to pay the commission – that’s why she won;t work with your realtor – only alternative is to hire a real estate agent and split the costs – if she isn;t even willing to do that, I doubt she will ever sell the house, because the buyer should not be paying all the costs
Obviously the biggest disadvantage is them not wanting to work with your realtor! They don’t want to pay the commission, plain & simple. Talk to the realtor & see if you can offer full asking price to cover the commission, or see if you can even offer a little more. You have the right to have a realtor!
Good luck.