Is selling your home yourself really the best use of your time? Real estate agents sell about 80% of real estate in this country.

There is a lot more to it than the 4 “P”s of real estate: Putting a sign in the yard, Putting an ad in the paper/internet, Putting it in the MLS, Praying that it will sell. Realtors are trained in all aspects of real estate from staging, properly placing your home in the market place, producing ad material and brochures, compliance with state & federal laws (which FSBO sellers are not exempt from, but are usually very ignorant of), pre-qualifying, matching appropriate buyers to your home and securing suitable financing.

Realtors “screen” who sees your home and know something about them before they get there, reducing the opportunity for thieft. How does- better yet how can a FSBO do all of that and maintain their full time job? Virtually impossible!

Realtors pay for themselves in that they usually secure substantially higher contract prices for the home than FSBO sellers, in turn helping maintain neighborhood values, putting more money in the seller’s pocket, and they are more likely to timely get the seller out of an investment that no longer works thereby stopping further investments in the no longer wanted investment.

A missed sale cost the entire sale, as in missed opportunities. Would you hire a surgeon with a 10% success rate? 20% of real estate is not sole by Realtors, meaning that of the 20% remaining, some are builders with in house agents, some are corporate relocation companies, and some are real FSBO. Statistics show that about 80% of sellers who start out as FSBO usually, following a failed contract or several weeks on their own end up placing their property in the hands of a Realtor. Realtors are connected and co-operate with each other, even from other real estate companies, to put sales together and reduce market time and expenses for all concerned.

There are some licensees, as in any industry that do not need to be in the business, but by far if you select a full broker with professional designations you typically will get a good one. You do get what you pay for in the business world. Pay too little and you have a potential failure situation. Pay too much and you end up short. Interview the broker you want to use and choose the best qualified broker. Brokers can own their own brokerage or manage a brokerage for another broker; affiliate or associate brokers must work under a broker and have fewer licensing requirements. Brokers have more training and usually more experience, and the brokerage fee is the same.

Get the full broker.

If he actually brought some one he is working with over to see the house and has a valid offer, then he will be in touch within 72 hours. If not he is full of bologna or he is busy trying to talk those folks into something else that is a moresure thing for his commission. I would just wait it out.

This is NOT common practice. When the loan is paid off, he gets the house free and clear. How long will this go on for? 25 years? What happens if you want to move? What happens if he wants his money?

Talk to a lawyer asap.

He probably signed a document when he bought the house saying that he promised to occupy it as his principal residence. If the bank finds out, then he broke the contract and the bank can call the loan. Calling the loan means pay the balance in full right now or we’re taking the house.

Even if you don’t get caught, the other person could say “this was rent” and refuse to turn it over to you. He could give you a written contract, but most contracts in this situation specify that if anything bad happens, like one payment being late by one day, the deal is off and the house stays with the seller and you don’t get a refund. If it’s his name on the title, he could legally go to a bank and take out a 200K home equity loan which would result in a lien on the house, for which you would be responsible when you accept the title at payoff. He could get sued, which would result in a lien on the house.

Don’t fall for it.

Even though he says he will sign over the deed to you once it is paid, without written documentation filed with the town clerk, he could stiff you. Also all you are doing is keeping his credit score alive, it does nothing for yours.

If you want to be protected, then seek legal council. You will need to do a title search to make sure their are no liens on the property that could pop up later on. Also, if he defaults on any other loans and receives a judgment, then a lien could be placed on the house because it is still in his name.

Hope this answer is of help to you
LEGAL DISCLAIMER: The answer provided here is intended for informational purposes only. It is not intended nor presumed to be legal counsel or professional legal advice

I once made a fully functioning web site using Django, Postgresql and about 50 lines of Python code to track the license usage of hundreds of database servers.

But the factor of personal comfort should weigh above all else. Using the BEST tool for the job may mean the job gets done a lot later after you have mounted the learning curve for the use of the .best. if there is even a .best.

Establish a relationship with an attorney. You do not want to make a legal misstep involving such a large transaction. Also, an attorney will review offers you get to ensure that the terms are both legal and in your best interests. If you do nothing else, please for your own protection, do this.

Additionally, you need to decide now how much commission you will pay to a buyer’s agent. If you say “nothing” you risk having an agent refuse to show your property to a client.

Know that you will be contacted regularly by agents, even those without interested clients. I bring this up because I’m married to an agent. He works in particular areas and tries to preview all homes for sale, even those that are unrepresented. He has encountered unrepresented sellers who have yelled at and/or hung up on him and slammed doors in his face all because he didn’t have a specific client for that property they day he called/knocked. What do you think an agent treated like that will do when next week a client interested in a house like yours walks in to his office? And absolutely be prepared to have strangers, both agents and potential buyers to knock on your door any day, all day. Any time you aren’t home, you miss the potential to sell your house.

Your home should always be ready to show. This means clean, and with next to no clutter. If you have lots of knick-knacks, now is the time to pack them. It’s also often advisable to remove personal photographs.

As for advertising, the best medium depends on your market. Where I live, most buyers start looking online. The newspaper has virtually died here as a means to sell a home. If you’re not in the MLS, there’s a good chance your listing won’t be on most websites. You can get in with a discount broker who may do little more than list your home in the MLS for a flat fee, but you should still consult an attorney to find out what minimum service requirements are for such a broker.