Real Estate: Buying & Selling Online

In defense of my profession, a Realtor, we are the confident voice of "relax" and "just hold on, don't drop your price yet", "you don't need to pay their closing costs this time", and "this is the deal of a lifetime, jump on it" that Redfin doesn't offer. In my experience, homeowners are off on their price about 10% or more - half of the time. Underpricing means they leave their money on the table, over pricing ussually means spending an extra 3 months on the market (and 3 months of payments). Almost anyone can sell a home, but doing it yourself, or discounted, will never put more money in your pocket. Seattle Agent, Jeff Josephsen, MBA

Anyone, Anyone can sell their own home. All you need to do is to know what forms that need to be filled out and you can learn that from a real estate book on Amazon. Agents don't want to let you know how easy it is to sell if you price you home correctly. I am a Broker (16 years) but before I was one I sold all of my own homes.

I love the advice of the Realtor. The sky is not falling (please), the sky is not falling (please), the sky is not.... The fact is their business model has not changed in decades and much like the music industry which chose to fight and cling to their failing model rather than find a way to live with customer choice and downloads now faces a similar uncertain future. Market "leaders" seem to always think the laws of gravity do not apply to them. The real estate and financial markets have seen boom and bust periods over the decades. But now the triple threat of unbridled consumer debt (UK residents can get 100% mortgages on over-valued properties - can you say margin call?), high energy costs and tight credit create the largest danger to the market. Just as the dotcom bubble burst in an ugly fashion in 2000-2001, the unbridled enthusiasm in real estate and hedge fund markets are all settling back to earth. One hopes for a soft landing but the cloud on the horizon is more ominous than anyone wishes to admit. Businesses adapt and change or end up like the dinosaurs - extinct.

I am also in the real estate business, as a licensed assistant to an agent. I have seen many people try to sell their home on their own. Some are successful, some are not. The biggest problem I see is people overpricing their home, which can lead to a lack of interest, as well as mortgage rejection. Your home also doesn't get as much exposure as it does when you're listed with an agent. Agents not only use their local website to advertise...they market your home in home buying magazines, on their own websites, hold broker open house luncheons to get other agents in there to see the home. The agent I work for even advertises his listings on television. A realtor is an expert in the field. They can offer advice, and help you get the best possible price for your home, while not allowing you to get "screwed", so to speak. Same goes for buyer's agents. You don't want to pay more for a house than it's worth, right?

And to Denis... Here in the states, the realtor's business model HAS changed. It's changed quite a bit, actually.

I am a Realtor. As a listing agent representing sellers it is important to keep them out of bad contracts. As a buyer's agent representing potential buyers one of the biggest problems is the amount of time wasted. I'd be happy to work under the following conditions, but doubt many buyers will choose this route. "Redfin can also host a private tour of homes for sale. A Redfin field agent will show you around for three hours, and you can see as many homes as you like. Your first tour is free. After that, we charge $250 per three-hour block, or $125 for a single property. Even if you spend $1,000 for five tours, you still can save $9,000 on a $500,000 property." ---from www.redfin.com I fear that rather than pay Redfin to show a home a buyer will deceive a traditional buyer's agent (who works for free unless a sale results) to show the house, and THEN call Redfin to buy.

YES, PTK!!! Exactly! A buyer doesn't typically have to pay their agent...the listing agent for the home purchased pays the buyer's agent. So how, exactly, is the buyer saving any money? That's a false claim by Redfin.

Not enough Natty. Tweaking is not changing. If it were to really change there would be more RedFins out there not estate agents whingeing about them. There are far too many clueless estate agents chasing far too few properties lured by stars in their eyes and the prospect of earning $20,000 for four hours of work. The gig is up folks, your hands have been caught in the cookie jar. Never, ever underestimate the power of an informed public. I dunno, the math seemed pretty straightforward... getting 1/3 back sure looked like a significant savings even if buying other services a la carte. Keep fighting change in today's market and it will just steamroller you baby. I'd love to open a RedFin franchise here in Wales, it would shock these 2 per cent 100% salary estate agents back to the stone-age.

I think the Real Estate People are just too greedy they make big money from just ordinary people that work 30 yrs to pay their homes or got from their hard working parents here comes along a shark Agent telling bunch of lies about the market the great perfect sale price but doesn't tell the client that he /she will be making about what takes them a year of work salary to sale their home. I think is time to eliminate this Business over all we all need a broker to do the documents not an agent si People stop making these Gredy sales people rich with your kids money. Stefano from Rancho Cucamonga california

I have been in the industry since the 1970's and have seen things go from the 1 Page Contract to the Current 20 plus crucial pages of statutory disclosures, point of sale ordinances and various city and county directives that can make or break the successful after closing experience. For example: The Seller who did not disclose the suicide of the previous owner in the master bedroom of the property and the buyer found out via a casual conversation with the neighbor who happened to be in front of the property the afternoon on which the buyer was scheduled to sign closing papers. Or the wrong address on the purchase contract which resulted in the buyer attempting to enter the wrong property ( the key did not work, the true owner was home and all hell broke loose) and found out that he had purchased the wrong address: fun in court for months after that..... Or many other horror stories I have come across in my dealings with For Sale By Owners: Please be very careful before you make a decision that has such severe pitfalls for all who attempt to do things incorrectly.