Myths of Selling Privately

Private sales go by many different names in the property world, including “commission-free property sales”, “agent-free real estate sales”, or “for sale by owner (FSBO) real estate”. 

Whatever phrase you use, it amounts to the same thing: selling your property directly to buyers without the use of a real estate agent.

There are many benefits to selling via the FSBO method, the least of which is the tremendous savings you’ll enjoy by not having to pay between 2-3% of your sale price in agents’ commissions, plus between $5,000-$10,000 on average for marketing costs. 

Let’s take a brief moment to reflect on how significant that is. Imagine your property is worth $600,000 and you’re trying to decide whether to use an agent to sell your property or to do it yourself. You’ve done some research and found that your local agent charges 2% in commissions fees.  After some quick calculations, you discover that selling your property with an agent means you’ll be handing over $12,000 in unnecessary fees, and that does not include the marketing costs which can amount to up to another $10,000.  Indeed, the average Buymyplace customer saves an average of $20,000 in commissions and fees by selling without an agent.

If you sell it yourself instead, $20,000 stays in your pocket, which can be put towards more important things, such as stamp duty, renovations on your next home, breathing room to reduce your listing price if you’re selling urgently, or even to reduce the size of your mortgage. 

Globally, private real estate is not a new fad, accounting for as much as 25% of all home sales in some European countries. Unfortunately, myths about the process of FSBO or selling privately — and the role of real estate agents — persist in Australia.

Here are the top seven myths about the FSBO process dispelled for our sellers:

MYTH 1: You must be a licensed real estate agent to sell a property 

Technology has revolutionised the real estate industry, and much like you don’t need to be a car salesman to sell your car anymore, you don’t need to be a real estate agent to sell your home. 

Private real estate companies like Buymyplace offer online marketing campaigns that enable you to sell your property yourself. If you don’t feel confident creating your own property listing, we have marketing campaigns that include professional services, such as real estate photography, professional copywriting and ‘For Sale’ boards. Our campaigns put you on exactly the same real estate websites as agents do.

MYTH 2: Buyers hate when property owners are present at Open for Inspections 

Feedback from our successful vendors and their buyers suggests the opposite. Buyer's love asking questions to sellers directly because they know they’re getting a fast, honest answer from someone who really knows the property.  

The same goes for negotiating the sale price, as buyers generally enjoy negotiating directly with the owner, which speeds up the process instead of waiting for an agent to go back and forth between the two parties before an agreement is reached. 

You can always seek assistance from one of Buymyplace’s professionals for assistance if you feel nervous about managing this aspect of your sale. Anything you need, we are here to help.

MYTH 3: You need an agent if you want to sell your property by auction 

If you decide to sell your property without an agent, FSBO companies such as Buymyplace can arrange a professional auctioneer for a fixed price, which is great value for money; especially when you consider a competitive auction process is an effective way to get more for your property.  

MYTH 4: You need a real estate agent to manage the legal aspect of selling property 

Agents don’t manage the legal aspect of selling property. This is always handled by legal professionals like conveyancers or solicitors. Even if you sell your property using an agent, they’ll simply refer you to one of their preferred suppliers.

Just as technology has revolutionised the real estate industry, it’s now possible to handle the legal aspects of selling property through online conveyancing businesses. Buymyplace offers you a cost-effective conveyancing package from our partnership with national conveyancing team, Lawlab.

MYTH 5: You can’t get a listing on the main property websites, like Realestate.com.au, when selling privately  

FSBO companies like Buymyplace have access to the same property websites, including Realestate.com.au and Domain.com.au, and the same listings as real estate agents. We can do this because we hold a real estate agent license in each state of Australia.

We can even arrange upgrade listings to give your property priority ranking in search results, in addition to all the other bells and whistles you might expect from an agent.

MYTH 6: You get more money when you sell with an agent  

Agents claim they’re better equipped to negotiate the best sale price for property. However, our internal comparative analysis shows that our vendors achieve and often exceed expected market sale prices.

Furthermore, most of these vendors also exceeded expectations in relation to average time on market.

Let’s not forget either that the sellers have also pocketed thousands of dollars that would have otherwise been paid out in agent commissions.  

MYTH 7: You really are going it alone, and it’s a lot to take on board 

Sometimes people decide to sell property (often blocks of land) completely on their own using websites like Gumtree. If you choose to sell that way, you are definitely going it alone.

However, in choosing to sell through a FSBO business like Buymyplace, you are selecting a partner who can help you through the sales process with professional support, resources and targeted advice. 

You can choose from our selection of marketing campaigns that will give you either basic or full support. 

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