Most people prefer to use realtors for help with the process and paperwork, but there are some advantages of selling a home by owner instead of by an agent. Specifically, you might be able to make more money and take more control of the selling process, both of which are appealing if you prefer to be hands-on with things.
This doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing process. You can also hire a realtor at a reduced rate for specific tasks, such as handling important paperwork. Ultimately, how you choose to sell your house is up to you.
Here are the things you should know about the advantages of selling your home yourself in New York.
Why People Sell Their Homes on Their Own in New York
People sell houses themselves for many reasons. Some want to avoid real estate commission fees, others like being involved in the process, and some even use it as practice for becoming a realtor. Few things encourage you to sell a house correctly more than your house being the one on the market.
In other words, while you may see an advantage of selling a house as is and there are plenty of creative ways to sell a house, people do it themselves for many different reasons. This doesn’t mean it isn’t hard work, but a DIY approach can be a good option for home sellers.
Advantages of Selling a Home By Owner
There are plenty of reasons why people sell in the first place, but when selling it themselves, many people focus on a few specific advantages.
Make More Money
Is selling your house by owner worth it? It certainly could be if you’re looking to make more money. This isn’t always about greed, though. Some homeowners need the money they would have spent on fees to buy their next home. Having thousands of extra dollars on hand can make the difference between getting the perfect property or settling for less.
You can also get more money if you’re good at negotiating real estate prices.
Remember that realtors have experience with this, so practice and information are extraordinarily helpful. This is most practical in a seller’s market, where many people are trying to buy a property and negotiations are more realistic. If you don’t have many buyers, it’s hard to negotiate up.
Controlling the Home Selling Process
Another benefit of selling a house by owner is having more control over the entire sales process.
You can choose when to list the home, how to stage it for sellers, how to adjust the list price, and even when prospective buyers are allowed in.
Keep in mind that you won’t have total control no matter what, though. There are legal regulations on what you can do when selling a home, so things like refusing to show your property to certain people could trigger legal issues. Make sure you research your rights and your responsibilities when taking control of the process.
No Realtor Fees
This ties in with making more money, as described above. However, agent commissions are a specific and major cost of selling a home, often about 6% of the total sale price. That’s a lot of money even for a cheap property, and much more for a valuable place.
Remember that you can only avoid these fees in their entirety if you’re dealing directly with the buyer and they aren’t using a realty service or have a buyer’s agent, either. Otherwise, expect to pay their agent commission fees (about 3%) even if you don’t use a realtor yourself.
You Decide How the Home Can Be Sold
Finally, the last main advantage of FSBO sellers is the ability to decide how the home can be sold. This means more than setting the selling price. It also allows you to set the terms you want, such as which appliances need to stay or special conditions for the home sale. If you don’t like the buyer’s terms, you can reject them.
Deciding how the home can be sold is different from controlling the home selling process. That aspect focuses specifically on the process of selling a home, while this section focuses on the property itself.
Try to avoid going overboard, though. Buyers don’t want to have too many limits on what they can do with the property after they buy it and trying to demand that will only push them away. It’s best to stick to just one or two requests, such as not removing a tree that’s especially important to you.
Should You Sell Your Home By Yourself in New York?
This is a tricky question because it depends on the person. Some people are in a much better position to sell their own home than others. For example, realtors know enough about the process to do this successfully.
Doing it yourself is also a good option if you want to sell your house fast. Realtors can take months to stage and prepare a property, especially if they’re working on several other properties at the same time. If you know how to do the paperwork, you could potentially sell a house within a few days.
Realistically, it will probably take at least a few weeks to sell a home even if you’re doing it yourself. It may not be on the market for more than a day or two, but things like finalizing negotiations and waiting for approval from a lender can drag out the process. These are delays you have little control of.
Beyond the speed and the pricing as described above, another thing to consider about the benefits of selling a home by owner is that you could negotiate with a corporate buyer. Some of the cash home buyers Long Island residents hear from are companies, not individual homeowners, and they can offer rates significantly above average.
You’ll see similar things with companies that buy houses Brooklyn residents put up for sale. Much of the focus in real estate goes towards Manhattan and the surrounding areas, but even residents in the less-populated parts of New York may find friendly corporate buyers.
If you have a buyer willing to accept the property in any condition and pay significantly over the market price for it, you may decide that a realtor is unnecessary. You may still want one for buying your next property, but that’s something for the seller of that house to worry about since they’re ultimately the one who pays.
Information on FSBO in New York
Is it better to sell a house by owner in New York? Like all states, there are the pros and cons of the For Sale By Owner (FSBO) process before you jump into it. This is especially true when you’re asking to buy my house New York residents may be especially interested in it.
One of the advantages of selling a home by owner is avoiding realtors’ fees, but you will need to hire at least one person to help you. Specifically, you’ll need to find and hire a real estate attorney for some of the legal aspects of selling property. This is not negotiable in New York, but their fees are generally reasonable.
What are the advantages of selling a house privately in other areas? You have some control over the pricing, especially if you get an offer from a corporate buyer, but it’s important to take the time and investigate the real costs for properties in your area.
Real estate professionals may provide a market analysis for free, but if you’re looking for the market value yourself, look at the assessed home value from your most recent property tax bill. Next, look at other homes for sale in your area within $50,000 of your assessed value and try to figure out what makes them different from your property.
Comparing these properties can help you decide whether to adjust your home price up or down. It’s tempting to look at everything favorably, but be honest here or you might get potential buyers to walk instead. FSBO transactions already go for a little less, on average, than homes using good real estate agents.
Finally, remember that you can hire people for specific jobs, without needing to hire them for the entire thing. We discussed this earlier, but many people looking at FSBO think they cannot get help during the process, and that’s simply not true. Realtors can do market analysis, find you a professional photographer, conduct an open house, make phone calls, or just share some advice for minimal costs.
Final Thoughts
Now that you know more about the advantages of selling a home by owner in New York, it’s time to decide how to sell your property.
Even if you’re not ready to do that right now, knowing how you intend to sell eventually can help you prepare and get into a good starting position when you’re ready to sell.
If you’re not sure whether to sell yourself or hire a realtor, it’s usually better to go with the realtor. If you don’t have enough experience, you could end up overlooking something important and leave a lot of money on the table. However, if you’re ready to take control and confidence in your abilities, selling your home yourself has quite a few advantages.