This blog post is to inform you about whether Zillow or a Real Estate Agent is better for you.
The answer may be different depending on your situation, so we have outlined the pros and cons of each option.
This article will also discuss how both options could benefit you in various ways based on your needs, where you are located, and what stage of life you are in.
We can’t make this decision for you but if this information helps guide your decision then that’s all we can hope for!
Hopefully, by the end of this article, we will shed some light on which option makes the best sense.
Why Do People Use Real Estate Agents?
In today’s busy world, people don’t have enough time to do all of the things that they need to do.
In particular, house hunting can be a long and difficult process. An Agent can help shorten this process by doing some of the work for you.
They will find properties in your price range, and neighborhoods that you wanting to view.
The same thing happens when you are thinking about selling your home. You have to remember that selling your home is a process.
And the question to ask yourself is do you have enough time to deal with family, work and then think about answering 5 to 10 buyer’s questions about your home?
You have to also remember that even when you are dealing with doing For Sale By Owner Zillow online.
If you don’t answer that buyer’s email promptly you will lose that buyer to the next seller down the street who has someone to answer the buyer’s questions.
Remember the old saying time is money! And that is one of the main reasons why you choose to allow me to list your home right now because I’m here to make sure you’re getting the most bang for your buck.
The Real Estate Agent is here to make sure you can focus your attention on the things that matter and that is dealing with your family and making sure you can deal with work vs having to run to show the house at 2 pm then turn around and have to show the property at 4 pm.
What Are The Pros And Cons Of Using A Real Estate Agent?
When you’re looking to sell your home, it can be invaluable to have the expertise of a real estate agent.
An agent knows the area’s market, can help you plan out the best way to get the home sold, and is an expert negotiator on your behalf.
Another advantage is you gain the Agents Experience. If you are working with an Agent who has been around a long time then you are gain the Real Estate Agents Experience.
Sometimes a transaction isn’t always smooth. Sometimes, in a transaction, there might come a time when you have things that prevent the transaction from closing on time.
This is where an experienced Agent can help smooth out the rough edges of a transaction and get the property to close when rough points arise.
Cons however when dealing with an Agent is you have to understand that the Agent’s time isn’t free.
When Listing Your Home For Sale the Agent has to charge a fee to do so. And this fee can be negotiable between your Real Estate Agent.
Remember, everything is negotiable. Typically this fee can range from 1 to 6 percent of the purchase price of the home.
Real Estate Agents make sure that you get the best deal and make your home selling process a lot easier.
They will be there to answer any questions that you have and to help you negotiate with buyers.
What is the difference between Zillow and a conventional realtor?
When you are thinking about doing For Sale By Owner Zillow. You are using the Zillow website that provides a platform for people to list their home for sale without going through an agent.
Sellers can advertise their properties on the site and manage their listings themselves. The site attracts buyers with the promise of saving time and money, as well as potentially getting a better price
But the question is do you have the time to show the property, and deal with would-be buyer’s answers, and make sure that buyers are qualified to buy the home?
For example, the other day I get a phone call from a buyer who wanted to see the property I was listing and wanted to see it within 1 hour from the time they called me.
Do you have the time to get in your car get off work to go show the prospective buyer the home?
“Zillow: Pros- The site covers millions of homes for sale across the nation as well as many other properties for rent; it’s easy to use; they offer helpful information such as school districts and crime rates; offers up-to-date listings including new construction homes. Cons – It doesn’t provide personalization”
These are hard questions to think about. And sometimes in the end FSBO tends to list with an Agent.
In reality, sellers can end up making less money by not using a Real Estate Agent to represent them.
That’s because Real Estate Agents have local knowledge of all the homes on the market, how much they are selling for, and what other homes in that area should be worth.
They also have access to many more potential buyers than a seller would by posting their property on For Sale By Owner Zillow alone.
One Last Point would be that when you deal with a conventional Realtor, you get something that you can’t get online. Personal touch.
Remember, Real Estate is a people’s business. You have to be able to communicate with other people. And when you go conventional you are hiring someone that you like, trust, and who meets all of your expectations.
How Can I Find Out If My House Is Worth As Much As It Says on Zillow Or Not
Before Selling your home, it’s necessary to research to see what the home is worth. You can use Zillow.com to give you some idea of an approximate worth.
That is one of the advantages of Zillow. They do have information that gives you some type of estimate of what your home is worth.
However, you must remember this one important thing. Buyers ultimately decide on what the home is worth. (Read that again)
Buyers can determine what the home is worth. Because buyers will make the offer if they feel that the price is right for them.
Even though you might see the price showing $450,000 on Zillow. If all the offers are coming in at $425,000. Buyers are letting you know, this is what they are willing to give you for the home.
Also, housing goes thru cycles. Within the last few years, it has been a seller’s market. But, keep in mind the buyers make the offers.
So if buyers see a home and it’s listed at $525,000 and you have a multiple offer situation.
The seller is asking you for the highest and best offer. The highest offer came in at $545,000 and the home is listed at $525,000. Then the buyers have said, “Hey we are willing to pay you the $545,000 for the home.” This is what the buyers are willing to pay.
Also know that you can have a Real Estate Professional do a CMA on the property to determine what they would list the property for. You can also compare the difference if necessary.
However, when in doubt, you should hire a professional appraiser to get a more accurate number.
Will Selling Your Home Yourself Save You Money In The Long Run?
For Sale by Owner or FSBO, is a term used to describe homeowners who are trying to sell their home without the help of an agent.
However, the trade-off for doing this is time. When selling your home yourself will it save you money?
The answer to this question is it all depends on the home and what your needs are.
It’s a common misconception that listing your home on Zillow and other sites is the same as hiring a Real Estate Agent.
There are many reasons why it might be better to use an Agent than to list your property on these websites.
A few of those reasons include:
1. You’ll have one less thing you need to worry about when trying to sell your house, which will allow you more time for things like preparing for closing or moving out of state before the sale is final.
2. Accessibility: Agents can show properties while you are at work.
Also, does it save you money? The answer to this question is it depends on how well you market the property. Also, remember that most buyers are Represented by Agents.
So even if you are doing a FSBO there is a chance that you will run across a buyer who is represented by a Real Estate Agent.Therefore, you will still have to think about paying a commission.
So why not just List the house with an Agent and negotiate what that fee is. The other misconception is I will sell my home to a “we buy houses company.”
The answer to this question is it depends on the intention of that investor who is buying the home.
There is something known in the Real Estate world as wholesaling properties.
And what they will do is make an offer using “and or assigns” by their name. What this does, it allows the contract to be assigned.
The wholesaler will make the difference between what you accept and the real buyer who is bringing the cash to the table.
For Example, You accepted a cash offer from an investor who is willing to give you $400,000 for your home in cash. In the agreement, they add and or assigns by their name.
They sell the property to their buyer for $425000. That is a $25,000 difference. This amount goes to the wholesaler.
Now let’s look at this if this was listed with a Realtor. You sign a Listing Agreement and you agreed to pay the Agent 5%.
The Agent is willing to list the property for $425000. The agent price is $21,250.
Remember, the wholesaler offered you $400,000. The agent got it sold for the same price. When you add up the closing fees you will see that the Listing Agent got you a little bit more.
When you leave the closing table your final check will end up being more listed vs allowing the wholesaler to flip the contract.
Conclusion
Ever since the internet has been in our lives, there have been many changes to the way we do business.
The Real Estate industry is not immune to this and in fact, much of the work that real estate agents would have done in the past has become much easier thanks to online tools.
After reading through this article, I hope you feel better educated on the difference between Zillow and a real estate agent.
As always, if there’s anything else we can do to help please don’t hesitate to contact us! Let me know if this article helped you in any way