Is it Really Hard to Sell your own Tampa Home in Today’s Market?

Thursday, December 30, 2010

by Nathan Bangs

Is it Really Hard to Sell your own Tampa Home in Today’s Market?

Have you been considering how to sell your own Tampa home, but are not sure if this is the right move? Some people have been successful at doing this on their own, but generally they have a bit of experience at selling homes. For the majority of people selling their home is not a good idea. There are a few reasons that you should not try to sell your own Tampa home.

The home needs to be listed in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for the visibility this provides to prospective home buyers. Only licensed real estate brokers and agents are allowed to list homes in the MLS. There are other organizations that only provide access to licensed members as well such as Realtor.com which means you when you try to sell your own Tampa home; you are limited to only small advertisements in a local newspaper and a “for sale” sign in the yard.
Trying to sell your own Tampa home may result in overpricing. This is one of the best ways to put off a potential buyer. A real estate agent can provide an idea of the selling price you will likely get for the home using the market conditions. They can also provide tips for providing “buyer appeal” for the home.
The prospective buyers for a home you are selling yourself are very limited. A real estate agent will not show the home because there is not an agreement in place that provides a commission to them. This is the way they are compensated for their services therefore, without a contract they will not show the home.
Selling a home requires many legal transactions and real estate sales in most states have disclosure requirements and other forms that must be adhered to. If you overlook one of the legal aspects of selling the home, this increases the risk of a lawsuit later.
If you try to sell your own Tampa home, a prospective buyer may feel more nervous about spending time looking at the home when the owner is present. They will not feel as comfortable discussing the things they do not like about the home and therefore less likely to make an offer on the home.