A Person Who Represents Himself Has a Fool for a Client?

[Jason Merchey]

You've heard that old adage about a person who tries to represent themselves in a real estate transaction has a fool for a client....

I think the market is pretty strong in my neck of the woods, and I am aiming to rehab a home in a way that takes into consideration what the target market will be looking for.

So if I stage it, get it on a bunch of websites, maybe network, possibly put an ad in the paper, and do open houses, could I not sell in a decent amount of time for a decent price? I get that I would need to make 2-3% available for the buyer's agent (if I can't contact them through the above methods myself), but 3% of the commission for a Realtor that I'm not really that jazzed about (who is representing me on the buying side of this acquisition) seems like a hard $10,000 to spend. My gut tells me that it will take some negotiating, consulting with an attorney once or twice, showing up for showings and open houses, a little advertising, and talking to Realtors and neighbors, but I should probably at least break even, and if there are no Realtors involved, it could save me $10-15k, which should increase profit by 1/3. And could just be a good learning experience in general.

I recently bought a couple good books on flipping (J Scott's book has a chapter on this topic I think) that might shed some light, but my hunch is that in a good market, a staged, newly-remodeled house will almost sell itself. I think listing agents can sometimes be so entitled to the commission. You ask them to hold an open house or spend on marketing and they are like "What?!"

What do you think - would I have a fool for a client, or is this a smart way to sell in this day and age when the Internet and those sites that give inexpensive MLS access offer a viable option for a fairly capable person?

[David T.]

Great question and D.C. Has given you what is possibly the best answer. Two things you should know also. The MLS is so powerful, it adds credibility to your listing and secondly, there really is a lot of running around involved with selling a property. Everything will be fine until you hit a bump. Ask yourself this question. What is the best and highest use of your time? Chasing buyers or chasing deals?