[flboisseau]

It would best to ask that of the agents as you interview them. But here in VA, it is part of the listing contract that you have to opt out of. Otherwise, Zillow and sites with a feed from the MLS will show it. Our brokerage also uses tools that take that feed and post it on other sites and social media. I would suspect it is the same in other states. Also if there are specific sites you are interested in posting the property on, make sure the agent knows about them and does the posting for you. That is what our commission pays for.

 

[flboisseau]

Before you take that advice of selling it yourself, do your research. Some if it indicates homes seller get more net on average when using an agent. Also, there is a lot more to selling a home then just pricing and throwing it up on a website. For example, scheduling and granting access for showings does take time. There is also the contract negotiations, which can get complex when dealing with repairs and the lender's restrictions.

I will also point out a few things I have observed. One most people over or under price the property. No two properties are the same and adjustments need to be made, without feelings getting involved, to come up with the right price. Second while most of the investors I know love to buy FSBO properties, when it comes time to list it they use an agent.

Just my 2 cents on the other side of the subject.

 

[flboisseau]

There are huge differences in how hard different realtors will work for you. Ask all of these questions before you hire them, then follow up after hiring to ensure that they hold up their end of the deal. In my experience, only about one in twenty realtors is a real go getter.

I totally agree, make sure the agent you pick is one that will work for it, and then make them work for it. They should give you regular reports about what is going on, and what feed back they are getting. My brother was selling his house (before I had my license) and the agent never told him until he was about to get rid of her, that people were having the issues with Civil War Artwork of a local artist he had on the wall and the fact his steps needed to be fixed. Once she told him that, and he took care of it he got an offer fairly quickly.

So that is another thing, if the agent does not suggest things you need to fix or change in the house, do not hire them. They should always have suggestions of things you change that would improve how the house looked. I went to listing appointment at the very nice house. Looked like it was out of a magazine, but I suggested that they replace the bulbs and trim rings they were using in their recess lighting with LED ones. I had done it at my house and noticed how much better it looked.

And if they are not doing those things to keep you in the loop or making suggestion on how you can improve your chances of getting an offer, you always should have the right to ask for a release before the listing expires. Just make sure you can document what the issues are because they could ask you, but most likely will not, to cover some or all their expenses.

That is one other thing to keep in mind if you list yourself or with an agent. When you list with an agent they pay for everything necessary to market the house. They pay for the photographer, they should us a pro for most houses. They pay for the flyers and pamphlets. They pay for the Facebook ads and other ads to promote your house on social media. That all comes out of the commision they get paid. One final point on photographs, I do not care what condition the house is in, they should post at least 25 photos. I know on our MLS here, we can post up to 50 for each property. The only exception is if they for some reason can not get into the property, but even then they should get and post as many as possible.