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Should you sell your home on your own?
July 15, 2011
Marc Weisleder
Should you sell your house on your own without an agent?
Shutterstock Everyone wants to sell real estate these days. That is what happens when you have one of the hottest markets in North America.
It means new choices for consumers when buying or selling, but it appears more than 90 per cent of Canadian home sales still involve a professional real-estate agent. The statistic is the same in the United States, where discount brokerages have been operating for the past 10 years. The question is, why?
It is easy to attack real-estate agents and the commissions of up to 5 per cent for buying and selling. But what do you get with the alternatives?
Last October, organized real estate and the federal Competition Bureau reached a deal that allows sellers to use discount brokers and have their listings posted on the MLS system at a discounted fee of a few hundred dollars. Home at Ease and Realtysellers in Toronto are among those offering this service to consumers.
There are also for-sale-by-owner companies, such as the PropertyGuys and ComFree, which will sell you a package so you can sell by yourself, including having your property listed on the for-sale-by-owner website. For an extra charge, you can list on a national MLS website with a registered broker. Their packages cost between $500 and $1,000.
Lawyers are trying to sell real estate through a similar website called propertyshop.ca, where they will also help you negotiate and close your deal, for a fee of around 1 per cent to the buyer and 1 per cent to the seller.
You can also use a public auctioneer to sell your home, for a fee of around 2 per cent to 2.5 per cent total commission.
For-sale-by-owner companies claim to have a unique system for selling real estate. Yet they are not licensed to sell real estate or give advice to consumers. They are not regulated, yet they help people sell their largest investment, without providing any guidance about the pitfalls, especially when hidden defects are not disclosed to buyers.
They are not there to help during the difficult contract negotiations, where mistakes of judgment and in the contract itself can easily be made. Still, more and more sellers are using these services to try and save the commission. Buyers must therefore be very careful before signing anything with a private seller. This includes verifying the lot measurements by asking to see the seller’s deed and survey, conducting a home inspection and asking the seller to represent that they have never had issues with water penetration into the home, or to provide details of any corrective action taken.
Discount real-estate brokerages that merely post listings on an MLS system are not, in my opinion, providing the due diligence required of their provincial codes of ethics. Buyers must therefore conduct the same due diligence noted above before committing to any purchase.
Lawyers can assist with negotiations and can certainly close a deal. However, lawyers are not salesmen or marketers. Will they be there at 11 p.m. to help reach a deal? Do they have the network of buyers and sellers that agents build up over the years, not just from this country, but from all over the world?
With auctioneers, you may pay less in commissions, but are you sure they will attract the most buyers, to get the price you want?
Real-estate agents are far from perfect. For every consumer who tells me about a great experience, I hear many more about incompetent agents who do not properly protect their clients, whether it is overpaying in a bidding war, not listening to requests or receiving unwelcome surprises after closing. I believe the real-estate industry needs to do more to properly mentor new agents, and to reduce the number of part-time agents who don’t do a proper service to themselves or their clients.
In all cases, buyers and sellers need to do a lot of research and ask questions before selecting anyone to assist with buying or selling their next home. Remember, if it was easy, everyone would be doing it.
Also read
Why I wouldn’t sell on my own
Yes you can sell without an agent
Mark Weisleder is a lawyer, author and speaker to the real estate industry. Email mark at mark@markweisleder.com
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Thursday, July 7, 2011
June Market Watch Released
Greater Toronto REALTORS® release June Resale Market Figures
Toronto, July 6, 2011 – Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 10,230 home sales through the TorontoMLS® system in June 2011 – up 21 per cent compared to June 2010. This number represented the third best June result on record behind 2007 and 2009. The number of transactions during the first six months of 2011 amounted to 48,189 – down by 4.5 per cent compared to the first half of 2010.
“The strong June result capped off an interesting first half of 2011,” said Toronto Real Estate Board President Richard Silver. “The pace of sales was a bit sluggish at the beginning of the year, but rebounded in May and June. Because of the positive affordability picture, home buyers remained confident in their ability to purchase and pay for a home over the long term.”
The average price for June transactions was $476,371 – a 9.5 per cent increase over June 2010. Through the first six months of the year, the average selling price was $467,169 – almost an eight per cent increase compared to the same period in 2010.
“While sales have been strong, we would be on track for a record number of transactions in 2011 if not for the decline in listings so far this year,” said Jason Mercer, the Toronto Real Estate Board’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis. “Tight supply meant more competition between home buyers and an accelerating annual rate of price growth in the second quarter.”
“Home owners will likely react to the stronger price growth by listing their homes in greater numbers. A better supplied market would result in more moderate price increases,” continued Mercer.
Toronto, July 6, 2011 – Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 10,230 home sales through the TorontoMLS® system in June 2011 – up 21 per cent compared to June 2010. This number represented the third best June result on record behind 2007 and 2009. The number of transactions during the first six months of 2011 amounted to 48,189 – down by 4.5 per cent compared to the first half of 2010.
“The strong June result capped off an interesting first half of 2011,” said Toronto Real Estate Board President Richard Silver. “The pace of sales was a bit sluggish at the beginning of the year, but rebounded in May and June. Because of the positive affordability picture, home buyers remained confident in their ability to purchase and pay for a home over the long term.”
The average price for June transactions was $476,371 – a 9.5 per cent increase over June 2010. Through the first six months of the year, the average selling price was $467,169 – almost an eight per cent increase compared to the same period in 2010.
“While sales have been strong, we would be on track for a record number of transactions in 2011 if not for the decline in listings so far this year,” said Jason Mercer, the Toronto Real Estate Board’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis. “Tight supply meant more competition between home buyers and an accelerating annual rate of price growth in the second quarter.”
“Home owners will likely react to the stronger price growth by listing their homes in greater numbers. A better supplied market would result in more moderate price increases,” continued Mercer.
Toronto Housing Demand Surging!
GTA housing demand surging
July 06, 2011
Tony Wong
Those cranes on the Toronto skyline aren’t going to disappear anytime soon.
Building permits in Ontario were up by 15 per cent or a seasonally adjusted $2.17 billion in May, compared with $1.89 billion in April according to figures released Wednesday by Statistics Canada.
Much of that was because of the strong condominium market in the Toronto area, and intentions to build commercial projects. Residential permits rose 22 per cent to $683 million in Toronto, while non-residential projects which include commercial, industrial and institutional building, rose by 24 per cent to $488 million.
“Ontario rebounded from the recession with significant momentum,” said a report by Scotiabank also released Wednesday.
Building permits are considered a forward looking indicator of future economic activity. Developers who take out permits today will likely break ground in the following months, buying supplies and creating jobs.
While the province looked to be in relatively good shape, the bank said significant challenges still remained for the province, including a high Canadian dollar and a subdued economic recovery in the United States.
The bank said housing activity would likely slow in the second half of the year as high home prices alongside moderate income growth is expected to dampen affordability.
However, there hasn’t been much evidence of that in the Toronto market in the first half of the year.
Toronto existing home sales are up by 21 per cent in June from a year earlier, according to figures released Wednesday by the Toronto Real Estate Board.
The average price of a home in June was $476,371, up by 9.5 per cent from the same time a year ago.
“Housing demand is currently surging in the GTA but remains flat and relatively soft for all of Canada,” said housing analyst Will Dunning. “Economic confidence is in a weakening phase in much of the world, and this should rein-in expectations, hopefully reducing the frothiness, although not yet a bubble in the GTA.”
The Toronto board said this was the third best June on record for sales, behind 2007, which was the all time high, and second-place 2008.
“The pace of sales was a bit sluggish at the beginning of the year but rebounded in May and June,” said TREB president Richard Silver in a statement.
A strong June capped off a half year that wasn’t quite as strong as 2010 and down by 4.5 per cent, but solid by historical standards.
One problem, according to analysts, is that listings have been down. In June, active listings were down by 24 per cent compared with last year, creating a supply issue.
“While sales have been strong, we would be on track for a record number of transactions in 2011 if not for the decline in listings so far this year,” said Jason Mercer, the board’s senior manager of market analysis. “Tight supply meant more competition between home buyers and an accelerating annual rate of price growth in the second quarter.”
Also read:
Cheaper real estate fees are coming
July 06, 2011
Tony Wong
Those cranes on the Toronto skyline aren’t going to disappear anytime soon.
Building permits in Ontario were up by 15 per cent or a seasonally adjusted $2.17 billion in May, compared with $1.89 billion in April according to figures released Wednesday by Statistics Canada.
Much of that was because of the strong condominium market in the Toronto area, and intentions to build commercial projects. Residential permits rose 22 per cent to $683 million in Toronto, while non-residential projects which include commercial, industrial and institutional building, rose by 24 per cent to $488 million.
“Ontario rebounded from the recession with significant momentum,” said a report by Scotiabank also released Wednesday.
Building permits are considered a forward looking indicator of future economic activity. Developers who take out permits today will likely break ground in the following months, buying supplies and creating jobs.
While the province looked to be in relatively good shape, the bank said significant challenges still remained for the province, including a high Canadian dollar and a subdued economic recovery in the United States.
The bank said housing activity would likely slow in the second half of the year as high home prices alongside moderate income growth is expected to dampen affordability.
However, there hasn’t been much evidence of that in the Toronto market in the first half of the year.
Toronto existing home sales are up by 21 per cent in June from a year earlier, according to figures released Wednesday by the Toronto Real Estate Board.
The average price of a home in June was $476,371, up by 9.5 per cent from the same time a year ago.
“Housing demand is currently surging in the GTA but remains flat and relatively soft for all of Canada,” said housing analyst Will Dunning. “Economic confidence is in a weakening phase in much of the world, and this should rein-in expectations, hopefully reducing the frothiness, although not yet a bubble in the GTA.”
The Toronto board said this was the third best June on record for sales, behind 2007, which was the all time high, and second-place 2008.
“The pace of sales was a bit sluggish at the beginning of the year but rebounded in May and June,” said TREB president Richard Silver in a statement.
A strong June capped off a half year that wasn’t quite as strong as 2010 and down by 4.5 per cent, but solid by historical standards.
One problem, according to analysts, is that listings have been down. In June, active listings were down by 24 per cent compared with last year, creating a supply issue.
“While sales have been strong, we would be on track for a record number of transactions in 2011 if not for the decline in listings so far this year,” said Jason Mercer, the board’s senior manager of market analysis. “Tight supply meant more competition between home buyers and an accelerating annual rate of price growth in the second quarter.”
Also read:
Cheaper real estate fees are coming
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