A Little Q & A

You ask and I answer!

My last post seemed to drum up some discussion and it got me thinking. What others topics are out there that people might want some answers to? If you have something that is a burning issue or that you can't get a straight answer to, drop me a line. This blog thing might as well be interactive, right?

Here is a question and answer dialogue that might have taken place on a typical website:

Q. We recently attempted to put an offer on a house with the condition that ours sells. The agent that has the house listed has informed us that we NEED to first list our own home with an agent before our offer could be considered – is this true?

A. This is definitely not true. Private sale has grown both in comfort level and popularity as the internet has gained momentum - and is now considered a mainstream alternative to traditional agents. It’s estimated that 25% of sellers are now choosing private sale and if 1 in 4 are trying it and experiencing the same success rates as those with agents then it cannot be denied as a credible strategy for selling. In fact, in many circumstances private sale has proven to be more effective than traditional because the seller’s asking price has not been inflated to pay commission. This allows the seller to price closer to what people are willing to pay, and therefore increases the likely hood of selling. The best defense against this type of scenario would be for you to go knock on the front door, and make the offer in person. The home seller can then decide if they want to consider the offer or not.

This is a pretty straight forward answer to the question. I try to lay things out with as much clarity as possible. In my opinion this type of action is morally and ethically wrong. As a Canadian citizen you have the right to sell your home how you please and you should not have anyone putting undue pressure on you in order to line their pockets. Your offer as a private seller is as good as that from an agent. In fact it has potential to be better! Without the high cost of commissions you can be more aggressive with your price which attracts more buyers. If this circumstance were to happen to you I would suggest that you advise the agent that the offer is conditional and they will have every right to continue to offer the home for sale. Any better offers will end up bumping yours in most cases so what's to loose?

We have seen many instances of this locally. If you or anyone you know has fallen victim to this type of deception by an agent let me know. Collectively your voice is louder and we will help you stop this from happening to someone else.

Here is a guy that should have used his phone a friend to call a Private Sale Professional.


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