First let's be clear; the MLS, or Multiple Listing Service, is not open. It is wholly owned and operated by the Canadian Real Estate Association in Canada. The changes to allow Private Sellers "access" to MLS was not what most people think it was. Yes you can do what is called a "Mere Posting", but it needs to be done by a licensed Realtor, as they are the only ones who can post houses for sale on the MLS.
Where most people are confused is that it is not the MLS they are looking to have their house appear on, it is Realtor.ca, the public facing site where the Multiple Listing Service properties are showcased for you to search. Go ahead, go to your internet browser and go to MLS.ca and look what happens. There is no MLS.ca, it ports you over to Realtor.ca.
Each local board has their own listing service and they, inturn, upload those listings onto Realtor.ca. You will note that if you go onto any of the local Realtor association websites ( KW, Guelph, Cambridge) you can't just look at their listings. Any searches of listings they point you to Realtor.ca
If a realtor comes a knocking on your door, or calls you on the phone, to tell you you have to be on the local board, tell them to take a hike. I am sure they will say something like "If you are not on the local board then local agents won't find you." To which I would respond "Are you a local agent?"
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2 comments:
As a buyer I do not see the advantage of paying full market price to a seller. Why should the homeowner profit from my efforts? If there is a discount on price in dealing direct, maybe then I'd be interested. But if I'm not saving anything why should I fork over my hard earned cash?
Thanks for commenting on the blog. As a buyer you should be questioning the costs associated with buying a home. As a private buyer not using an agent you do have the ability to save in the transaction. We coach all of our clients that they need to have negotiating room when selling. If the buyer decides to use an agent most of that negotiating room get's eaten up by the real estate agent's commissions, and in turn they have to pay more for the house than you would not using an agent.
Here are a few posts I specifically talk about how private sale works for the buyer http://pgww.blogspot.ca/2011/01/using-agent-is-free-for-buyers.html
http://pgww.blogspot.ca/2010/03/survivors-newest-song.html
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