FSBO Sellers in Florida

In 2005, most FSBO (For sale by Owner) sellers reported they #1 reason they tried selling their home without using an agent was to save the real estate commission. No surprise here. What may be a big surprise is how much money a FSBO really saved or lost by not using an agent.

According to a vast study conducted in Florida, the average FSBO seller was pretty successful for the year 2005 in terms of successfully selling their single family home. So this should be good news right if you are selling your property on your own? Well, before one jumps to this conclusion they better consider the following "rest of the story" about what happened in 2005.

In 2005, while attempting to save the 7 or 6% commission, the average selling price for a Florida home, by those not using an agent, was 18% less than those sellers who did use a Realtor. That is a huge difference. In fact this is a 11-12% net difference. I guess the old adage "If it seems to be too good to be true ..." Can really hurt your pocketbook when it comes to selling without using a professional agent.

Sellers Beware. The money you lose could definitely be yours!