Real Estate Guide For The Florida Keys July 2004 Why Use A REALTOR You can sell your own property. Your friends say you can. Your family says you can. So don't use a REALTOR if'.. You have knowledge and access to the myriad of required forms and disclosures that can thwart a sale up to the last minute or result in lawsuits down the road. You are familiar with the inner workings of the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which exposes your house to all the buyers working with cooperating member brokers. This effectively puts every agent in town to work selling your house. You already have a large pool of qualified buyers, something that an agent spends a career generating. Without that network, a for-sale-by-owner is reduced to a yard sign, some classified ads, and lots of luck. You have solid up-to-date market information with recent sales and current listings to help you price your house realistically. Such pricing is crucial to the possibility of a quick sale at the best price obtainable. You have nothing else to do but sit around and show your house to anyone who just "stops by". Plan on being available everyday and weekends, and remember you need to "mind the store" during holidays too. You have a method of finding pre-qualified buyers who know what they want and how much they can afford. You already know how to show your house to its best advantage and can convenience buyers to ask you the tough questions that help guide them to make the decision to purchase. You are an expert negotiator and mediator that can produce a satisfactory sale. You are a specialist that understands and can lead a buyer through the puzzle of rates, points, fees and financing options, helping with loan placement and follow-up. You have the knowledge of alternative financial resources to keep the sale from being lost-especially in tight money markets where knowledge of buy downs, and variable rate mortgages, graduated payment mortgages and various types of seller participation are crucial. You totally understand all aspects and procedures from contract to closing with a complete knowledge of current real estate procedures. Actually, facts and experience show the difficulties of trying to selling your own house usually far outweigh the benefits. In addition to being familiar with all the things listed above, a REALTOR is an expert marketer who builds a full time career learning exactly how to sell properties. Your agent is constantly in contact with the largest number of potential buyers possible to generate a steady flow of prospects specifically interested in your property. Typically, 60% of all buyers come through these referrals and on-going marketing, about 20% come from "for sale" yard signs, and less than 20% come from promotions and advertising. Agents continually work to maintain of "pool" of buyers through an extensive network of contacts and sources. Still other buyers come from advertising placed by real estate companies in media resources that have proved to produce buyers interested in your type of property. Ask your agent to explain what advertising and exposure plan they use to effectively market your property.