Buying a home is a huge undertaking, and shouldn't be rushed or taken too lightly. When the price is right, the location is wrong. When the location is right, the floor needs to be replaced. Finding the perfect convergence of all the factors you're looking for can be so difficult that you're pushed to the fringes to look for a home "For Sale By Owner". Buying a FSBO house might look shady with no realtor to guide the owner through the process, but this couldn't be further from the truth. Here are five myths about buying a For Sale By Owner house.
The price is wrong
It's tempting to think a real estate agent has better insight into the proper pricing of a house, but in reality, it's just as easy for an owner to compare the prices of similar houses online and arrive at a fair price.
FSBO sellers aren't flexible
This is also untrue. Owners who sell by themselves are no more or less flexible on price or concessions than sellers who employ an agent. As an added bonus, you get to communicate directly with the owner rather than through a middleman.
FSBO transactions are less safe
Rest assured that real estate laws still apply to individual owners, and in many cases, a buyer's agent can help you protect yourself even if the owner has foregone the use of a seller's agent.
There are plenty of homes out there (even on the MLS) than don't have professional representation. That doesn't mean they aren't good homes, but it does mean you have a wider pool of potentials than you may have initially thought. Happy hunting.