The vast majority of home sellers (81%) who sell without a realtor say saving money on realtor commission is a priority. Chances are you're among those who want to avoid the average 2.74% realtor listing fee in the U.S.[1]
But avoiding a listing agent's commission is only one piece of the savings puzzle when selling without a realtor. Several factors determine whether you'll really save on commission and maximize your home-sale profit.
You'll have a better chance at successfully selling without a realtor if you've sold a home before, already know your buyer, or are in a hot seller's market. Still, it's an uphill battle, even under the best circumstances.
Homes sold without a realtor typically net 13% less than those sold with the help of a realtor, meaning any commission savings are usually offset by a lower home sale price. On a home with the U.S. median value of $361,263 selling with a realtor nets $55,237 more than selling without a realtor.[2]
Your best option is probably to use a low commission realtor who can deliver full service for 1.5%.
Do your research, though. Read on to learn what it takes to sell without a realtor, calculate an estimate of your profits, and check your state's rules and regulations. But also talk to a low commission agent to see how their price and services can help you save more money than if you go it alone.
Pros and cons of selling without a realtor
✅ Pros
- Save an average of 2.74% because you'll avoid paying a listing agent's real estate commission.
- Control the selling process. You can set the price and manage every detail.
- Capitalize on favorable market conditions or circumstances. Selling without a realtor is more likely to be fruitful if you have a buyer lined up or you're selling in a hot market.
- Sell fast if you want to. If you need to sell quickly, you can usually sell to a cash home buyer within a few days.
🚫 Cons
- Sell your house for 13% less than a house typically sold with the help of an agent.[2]
- Pay an additional 2–3% concession to help buyers cover the cost of hiring a real estate agent. If you don't pay a concession, a buyer's agent has little incentive to show their clients your home.
- Risk legal consequences. Approximately 36% of recent unrepresented sellers revealed they made legal mistakes.[3]
- Spend a lot of time managing the sales process. A typical house for sale stays on the market for 53 days.[4]
- Earn only about 60%–80% of your home's fair market value if you sell fast to a cash home buyer.[5]
Steps to sell a house without a realtor
1. Get your home ready | 2. Set a price | 3. List your home | 4. Show your home | 5. Review offers | 6. Close your sale
1. Get your home move-in ready
Getting your home move-in ready helps maximize the potential buyers interested in your house. About a third of home buyers (34%) prefer a house that doesn't need significant renovations, so a home that needs work could immediately alienate many potential buyers.[6]
🛠️ Deciding on tasks to prepare your home
Most homeowners can declutter or freshen up the paint in a room relatively easily and for little cost.
Whether to replace a roof or make other significant updates or repairs is a more complex decision. You'll need to consider time and potential returns on cost, as well as what home buyers in your area expect in a home.
It's also important that your home meets requirements that will qualify it for buyers to finance using a loan from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), or U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), says April Newman, an agent for Exit Bayou Realty in Lake Charles, Louisiana. For instance, your home should have no peeling paint or broken or cracked windows.
If you don't meet the minimum property standards set by the U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development, you won't be able to sell to the 29% of first-time home buyers using an FHA loan or to the 9% using a VA loan.[7]
💰 Selling as is to a cash home buyer may be right for you: If you decide your home needs too much work to get market ready, consider selling as is to a cash buyer through a marketplace like Clever Offers. Compare offers against what you think you might get on the open market with no obligation.
2. Set a price for your home
Pricing your home is among the most important decisions you'll make when selling without a realtor.
Almost one-half (49%) of sellers who sold without a realtor believe they got their pricing wrong and wish they'd priced their home differently. Of sellers who used a real estate agent, 73% say their agent priced their home correctly.[8]
💵 Pricing your home with a comparative market analysis (CMA)
Agents typically set price points based largely on a comparative market analysis of similar recently sold homes in your area.
You can perform a similar analysis using publicly available data on Zillow or another website, but it won't be as accurate as an agent's CMA. Agents have access to private data on the MLS (multiple listing service), as well as a knowledge of local market conditions and home buyer preferences.
"Some sellers may have an unrealistic perception of their home’s value, leading to overpricing," says Janis Smith of Coldwell Banker. "Without the guidance of a real estate professional, they might not have properly assessed market conditions or comparable sales."
More options for pricing your home
- Pre-listing appraisal. Get a professional to appraise your house to provide an accurate starting point for pricing your home. Appraisers charge $233–$361 on average.
- Flat fee MLS companies. If you use a flat fee MLS company, as many sellers without a realtor do, try to find a plan that offers a CMA report and pricing help as add-on services.
- Broker price opinion (BPO). Get a licensed real estate professional to provide a BPO, a home valuation report that estimates your home's value based mainly on its condition and the recent sales prices of similar homes in the area. BPOs cost $150–$250.
- Low commission realtors. If you're willing to consider an agent, low commission real estate brokers — full-service realtors willing to work for a reduced listing commission rate — are a great option. Sellers can save thousands compared with a full-commission agent and get pricing support.
3. List and market your home
To reach a critical mass of buyers, you'll need to list your home online. Most buyers (51%) find their homes through online searches.[9]
The most effective way to reach buyers and their agents online is to list your home on the MLS, a private database of homes for sale created and maintained by real estate brokers. Most MLSs syndicate to Realtor.com, Zillow, and other real estate sites buyers use to search for homes.
🏠 List using a flat fee MLS service
Sellers without a realtor should consider using a flat fee MLS service, which enables homeowners to pay $75–$1,500 to get their home listed on their local MLS. Only real estate agents can list houses directly on the MLS, so flat fee MLS services provide a workaround for sellers.
More options for marketing your home
- Free for sale by owner websites. ForSaleByOwner.com, Craigslist, and other options allow sellers without a realtor to list their homes at no cost. Listings on these sites don't appear on the MLS, which limits the reach of your listing.
- Social media. Facebook Marketplace, for instance, allows free home listings. Again, these listings don't appear on the MLS.
- Physical media. Not all states allow you to use a yard sign to market your home if it's listed on the MLS. See the guide to selling without a realtor in your state for details.
Offering a 2–3% buyer concession to cover the buyer agent's fee gives you a better chance of selling your home for the best price.
While offering a buyer concession isn't mandatory, most buyers still expect sellers to cover the cost of their agents.
As of August 2024, following a lawsuit against the National Association of Realtors, buyers and sellers must negotiate their fees directly with their agents.
Sellers who don't offer a concession increase the amount of cash that buyers need to bring to the closing table, which could limit your pool of potential buyers.
Also, not offering a concession might make your house much harder to sell if similar homes for sale in your area come with a concession.
"A well-compensated agent is more motivated to bring qualified buyers to the table," says Coldwell Banker agent Janis Smith.
4. Show your home
When you sell without a realtor, you'll have to conduct home showings yourself. This involves scheduling showings, prepping the home, and coordinating with potential buyers.
Around a third of unrepresented sellers (32%) ranked getting their house ready to show as the most common challenge while selling their home.[10]
Follow these logistical tips for showings:
- Stay on top of scheduling. Organize showings and open houses with scheduling tools like ShowingTime, Calendly, or Mixmax.
- Prepare paperwork. Keep disclosure forms and property fact sheets in an easy-to-spot location, like the entryway or kitchen counter. Buyers should have quick access to information about the house.
- Schedule back-to-back tours. Blocks of appointments can support the impression of multiple interested buyers, potentially creating urgency for buyers to submit bids. You and those you live with also won't have to leave your home as often.
- Respond quickly. Answer buyer inquiries as fast as possible. Doing so can keep your home top of mind in a competitive market.
- Make your home inviting. A clean, welcoming space leaves a lasting impression. Maintain a spotless environment, add homey touches like scented candles or freshly baked cookies, and set the temperature between 68 and 76 degrees for comfort.
- Let your home shine. Natural light enhances mood, so open curtains and blinds before showings. A neutral-scented air freshener or candle keeps the atmosphere fresh without overwhelming visitors.
- Give buyers space. Keep your distance from potential buyers during showings to allow them to explore freely without feeling watched.
5. Review and respond to offers
Consider the following factors when looking at a buyer's offer:
- Does the buyer have a bank's pre-approval for a loan? Unless the buyer pays in cash, ensure the buyer has pre-approval for a loan so the deal doesn't fall apart.
- Am I okay with the contingencies? Typically, an offer includes contingency clauses that allow the buyer or seller to back out of a deal if certain conditions aren't met.
- Am I okay with the breakdown of closing costs? A buyer may want you to cover some or all of their closing costs.
Once you evaluate all of the variables in an offer, proceed with one of the following three options.
✅ Accept the offer. If the price and terms are agreeable, say yes and move to finalize a contract.
🤔 Make a counteroffer. If the offer is almost to your liking, make a counteroffer. You can counter the price and the terms of the deal to attempt to get more of what you want. To sweeten the pot for buyers, you can also make concessions, like offering a home warranty or credits to take care of repairs.
🚫 Reject the offer. Send a polite no to the buyer or the buyer’s agent. The buyer may come back with a better offer, which you can counter or reject again. Don't reject an offer without a full evaluation. Close to half (46%) of sellers declined an offer that ended up being their highest.[11]
6. Close the sale
Once you come to terms and work out any issues that may arise during the home appraisal or the buyer's home inspection, you'll meet with the buyer to close the sale.
Most states don't require sellers without a realtor to hire a real estate attorney to facilitate closing, but some do. Select your state below for the rules regarding closing and other details for selling without a realtor in your state.
Costs to close your sale
Sellers typically pay 2.72% of their home's final sale price in closing costs.
For a home at the U.S. median sales price of $361,263, you'll pay approximately $9,814.
💸 Be vigilant preparing for the closing process if you're aiming to keep your costs down. Approximately 30% of sellers say they had unexpected closing costs.[12]
Paperwork for selling a house without a realtor
The paperwork you need to sell a house involves more than a dozen documents, including the purchase offer, the sales contract, and the signed property deed.
However, each state's total paperwork requirements are different. For instance, in California, sellers must disclose extensive details about the condition of their property to buyers. On the other hand, Georgia is a buyer-beware state, meaning sellers don't have to share everything with buyers.
The paperwork for selling a house is also notoriously challenging. Approximately 36% of sellers without realtors say they made legal mistakes with their paperwork, which carries significant risks.[3]
📣 We recommend consulting an attorney or a real estate agent to help with your paperwork. If you're determined to go it alone, check your state's guide for selling without a realtor for more details about the paperwork you'll need and where to find it.
Alternatives to selling without a realtor
Low commission real estate brokers
Low commission real estate brokers are full-service realtors who'll represent you for a reduced listing commission rate.
Sellers who use a low commission agent can save a lot of money while getting traditional services from an expert local agent. On average, sellers who use an agent typically sell their house for 13% more than a house sold without a realtor.[2]
💰 Get matched with a low commission realtor who charges a 1.5% listing fee. You'll potentially sell your house for more than you would without an agent and still save on realtor fees.
Cash home buyers
Cash home buyers pay cash for properties. They're generally right for sellers who want to sell fast or as is. They're usually wrong for sellers who wish to maximize the profit on their sale. You’ll likely get only 60%–80% of your home's fair market value if you sell fast to a cash home buyer.[13]
The best cash home buyers, like Clever Offers, screen cash buyers and source competing offers on your behalf, providing a safe and efficient way to compare offers.
iBuyers
iBuyers are real estate companies that make near-instant cash offers on homes, using technology to determine a price. Like cash home buyers, they're generally right for sellers who want to sell fast rather than for maximum profit.
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