I’m often asked if there is really any difference between flat fee companies and whether there’s anything to compare, other than price, when selecting a flat fee MLS provider. The answer, of course, depends on the owner/seller’s motivation. If you just want to list or advertise your property for sale in the MLS, then cost really is your only concern. However, if you want to actually sell your home, then here are some other factors to consider:
- How long has the company been in business?
The market does a pretty good of weeding out bad eggs. If a flat-fee MLS broker has been in business for a number of years, there’s at least some reason to believe that other sellers have found them to be trustworthy and capable of doing what they say they’ll do. Especially if they’ve survived a couple of down markets and the recent real estate recession, the company has established a business that’s robust enough to succeed regardless of market conditions. Since the real estate market downturn, lots of agents have taken to flat-fee MLS listing just to be able to stay in the business. So new flat-fee MLS listing companies are poping up everyday. However, if the company just started last month and they can’t give you the names or addresses of lots of other properties they’ve actually SOLD, they probably won’t be able to provide the level of service and support you need. Their track record for successfully assisting by owner sellers hasn’t really been established.
- What kind of support do they provide?
A good flat-fee company should provide several methods of support. While most online companies want to communicate through email, this may not be the method that works best for you. Top online flat-fee MLS listing providers, like Bloomkey.com, offer telephone support, an Online Help Desk, Online Chat and dynamic FAQ’s so that you can get the support you need when you need it.
- What other websites will your property appear on and what strategic partnerships have they established? A good flat-fee company should be able to have your home or property listed on ALL of the leading real estate websites. Since over 80% of buyers now start their search for a home online, it pays to be listed everywhere buyers might be looking. While all flat-fee brokers list properties on Realtor.com and the Broker IDX by virtue of the MLS feed distribution, few have taken the time to establish relationships and proprietary RSS/XML feeds to the larger real estate portals like Trulia.com, Zillow.com, Yahoo Real Estate and GoogleBase, to name a few. Bloomkey has even created an automated posting system on Craigslist to provide your property with an HTML formatted advertisement on the world’s largest classified website.
- What other tools does the broker provide to help make sure that your property not only gets listed, but has a better than average chance of selling?
Any agent who has been in the business for any length of time (or owner who has sold a number of properties) will tell you that it takes more than a sign in the yard and an ad in the MLS to sell a home. If you take the average online flat-fee MLS company today, you’ll find that most of them offer little more than the opportunity to take your money online and stick your property’s data and photos into the MLS – never to be heard from again. They’re really more like online business cards with a cash register. Very few have gone to the expense and trouble of creating feature-filled back end web applications that give sellers access to online real estate selling tools and services to assist with the home selling process.
These are just a few of the questions owners should be asking when determining with whom to list their properties. Remember, anyone can list your home for sale, but that’s probably not where you want it to stop. A successful sale requires more than minimal effort – especially in today’s buyer’s market.
For more information on what top flat-fee MLS listing companies can provide in terms of service and benefits, visit Bloomkey.com
About the Author
Lawrence Bunnell is a partner at Bloomkey. In 1997, Mr. Bunnell co-founded the first national online real estate brokerage (and the first real estate company to ever become licensed in all 50 states). He has been responsible for creating several online flat fee real estate companies and is largely responsible for the advent of the Internet based flat-fee MLS listing segment of the real estate industry. Mr. Bunnell started his career in real estate in 1984. Prior to creating the online flat-fee MLS listing industry, Mr. Bunnell was one of the nation’s top selling real estate brokers at the RE/MAX, ERA, and Coldwell-Banker real estate franchises.
By admin
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Posted in FSBO, Flat Fee MLS, Flat Fee Real Estate Brokerage, Flat+Fee, For Sale By Owner, Real Estate, flat fee, flat fee MLS borkers, flat fee MLS brokerages, flat fee MLS companies, flat fee MLS listing company, flat fee MLS service, flat fee broker, flat fee brokerage, flat fee brokers, flat fee companies, flat fee listing broker, flat fee mls broker, flat fee mls brokers, flat fee mls company, flat fee mls listing, flat fee mls providers, flat fee realty, flat fee services, flat rate, flat rate broker, flat rate mls, flat rate realty, for sale by owner tips, fsbo guide, fsbo seller
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For sale by owner advertising has changed along with the real estate marketing landscape in general. Today’s marketing of real estate has expanded signficantly from a “sign in the yard and an ad in the paper”. Internet advertising allows by owner sellers access to distribution channels that circumnavigate the globe. What used to cost home sellers a good deal of money with very limited reach has now become far more cost efficient along with the ability to reach millions of potential buyers.
Bloomkey now offers for sale by owner sellers the option of several marketing distribution channels from which to launch a property marketing campaign.
- The Multiple Listing Service, or MLS, offers sellers access to the real estate agents and brokers in their local areas.
- The Broker IDX is a system through which brokers who own real estate websites show properties that are listed in the MLS to the public.
- Realtor.com, the nation’s number 1 ranked website, has it’s own set of distribution partners who receive and display property listing data.
- ListHub is a company that aggregates data from MLSs around the country and sends that information to leading real estate websites like Yahoo Real Estate, AOL Real Estate, Walmart, Vast and many others.
- Bloomkey has it’s own distribution partnerships with websites like Zillow.com, Trulia.com, Google and many others.
Companies like Bloomkey give by owner sellers a one-stop marketing resource for selling real estate. Instead of hunting all over the Internet for property listing websites, sellers can enter their property information and upload photos one time and have their properties appear on all of the major real estate marketing distribution channels. In fact, many of the leading distribution channels are not avaialble to the public directly. Companies like Bloomkey make marketing properties for sale an economical and time savings venture.
By admin
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Posted in FSBO, For Sale By Owner, Local MLS, MLS entry, Real Estate, Real Estate Market, Selling My Home, advertising, by owner, flat fee MLS service, flat fee mls company, flat fee mls providers, for sale by owner tips, fsbo guide, fsbo seller, home sale, home selling, home selling alternatives, list house, list property, mls entry only, sale by owner, sell a home, sell home, sell house, sell my home online, sell your home, sell your house, selling a home, selling a home by owner, selling by owner, selling home, selling in a buyers market, selling privately, selling your home
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Tagged by owner marketing, For Sale By Owner, fsbo advertising, home marketing, online real estate, real estate marketing, selling a home
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Do you wish to buy a brand new home and want feel very proud of it? If you are feeling frightened of making this real estate investment, then you do not need to worry. Here are some tips that can help you in your making your big decision.
Have you decided to look for homes with “for sale by owner” tags? Break your task into easy and manageable steps. This will surely help you in the long run. Before you decide to take a home loan you have to determine your credit capacity.
You also need to find out a good pre-approval for your mortgage. If you get a green signal for your loan in an early phase then you will surely be in a good position to negotiate. This also has another advantage and that is you will be able to find a mortgage that suits your budget.
Make all the necessary contacts as soon as possible. Even before you start looking for homes for sale, get in touch with the best real estate brokers who can help you in locating your dream home. The other professionals whom you need to meet are home inspectors, mortgage brokers, and attorneys. If you choose the right attorney then you will not have to worry about dealing with all the legal paper works.
FSBO or for sale by owner is the term used to describe a person who sells homes on his or her own without seeking the help of a real estate broker. More and more home owners are resorting to the FSBO method to take charge of the entire home sale process. MLS listing is also a popular tool for selling a home but the FSBO method helps you save a lot of money, as you do not have to pay any commission to any agent.
The home owner makes use of signs, flyers, online listings, classified newspaper ads, open houses, as well as word of mouth, to sell his or her home. He or she can also take charge of the closing and seek the help of a real estate attorney for managing the paperwork. Selling a home through FSBO has many advantages. The FSBO seller can determine the selling price, negotiate the sale, and do everything according to his or her wish.
With FSBO, you can also get a quicker sale and can negotiate directly with buyers instead of moving between different real estate agents. You will also be able to reduce a lot of stress by following this method of selling your home.
People all around you proudly declare that they own a house. Now it is your turn to own a brand new home if you want to give them some good competition. The best thing about owning a home is that you can avoid yourself from falling into financial difficulties.
If you have your home in a good location then it can relieve you from any sort of financial burden which gets tagged along with leased units or rented homes. If you have had the experience of living in a rented property then you should be aware of the difficulties that people face while dealing with landlords. You will be saved from all those hassles.
Owning your own piece of real estate property ensures that the mortgage loans, which you had taken to buy the home or the tax, which you pay for your property, are deductible. This American law encourages more and more investors to buy a property that they can call their own. If you have the right resources, buying your own home is not a big problem. You may need to look up MLS listings or ask your broker to do it for you in order to find the best homes for sale.
Before conducting your real estate transaction, make sure that you do not forget certain things, which numerous home sellers actually fail to bear in mind. The top 4 things that potential sellers forget to do are:
1. Not getting homes MLS listed: Instead of opting for the conventional method of getting all your real estate work done for you by the real estate agent, you should place your property under the MLS Listings. This makes your property accessible to buyers via the internet, making it sell faster and getting you many buyers as well.
2. Not staging homes: The purpose of home staging or dressing up your home is to make it very attractive to buyers. All the rooms, the garden, bathroom, and kitchen should be tidy and sparkling. If required you should take charge of minor repair works as well, so that the home becomes perfectly presentable, thereby enhancing its value.
3. Quoting too high a price: You should not ask an exceedingly high price for your home as this could dissuade potential buyers. Carry out a good real estate market research and then set a price that is fair for both parties.
Keep these things in mind and you will be successful in selling your home in a jiffy.
By Manager
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Posted in FSBO, For Sale By Owner, IHS Realty, MLS, Real Estate
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Tagged Flat Fee MLS, For Sale By Owner, home buyers rebate, home owner rebates, Homes For Sale, house for sale, Real Estate, sell your home
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When it comes to selling a home, going the FSBO (for sale by owner) route is something that works well for some sellers. Particularly, if the markets favor the seller, home sales in the area where you’re selling are on the rise and properties are moving quickly, FSBO selling offers a number of benefits.
Then challenge, however, is that FSBO selling is not ideal in every market. When buyers can take their pick of five homes on any given city block, housing prices are dropping and the market has swung so that the buyers have the full advantage, the problem with FSBO selling is that your home will not get the exposure that it needs – unless of course you take FSBO selling to the next level.
Flat fee MLS is FSBO selling at the next level. While you remain in control of the process of selling your home, buyers agents are more likely to be willing to show your property. While you are responsible for advertising your home, you will also benefit from the exposure of the multiple listing service. While you’ll be the one staging your home, you’ll also find that you’re able to get the help that you need along the way.
Why settle for standard FSBO selling when you can take it to the next level? For a low, one time, up front fee, you’ll be able to access tips and tools to help you sell, and list your own property in the MLS.
When it comes to selling your home on your own – FSBO – there are a number of things that you’ll need to be able to do. Selling with flat fee MLS can help you to avoid many mistakes, particularly those that many FSBO sellers make.
Which FSBO mistakes can selling with flat fee MLS help you to avoid making? Here is a sampling:
- Overpricing or underpricing your home: having the right price attached to your home goes a great distance toward helping you sell; when you sell with flat fee MLS, you’ll be able to get the tools you need to sell your home correctly.
- Not getting a home inspection: Even though you will find that most buyers will request a home inspection prior to signing the contract; when you have one performed before you sell you will be able to know what to expect.
- Not publicing the listing. When you sell with flat fee MLS, you’ll be able to take advantage of a variety of tools that allow you to market your home both to people in your area, those who are outside of the area and thinking to relocate as well as to buyers agents who are searching for homes for clients.
Avoiding these mistakes is essential if you want to make a FSBO sale; flat fee MLS lets you do just that by showing you the way.
Many would-be FSBO sellers get nervous about the idea of selling without a real estate agent on his or her side. But there’s good news.
Research into agent represented and FSBO offerings shows that both generate similar prices once offers are made. The report states:
The academics compared Realtor-listed homes to for-sale-by-owner homes in Madison, Wis., and concluded that professional marketing and negotiating by a Realtor made no difference in a home’s sale price.
The report goes on to say that, although an MLS listing does not necessarily help a home to fetch a higher price, it does help a home to sell more quickly.
The good news then for FSBO sellers is that their home is likely to sell for the price that you’re asking. The great news is that IHS Realty makes it possible for FSBO sellers to also list their property in the MLS for a low flat fee.
Not only will you be able to get the price that you’re asking, but also you’ll be able to sell your home quickly – all without the high cost of working with a real estate agent.
Flat Fee Realty
Get great news about being a FSBO seller from IHS Realty.
Internet Home Services Real Estate Blog
Some home buyers are nervous about looking at FSBO listings. They don’t know about working with flat fee brokers or they may be working with a buyer’s agent who isn’t even aware of the property.
The good news is that home buyers who want to buy a FSBO home don’t have to go it alone. Instead, they can:
- Register with IHS Realty
- Browse through FSBO listings
- Schedule a viewing of the home
- Make an offer
- Get the help that they need in negotiating the closing and
- Save thousands of dollars in the process.
Don’t let your uncertainty about how to buy a FSBO home stand between you and your dream house; let IHS Realty guide you through the process.
Flat Fee Realty
Learn more about buying a FSBO home with IHS Realty
Internet Home Services Real Estate Blog
If you’re thinking that the housing market may not be right for FSBO sellers – think again.
True, there are more houses on the market. It’s also true that mortgage rates are rising. However, that doesn’t mean that using a real estate agent will improve your chances of selling your home.
By taking the time to understand buying trends in your area, preparing your home well, holding open houses and – of course – listing your FSBO home in the MLS, your chances of selling your home on your own are actually really good.
When you factor in the savings of not paying a commission to a seller’s agent, and take into consideration the services available to FSBO sellers from If you’re thinking that the housing market may not be right for FSBO sellers – think again.
True, there are more houses on the market. It’s also true that mortgage rates are rising. However, that doesn’t mean that using a real estate agent will improve your chances of selling your home.
By taking the time to understand buying trends in your area, preparing your home well, holding open houses and – of course – listing your FSBO home in the MLS, your chances of selling your home on your own are actually really good.
When you factor in the savings of not paying a commission to a seller’s agent, and take into consideration the services available to FSBO sellers from IHS Realty, you’ll recognize that it’s a great time to be a FSBO seller.
IHS Realty
Learn more about becoming a FSBO seller with IHS Realty
Internet Home Services Real Estate Blog
The brief answer is "No" but realtors may be reluctant to show your home to prospective buyers they have on their own books if your home does not have a lockbox.
Remember, realtors tend to be on a short schedule so they don’t have very much time on their hands (another reason why you should seriously consider the FSBO Flat Fee MLS Listing route to begin with) – having a lockbox makes your home accessible and convenient for the realtor.
IHS Realty strongly recommends that you use a lockbox to make showing your home simple and easy for everyone involved and increase the home viewings.
See Also
IHS Realty Flat Fee MLS Listing Scenarios
IHS Realty offers a flat fee MLS listing service that also gives you access to the Realtor MLS operated by the NAR and the largest MLS in the country with nationwide exposure for your home.
Let’s take a brief look at some of the scenario’s for selling your home:
1. real estate agent or broker sells your home and you pay them a commission usually between 2.5% and 3.5%;
OR
2. you sell your home on your own (known as a For Sale By Owner or FSBO) and deal direct with the buyer with no real estate agent in the middle taking a commission - you pay 0% in commission.
You do not need to pay up to 7% to get a listing the NAR’s Realtor MLS with IHS Realty you simply pay a flat fee and gain access to a wealth of real estate selling resources, tips and guidance.
See Also
List on the MLS as an FSBO with IHS Realty
Saving real estate commissions as high as 7% is a real driver for FSBO sellers and buyers, however FSBO’s means that they have to give up exposure on the national MLS operated by Realtor.
The MLS run by Realtor has become the main method of gaining exposure for your FSBO home, with some estimating that 75%-85% of homes are sold this way. IHS Realty provides a means by which you can market your home as an FSBO, benefit from a flat fee and enjoy Realtor’s MLS service to gain that market exposure for your home.
See Also
List on the MLS as an FSBO with IHS Realty
Saving real estate commissions as high as 7% is a real driver for FSBO sellers and buyers, however FSBO’s means that they have to give up exposure on the national MLS operated by Realtor.
The MLS run by Realtor has become the main method of gaining exposure for your FSBO home, with some estimating that 75%-85% of homes are sold this way. IHS Realty provides a means by which you can market your home as an FSBO, benefit from a flat fee and enjoy Realtor’s MLS service to gain that market exposure for your home.
See Also
- Flat MLS for FSBO
FSBO’s can gain access to the national Realtors MLS listing service through IHS Realty for a flat fee
FSBO MLS gives the best of both worlds !
Most states allow home owners to sell their homes by listing in the MLS directly for a flat fee. This normally means you have to go through a real estate agent or broker who handles the sale and charges a commission however now you have a real alternative.
FSBO’s can list on the MLS, including the National Association of Realtors MLS (the largest) and if you find the buyer you do not have to pay the buying agents commission nor a selling commission to a real estate agent. If your home is sold via a buyers realtor only then is a commission is payable.
FSBO MLS provides for a certain flat-fee, a saving in commission of as much as 7% – and all for doing not very much !
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IHS Realty doesn’t throw you to the wolves
(FSBO) This home seller comes in two varieties. The first is the Investor. He or she has done this before. They have bought houses to be fixed up and flipped or they have rental properties that they buy and sell with some frequency. At one point in time, he was probably in the business as an agent or lender. By handling the listing himself, he is trying to increase his profit margins. He also is aware of market conditions and is probably in a sellers market. This makes it a lot easier to get the home sold in a reasonable amount of time. He is very commission sensitive.
The second Mr. FSBO is the Reader. He has seen and read about other people who go the FSBO route and now that he needs to sell his home he thinks he can do it also. Usually, the Reader has bought several books about selling his own home as well as some on buying homes with no money down and real estate investing. Although sometimes this need to sell the house himself comes from necessity (house is worth less than when he bought it), most of the time it comes from a combination of too much time coupled with disenchantment with the real estate profession.
This is an interesting take on FSBO personalities and the types of home sellers. Whichever type of seller you are, you can sell your own home online using a flat fee MLS service. Many flat fee service providers give you access to the multiple listing service but don’t teach you how to use it. At IHS Realty, we don’t just throw you to the wolves. We have resources you can use to learn how to price your home, market your home, show your home and there is a resource for every step in the process – for the buyer and for the seller.
See Also
- Real Estate Services
View the resources IHS Realty offers you throughout the buying and selling process.
FSBO sellers are the big benefit recipients
The existing IDX policy permits members posting MLS listings on their own Web sites to select the listings they show on the basis of objective criteria such as location, type of property, compensation offered for buyers’ agents or the level of service provided by the listing company. It was approved by NAR’s board of directors at its meeting here Monday.
The National Association of Realtors has changed its policy to benefit low-cost brokers like IHS Realty.
The multiple listing service provides home buyers an opportunity to see what’s on the market. Brokers, real estate agents, buyers and sellers can use the MLS to conduct transactions on an equal footing. IHS Realty is proud to be able to assist FSBO sellers in listing their homes on the MLS and we’re proud to give home buyers a chance to see every home that is on the market.
If you are planning to sell your house without an agent, contact IHS Realty today to learn how you can get listed on the MLS and increase the exposure your house gets in the market.
See Also
- What Is The MLS?
Get solid information on the multiple listing service and how you can use it to sell your house without an agent.
Is it digital advertising or an industry tool?
The answer to the question really depends on your location. If the question was asked in the USA, I think 99% of realtors would respond ‘industry tool’. Ask the question in Europe and the answer would be reversed with 99% of estate agents referring to MLS as digital advertising.
So what makes this technology be seen by the same industry, in two large geographical markets, in two totally different ways?
Since we’re not in Europe, IHS Realty isn’t much concerned with how our friends on the other side of the Atlantic use the MLS. We’re very concerned with how our friends in the real estate industry in the U.S. use it. We’re excited about the future because we know common FSBO sellers can use the MLS in the same manner that real estate agents have been using it for years. It may be an industry tool, but many real estate investors and one-time for-sale-by-owners may use it as an advertising tool. Either way is OK. The advantage to home owners who want to sell on their own is that can list their property on the MLS for one low fee and save thousands of dollars in real estate commissions. That’s the same no matter which side of the water you live on.
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Soon, more people will search for real estate online and leave newspapers in the dust
PRINCETON, N.J., Oct. 27 /PRNewswire/ — New research by The Kelsey Group indicates a gap between the sources to which home buyers turn to get information about real estate and the media that advertisers use to promote property for sale. Sellers turn first to newspapers (24%), followed by signs (19%) to advertise real estate for sale, while buyers turn equally to newspapers (30%) and online (30%). And the younger generation, which is the most active real estate-buying age group (18- to 34-year-olds), turns to online sources first.
Why do you think so many companies are going online today? It isn’t for current value. It’s for future value. In another few years, Internet advertising will be the most popular medium for virtually every product or service. Already, the trend is online for buying real estate. The National Association of Realtors says 75% of all home buyers search for their home online first, before going anywhere else.
Combine online buying and selling with flat fee MLS services, a service that allows home sellers the same access to buyers as real estate agents – even if they are selling on their own – then you have a powerful combination. Find out why flat fee services are the best way to go for FSBO sellers.
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FSBO sellers can save a bundle doing it themselves
Lorraine Brownrigg says she has helped homeowners sell more than 3,000 properties in and around Ottawa in the past three years. It’s anyone’s guess how much she has saved them in real estate commissions, but it’s probably many millions of dollars.
Lorraine Brownrigg knows what thousands of FSBO sellers and home owners are learning every day. Selling your house yourself has some pros and cons, but it’s mostly pros. You get to save yourself thousands of dollars in real estate commissions and you are in control of the process every step of the way.
While there are pros and cons to doing it yourself, if you can manage to get on the MLS, that’s even better. IHS Realty offers FSBO sellers the opportunity to get on the MLS, which is not possible without going through a broker first, for a low flat fee.
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FSBO sellers who list on the MLS don’t have to be deceptive
Gutner actually suggests the days-on-the-market data reported by the multiple listing service, or MLS — a computer database of homes for sale run and maintained by Realtors — is deceptively low. She provided several examples of homes Realtors had pulled off the market and then relisted, a tactic that can make a listing appear “hot.”
In Plumstead, for instance, the MLS says homes that were sold in September sat on the market an average of 85 days. But Gutner, after examining every listing, says those properties actually spent an average of 141 days on the market.
The practice of relisting properties on the MLS to make it appear that a home is a new listing is not in itself a new development. Real estate agents have been deceiving the public with such tactics for a long time. FSBO sellers who list their houses for sale on the MLS don’t have to resort to such tactics. By selling the house yourself, you have more room to negotiate a price due to the fact that you are saving yourself from paying commissions. You can actually sell your house the first time you list it rather than price it too high then relist it at a lower price later.
See Also
FSBO sellers have better chances of selling with flat fee MLS
It used to be when you made the decision to sell your home, you essentially had two methods available to you. You could list your home with a traditional real estate company and pay 6-7% commission or you could try selling on your own "for sale buy owner".
Research shows that nearly 50% of all home sellers start out trying to sell their property on their own. Although some home owners are successful with FSBO, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) home seller survey, only sixteen percent of sellers actually sell their home without exposure on the MLS. And many of them end up giving away their commission savings to the buyer to close the deal.
Realtors tend to avoid for sale by owner properties because they are working with buyers and have no written agreement to be compensated. If the seller has not agreed in writing to pay a commission to the agent, the buyer could cut the agent right out of the deal and negotiate directly with the seller. It happens…
If you’re ready to sell your home you can increase your exposure to buyers tremendously with a flat fee MLS listing. IHS Realty is the perfect solution. Learn more about flat fee MLS at IHS Realty.
See Also
Some real estate agents and state real estate commissions don’t like companies like IHS Realty
There’s no doubt that new technology often changes the norms in an industry. The Internet has certainly challenged traditional thinking in real estate circles. In fact, some FSBO sellers and flat fee MLS advocates have been accused of wrongdoing just for trying to sell on their own, or providing the resources for others to do so. Don’t be intimidated by real estate agents and state real estate commission representatives who try to keep you in the dark. You have every right to sell your house in whatever way you please, but you will do yourself a favor by educating yourself on standards and norms within the real estate industry.
We hope you’ll take the time to learn more about flat fee MLS services. IHS Realty wants you to be successful in selling your home, and we want to save you money while doing so.
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