The Pros and Cons of Selling Your Home FSBO in Miami

You wouldn’t be the first homeowner tempted by the idea of selling your home for sale by owner (FSBO) in Miami.

Miami’s coveted real estate market enjoys arguably evergreen popularity, and everything from studio condos with modest amenities to beachfront mansions is almost always in high demand.

But selling a home, regardless of size and location, is rarely straightforward. While FSBO allows you to bypass one of the costliest closing costs sellers often face (the real estate agent commission), it drops the weight of the entire home-selling process squarely on your shoulders.

If you’re going to entertain the idea of handling this challenge alone, you should be as informed as possible about what FSBO in Miami entails. Below, the team from  Prevu Real Estate give a detailed breakdown of the pros and cons of selling your home FSBO in Miami and what you can expect from the journey.

Pros of selling FSBO in Miami

• Avoid paying an agent commission
• Complete control over the process
• Set the pace for yourself

Avoid paying an agent commission

The real estate broker commission is typically the seller’s largest expense when selling their home. In turn, the biggest perk of FSBO is the opportunity to bypass this expense and save a significant amount of money.

In most real estate transactions, the listing agent commission fee is usually 5-6% of the final home sale price. If the buyer was represented by their own agent, that commission fee may typically be split evenly between the seller’s agent and the buyer’s agent. 

Choosing to sell the home yourself means you don’t have to worry about a listing agent commission, creating the potential to save thousands of dollars you otherwise would have spent on the broker. 

However, it’s essential to remember that, in some cases, you may be responsible for a buyer’s agent commission fee if you choose to move forward with a potential buyer represented by their agent. 

Complete control over the process

FSBO means full control over how and when you choose to sell your home. You set the timeline, the hours during which you show the home, and, most importantly, you set the price as you see fit.

An experienced listing agent will have a wealth of knowledge under their belt when it comes to home prices and listing history in your area. This expertise allows brokers to zero in on a price range that can increase the chances of selling your home. The flip side of that coin is that it may not necessarily be a price range you’ll like at first glance.

Naturally, you will want the biggest bang for your buck when selling your property; an agent will focus on ensuring your home sells quickly and for the most reasonable market price, but the FSBO route will allow you to experiment with any price range you like. This will allow you to see how your home performs on the market and adjust accordingly, especially if you aren’t pressed for time.   

Set the pace for yourself

Taking full advantage of FSBO is often easiest when you have no set timeline. Novice home sellers who have never sold property can get overwhelmed quickly if they choose to sell themselves under pressure. But without a deadline, FSBO means you are in full control of the pace.

You don’t have to feel pressured to respond to interested buyers if you so choose, you won’t have to worry about a listing agent’s timeline (especially if the home stalls on the market), and you don’t have to feel pressured about adjusting the price.

FSBO allows you to pause the home sale whenever you want and wait for more favorable market conditions. You don’t have to worry about communicating with an agent about every detail of your plan either. 

You can also plan open houses and property tours on your schedule whenever you see fit. This can mean one to two property tours a week or multiple open houses a day if you so choose. 

Cons of selling FSBO in Miami

• Everything is on your shoulders
• You may receive a lot of unsolicited emails
• Limited pool of buyers
• Marketing the property can be time-consuming

Everything is on your shoulders

The famous Spider-Man adage, "with great power comes great responsibility," suits this scenario almost perfectly. Full control over your home sale may consolidate power into your hands, but you’ll be entirely alone when handling it.

Everything from finding qualified buyers - emphasis on the "qualified" - to negotiating and dealing with all the complicated paperwork will be your responsibility. These are tasks he listing agent would take off your shoulders.

They’ll vet buyers with mortgage pre-approvals in tow, arranging all the necessary papers, poring over potential offers, and advising you on the best steps to take. Handling a home sale by yourself is not impossible, but having a solid foundation of real estate knowledge is necessary to ensure you avoid any pitfalls.

You may receive a lot of unsolicited emails

Unless you win the lottery and find the perfect buyer via word of mouth, you’ll likely have to rely on email and phone calls to sift through a pool of interested buyers. The catch, however, is that you cannot know which of these emails are coming from reputable buyers vs eager agents seeking your listing.

Apart from buyers, be prepared to surf a wave of listing agents trying to sell you on their services. Couple this with interested buyers, and you’ll quickly realize you may need to pay for extra Gmail storage.

Seasoned listing agents have years of experience dealing with these kinds of emails. They know which questions to ask, when to respond, and when to politely dismiss an email because it may be a waste of time. Without that extra help, you’ll be solely responsible for going through the emails and phone calls yourself.

If you decide to sell FSBO, consider creating a dedicated email that will be specifically for your home sale process. You can also subscribe for a temporary Skype or Google Voice phone number, for example, to use instead of your personal number. 

Limited pool of buyers

The other caveat of FSBO is the buyers you have access to. Listing agents don’t just have a wealth of expertise in filtering qualified home buyers in Miami. They also often have a vast network of colleagues recommending potential buyers and connecting them with trusted buyer agents.

The key tool FSBO sellers won’t have access to is the Multiple Listing Services (MLS). Only licensed real estate brokers can access the MLS to list a home for sale, which almost immediately exposes your property to a greater audience. 

Marketing the property can be time-consuming

Marketing the property can be simplified to word of mouth, some social media posts, and even a simple "For Sale" sign planted on your front lawn. 

But minimal effort won’t always bring about the buyers that can ensure a property sale that benefits you. Everything from high-quality and varied photos to meticulous staging and decluttering to regularly updating your listing on sites like Zillow is almost required for a successful sale.

Without an agent to handle all of this for you, you’ll have to carve time out of your day to ensure everything is in top shape and the home has daily exposure to potential buyers.

Interested in selling your home in South Florida? Speak to a local agent and learn how you can save thousands on commission with Prevu’s seller services.