Thinking of going it alone?

If you sell the home yourself, you will get limited exposure by putting up a sign, running some ads, and telling your friends. If you work with a REALTOR®, you will get instant and mass exposure to a large number of prospective home buyers.

A REALTOR® has access to the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) System. This computerized system operated by the local real estate board, compiles information about listed properties in the area and makes it accessible to member companies. As a result, when a REALTORS® lists your home, REALTORS® from other companies learn about your home and try to match it with buyers with whom they are working.

A REALTOR® can speed the selling process in other ways:

• By specializing in real estate, a REALTOR® knows market values and can therefore help you set a competitive price for your home.
• A REALTOR® can free you from the hassles associated with showing your home and screen out people who are merely curious.
• A REALTOR® is objective when negotiating with buyers and experienced in reading the fine print of contracts.
• By staying on top of the mortgage market, a REALTOR® may know how to wade through financing tangles and clinch a sale.

Selling a home is not something that anyone can do in their off-hours. It’s a specialized service, best handled by a professional REALTOR®.