Sellers go solo in tight market

High demand is enabling homeowners to go it alone and sell properties themselves, if the price is right. But more easily unloadable condominiums are generally more manageable for sellers than co-ops.

“Co-ops might take a little more time and there is an application process that some sellers don’t want to undertake,” Doug Perlson, CEO of online brokerage firm RealDirect.com, told NY1.

Apartments with more standard layouts are easier to unload as well, he told NY1, as a pad with an unusual layout may require a little extra sales skill. Something off the beaten path is also hard to compare to similar properties and get a sense of appropriate pricing.

An independent seller must also be willing and able to look at a property as a broker would.

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“You need to ask yourself the tough questions,” Perlson told NY1. “Is your home properly staged? Does it need a paint job? Are there other things you can do to increase the value like re-caulking the bathroom?”

And, perhaps more importantly, does the seller have the time and ability to get the deal done?

Even without using a broker to sell, if a homeowner wants brokers to bring shoppers to the property, a buyer’s broker commission is still in order. [NY1] Julie Strickland