This new way of selling your home has been called a paradigm shift because it provides a way to avoid being in the same spot you started from months down the road. It’s called the hybrid approach, which uses a combination of real estate agent andinvestor. And it offers sellers an option other than just listing their home, waiting for offers, and selecting the best offer. They can also choose to sell directly if that better meets their needs. Read on, then, to learn about the new way of selling your home in Los Angeles.
Comparison of Approaches to Selling Your Home in Los Angeles
There are now three basic models for or approaches to selling a home . . .
FULL-SERVICE AGENT
When selling your home in Los Angeles, you can always go the tried-and-true traditional route of using a full-service real estate agent and listing your home. It works and is the best option for many sellers.
“The most important thing [agents] can do is to make sure your home is on the MLS and all the major portals . . . Especially for harder to sell properties, agents can provide some tricks of the trade for a property that isn’t moving immediately and can help the process run smoothly with minimal input from you. However, a full service agent is very expensive, charging 6% of the Total Sale price, not just of your portion. If you own 20% equity in your home, that 6% commission is actually 30% of your equity. If you have less equity, you might even have to come out of pocket to pay this.”
FOR SALE BY OWNER
The second longstanding option for selling your home in Los Angeles is to do a for sale by owner (FSBO), whether you market and sell yourself on the consumer market or sell to an investor. It works, is usually faster, cuts out the middleman, and can save you some money.
“Thatis why up to 20% of the US market turns to some version of the ForSale by Owner model. You aren’t spending a huge chunk of your equity as a transaction cost to have someone sell your home for you and you are willing to do the work yourself. Who knows, maybe your real estate agent was getting paid more by the hour than you are! However, with the DIY approach, you may not be marketing to all possible buyers if you aren’t on the MLS. This means that you get fewer buyers looking at the home, and may sell it for less money or take longer to sell. You also don’t have anyone to turn to ask questions, help you find the correct legal forms, or find high-quality professionals like photographers to work with throughout the process.”
HYBRID MODEL
This new way of selling your home combines the two listed just above and involves a hybrid real estate agent who is both a licensed agent and an investor. The great benefit here is that you have a one-stop shop in that hybrid agent who can provide the services you need regardless of the selling approach you choose. If you decide to go the traditional listing route, the agent can help you. And if you decide to sell directly, the agent-as-investor can also help you.
It’s a win-win situation, really. To discover more about this new kind of agent, contact a Los Angeles hybrid agent at (805) 257-5780.
When to Use This New Way of Selling Your Home
There are occasions when sellers need to sell fast, and in those scenarios, a hybrid-agent/approach may be best. Some occasions when selling to an investor may be better include . . .
IMPENDING FORECLOSURE
If you’re behind on payments, a fast sale is a necessity and an agent-investor can facilitate that.
INHERITED HOME
If you’ve inherited a home and don’t plan to live in it or it contains too many memories of the deceased, you may not want to go through the long process of listing and waiting.
HOME IN DISREPAIR
If the Los Angeles home you want to sell needs major repairs and/or upgrades, you may be money ahead to sell to an investor instead of making all those costly repairs.
CLOSING CONTROL
Selling your home in Los Angeles with a hybrid agent also allows you more control over the closing date if you sell directly. If you have a tight timeline owing to, say, a job relocation, you chose the direct-selling option to expedite the transaction process and close sooner.
Advantages of the Hybrid Approach
With a traditional home sale that involves using an agent, listing, considering offers, negotiating, and so on, you’ll likely sell at a higher price. Still, selling for more comes with a cost and certain cons. That’s why it’s better for some sellers to use a hybrid agent so that they have another ready option.
The advantages here are . . .
LITTLE TO NO PREP WORK
Selling directly typically means an as-is sale. So you won’t have to make a bunch of costly repairs in order to list, saving both money and time.
SHORTENED ESCROW PERIOD
A traditional real estate sale typically requires a 45-day escrow period. You can avoid that when selling your home in Los Angeles when your hybrid agent puts on her investor hat. Closing, in that case, can happen in as little as a week or two.
PARED-DOWN TRANSACTION
Working with a hybrid agent also affords the opportunity for a simplified transaction and expedited transaction process. You’re selling as-is so you won’t have to make repairs or wait on inspections. In addition, closing, the final part of the transaction, is simplified because an investor often pays closing costs and you won’t have to deal with negotiations about these.
CASH OFFER
And the hybrid approach, when you opt for the direct-sale route, allows you to get an all-cash offer. The full sale price goes directly into your pocket without your having to wait for a buyer to secure financing – or run the risk of the buyer being turned down and having to start at the beginning again.
How to Use the New Way of Selling Your Home
Working with a hybrid agent who is both a real estate agent and an investor offer you as the seller two viable selling options wrapped up in one convenient package. You can choose how you want to maximize your money and time. To get started with this new way of selling your home in Los Angeles, contact us today at (805) 257-5780.