List the jobs before you pick who does them
Write every job in a sale, then decide who will do it and what it costs you.
Hiring an agent and selling it yourself are two ways to cover the same work. The jobs do not disappear because you picked a path. Write them down: pricing, photos, showings, A form where you report what you know about the property. Your state decides which forms you sign. forms, offer review, negotiation, and closing coordination. One line each. Next to each line, write the name of the person who will do it and what it will cost you in hours or dollars.
Use your own rates in the commission comparison. This site does not fill in a rate for you. If you do not know an agent's fee, leave the dollar cell blank and ask for it in writing before you compare. A blank is allowed. A made-up percent is not a plan. Hours count too. A showing you will host is an hour cell, not a free cell. Add those hours so the money column is not the only cost.
If you sell it yourself, you can still offer to pay a buyer's agent. That choice is a line you enter. It is not a requirement and it is not a default. Write yes or no, and if yes, write the amount you would offer so it can go in the calculator. Do not leave it as we will see. The same is true of photos. If you will hire a photographer, ask the fee and put it on the line. A photo fee of a few hundred dollars is a real cost next to a commission, and it belongs on the page before you order a sign.
Ask any agent you interview for a written list of what they will do, and set it beside your list. Gaps are the jobs you would still own. Decide who owns each job before you order a sign or book photos. If a line has no name, you are not ready to advertise. The sign can wait a day. A missing owner on offer review cannot.
What to do
- Make two columns: the job, and who owns it, with hours or dollars.
- Leave a fee blank until you have it in writing, and enter your own numbers in the calculator.
- Decide whether you will offer to pay a buyer's agent, and write the amount or a no.
- Ask any agent you interview for a written list before you order a sign.