I want to make it clear that I am not opposed
to Real Estate agencies or Real Estate sales people. As
I said, I used to be one my self. Most of the Real estate
people I have associated with are really decent friendly
people trying to earn an honest living. The demand is
there for real estate sale people and they are filling
the demand.
But the big question is, “Is it
essential to sell through them when you decide to put
your house on the market?” In my opinion it isn’t,
especially these days with such easy access to the Internet
where prospective buyers can get a good perspective of
what houses are like, through photographs, without visiting
them. Sure, agents can be very useful, but does their
usefulness warrant the fees they need to charge? That’s
a very important question to consider.
Remember that unless you are selling
a rental property, the commission you pay an agency is
not tax deductible. In New Zealand you are likely to pay
more than $16,500 including 15% GST on any house, which
sells for over $400,000. The average income earner would
have to work for more than six months and earn about $24,000
gross in order to have $16,500 left after tax.
A real estate agent might save you a
few hours each week for perhaps a couple of months, but
is it worth your working for several months full time
to compensate for it? Don't forget that if you were to
sell your house through an agency you would still have
to devote some time dealing with their salespeople. Of
course, if you try to sell your house yourself you may
have to spend several hundred dollars in advertising costs,
but these days, most agencies charge the vendor for marketing
costs anyway, so you will be no worse off if you did the
advertising yourself. |
