unprepared.
Moreover, the owner of an FSBO house might find themselves stuck with those extra duties for a lot longer than they expect: it is a well-documented fact that houses take considerably longer to sell through FSBO than they do when handled by a professional real estate agent. At the end of the day, when choosing between FSBO and a real estate agent, one must be prepared to make a realistic assessment of just how much effort they are ready to invest in this endeavor, and how much their time is worth. Listing a house as FSBO enjoys better support nowadays, but is still a far cry from the real estate agent pool. FSBO listing now enjoys far better online support than it did a few years ago. There are several networks that specifically support FSBO properties and their owners, and offer nationwide listing services and marketing tools, all at low or flat rate prices. However, they struggle to compare to the more extensive, more established resource pools that real estate agents usually tap into. This more restricted support structure also contributes to the house spending more time on the market before selling, further inconveniencing the owner. FSBOs are usually overpriced—but still end up selling below market price. Very few of the owners who opt for FSBO have extensive knowledge of the housing market or finely honed skills in the real estate trade. Between that and the emotional factor of a homeowner’s bias, combined with a natural desire to profit from the sale, causes owners to overprice their homes. Overpricing frequently scares off potential buyers, leaving the house on the market for, yet again, a longer period—which can be a real disadvantage to those who want a fast sale or actually need the money.
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