"where do they come up with those numbers?"

NAR....NAR mailed an eight-page questionnaire in August 2008 to a national sample of 133,000 home buyers and sellers who purchased their homes between July 2007 and June 2008, according to county records. It generated 10,053 usable responses; the adjusted response rate was 7.9 percent. All information is characteristic of the 12-month period ending in June 2008 with the exception of income data, which are for 2007. Because of rounding and omissions for space, percentage distributions for some findings may not add up to 100 percent.....http://www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2008/11/home…

CAR....2008 survey....1,600 surveys were conducted by telephone (People asked)
http://www.scribd.com/doc/12651863/CAR-2008-Homebuyer-Survey

2009 survey...Haven't located the methodology used (imagine it's close to the same as 2008)
http://www.car.org/newsstand/newsreleases/2009newsreleases/2…

Place whatever value you wish on these "Statistics"....Personally I'm going with.... Not very much.

N
I am posting this primarily to educate you on the home sales process, but also for others that might be wondering "where do they come up with those numbers?"

The National Association of Realtors has been conducting annual surveys of buyers and sellers for years, tracking the trends across the US. I am in California, and the Calif. Association of Realtors conducts a survey also, so I get to see the national picture as well as a more local picture.

First, if you can sell your home on your own, then you should. Not everyone needs a Realtor.

Second, if Realtors did not provide adequate value to real estate transactions, they would simply not exist.

Home buyers purchased their home in 2008 by:
Realtor 81%
Direct from builder 10%
Directly from previous owner 6%
Foreclosure or trustee sale 3%

The CAR survey of homes buyers states that buyers became aware of the home they purchased 90% of the time from a Realtor. That dovetails with previous surveys that the buyer that purchases the property is represented by an agent other than the listing agent 90% of the time, the listing agent 10% of the time.

So you are correct that having the Realtors aware of your property is critical to finding a buyer. The listing agent's job is to help the seller prepare the property for market, expose the property to the market, and help set the right price. When you opt to market the property without professional representation, these tasks are much more difficult.

If you look at the link below you can see that homes are selling, although home values are falling about 1% per month. I would analyze this link carefully. It shows that have the listings are foreclosures. That means that these homes have to be sold, regardless of price, putting "regular" sellers in a bind.

Most sellers who opt to start selling without professional representation do so to save the cost of commission. However, if you are looking at paying a buyer's agent a commission, then you need to ask yourself "how much am I really saving?"

Two key points:
1. You might be also to sell on your own, but if it takes four months, and the market is dropping 1% per month, that is 4%. Are you really saving anything?
2. Because there is so much inventory, the Realtors have their hands full selling the inventory that is listed in the MLS. Because 90% of the buyers are being represented by REaltors, that would only leave around 10% to see your property. Do you think that if you had more buyers interested you would sell for a higher price?

My suggestion is to talk with three Realtors, compare their proposals. Then, if you are successful, no problem. However, if you really need to sell, then you can shift to plan B if you need to.

Good luck.

"National statistics show that 87% of FSBO's end up listing with a Realtor to sell their home."

What "National Statistics"? The "National Statistics" from NAR ?

97% of Realtors quote "National Statistics" and never mention the source of their "National Statistics" according to National Statistics.

Dunes

Schedule a "broker's open." Check with some real estate companies in your area to see when they're typically held. Often, agencies hold sales meetings weekly, and the broker's opens are held afterwards. Where I am, for instance, that's usually mid-day Tuesday.

Have some nice food there to help attract agents. Also, have some sort of giveaway or contest. For example, offer a $50 gift card to the agent who comes closest on what the final selling price of your home will be. That accomplishes a whole slew of things: It recaptures the agents' contact information (you should have a sign-in sheet in any case) and it gives you a much better idea of what your home probably will sell for (and thus an indication of whether you're overpriced).

Make sure you have color brochures of your home--nice, with lots of information.

And promote it using electronic flyers (there are a couple of good companies out there) and possibly physical, printed flyers distributed to the firms in your area.

Hope that helps.

Here is some of FSBO sellers did:

1. They make a flyer with information and pictures about the house, send it to all real estate offices in town, you can either take it to them personally or fax it to them. Make sure to mention the commission you are offering.

2. Specify the date of the open house and what is on the menu, free food will attract someones to show up. Some give away door prize, from a gift or maybe cash prize, depends what you want to do.

That's pretty much all you need to do, good luck.

That's a very good idea, Neighborly, because ANYTHING you do to market your FSBO helps immensely. Going to local real estate offices and advertising your open house would be my suggestion. The problem is, unless they have a client interested right now, most Realtors will see your home and likely not remember to include it in their property search next month, or next year, when they do have a serious, qualified buyer in your area and price range. That's why the listing services are normally a must for home sellers like you. There is a ton of competition out there currently, both agent listings as well as other FSBO’s, and yours must always get noticed.

If you do decide to pursue it on your own, however, take it on as a full time Realtor would. Pricing it right would be the best advice I could offer. Divorce yourself from the fact that you (and your family) lived there. It is now a house, not a home. Sell it daily to anybody you meet that may be interested. Market it on Trulia, Zillow, Front Door or any other website you can find that will allow you to do so. Put up posters with photographs at shopping centers, flyers on people's vehicles, banners in your neighborhood, etc. And get a sign made that will draw attention to your house. Remember, getting that serious, qualified buyer is only the first part of the total process. Good Luck!

I recommend interviewingat least 3 Reators and list with one that meets your needs. For some information to help you decide if you want to FSBO or list with a Realtor check out this link to my blog: http://www.carolinajoe.com/blog/index.cfm/Selling-a-Home

National statistics show that 87% of FSBO's end up listing wioth a Realtor to sell their home. A Realtor will be better able market and conduct your open house. It is a good idea to have a Realtor's open house, however I believe it would be more effective and your house sell faster is conducted by a Realtor.