I have a family property to sell that was listed with a Realtor for six months and only received two showings. I am unhappy with her performance, so I let the listing expire and plan on exploring other options. This is the first time I've ever been in the situation of selling a property.

I'm a little leery of "For Sale by Owner" but I'm willing to entertain the idea. The reason this would be beneficial is the property is likely to sell for a very small amount and the commission a Realtor would expect is unappealing. (My past Realtor had a minimum of 7% commission.)

Otherwise, I'd like to find another Realtor at another firm.

1. What is a common commission rate? (Perhaps this varies by area?)
2. Has anyone sold a home by owner, and if so, would you recommend doing it?

Thanks in advance!

First... never sign for a 6 month listing... they have no motivation for a quick sale... or even a slow one.

As far as rates... you should call your local Realtors to find out rates... a lot depends on your local market.

Selling by owner opens you up to a lot of risk when a buyer brings an agent... because only fools buy a house without someone who is savy with the market and all the requirements working on their behalf.

That means most buyers will be coming forward with a buyers agent and they are going to want a cut anyway.

THere are so many things that can go wrong...I'd never try to sell on my own...OR buy without an agent....experience has shown people that "Sell by owner" in my area are cheap SOB's that expect to keep every dime...and are likely to hide things a realtor would never try to hide out of fear of losing their liscense. That might not be true 100% of the time....but it is a lot of the time....and I do know several realtors personally.....one is a Blood relative....so I get frank information they would not tell just anyone.

7% is high, unless it's a very inexpensive property. Most are 4 or 5%, a few are 3%.
One option is to list as owner and entertain brokers at reduced rate, such as 2 1/2 or 3%. Be sure to have terms, and to make everyone you show to on your own sign in and show an ID so that there is no conflict if someone comes back with an agent.

Try Zillow.com for listing on your own. You could start listing for free, and pay in a few weeks for wider coverage on MLS once you see how it goes during March (you may get calls from brokers and competitors of zillow). In northern climates, the beginning of April is the best time to list, not just for spring flowers but also for families who want to shop, buy, close, and move before the next school year starts.

If you do sign with a broker, be clear on what they promise, and feel free to make demands about advertising, open houses, MLS, and make it 90 days, not 6 months. Do not sign an exclusive. Feel free to interview as many agents as you want, or to ask brokers for their top selling agents. Do settle on one brokerage/one agent for best results, even being on the MLS. Being open just means that they have to split their commission if other brokerage makes the sale.

Thank you both for your replies.

Joy, thank you for your very concise information. You've given me a lot to think about if/when approaching a brokerage firm. I admit I was an "easy target" last time as I was new at this experience, but I've learned a lot from my mistakes! This has given me more tools to move forward with before I settle on my next agent. That is most likely the direction I will take, but I was curious to hear of experiences selling by owner.

It's good to sign up for zillow anyway, or just look at it to see what's out there in your zip code.
Two other sites are realtor.com and MLS.com.
Be well informed, even if you have an agent. As in any profession, there is a huge range in their expertise.