Used Car Salesman

by Darrin DeRoches October 28 - November 3, 2010

The big news in real estate this week is that the Canadian Real Estate Association has agreed not to pursue the fight with the anti–competition bureau, which basically boils down to access to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for the average consumer. Real estate companies can now offer different rates on services. Everyone is reporting that it will become cheaper to sell homes in Canada – but will it?     When all this began, some real estate companies advertised that they charge from $300 to $500 to put up a simple listing which will appear on the MLS, and therefore advertise the property on mls.ca, which is the biggest website for real estate listings. So everyone believes they can now sell their home for $500.  You could already do this with the for sale by owner (FSBO) companies. They feel more and more consumers will go with their services, since they will now be able to list on the MLS.  The problem with this belief is there is a lot more involved in selling a home than just listing it on a website.      Let’s use the used car industry as an example. Their biggest website is probably autotrader.ca, and anyone can list their car on the site and be listed with other comparable cars. You can advertise it, take all the calls, show it, negotiate a price, do an inspection, write up a contract, collect the payment, transfer the car, and you’re done. Easy, right? But let’s remember the “lemon rule”, or “buyer beware”: once you buy it, you own it. You may be out hundreds or even thousands of dollars, and you can always sell it for parts. What happens when you buy a house?     The listing of a home can take a lot of work.  Just figuring out the right price is probably the biggest part of the job. The right price will not only make you money; it can also save you a ton of time and money. The advertising may cost you $500, but the open houses, the pictures, the screening of calls, and the showings all take time and money.  A reputable inspection, a proper legal contract, holding the deposit, etc. are priceless. Properly selling a home is a full time job and is worth every cent you pay.  The old saying  that you get what you pay for has never been so true.     The difference between selling your car and selling your home is usually about three to four hundred thousand dollars. Do you really want to trust this process to someone who is willing to take $500 to list your house? Or should you trust a reputable brokerage that will not only do all the work; they’ll do it for no money up front. They believe in the salability of your property to invest in selling it: they won’t just take your money up front and then try to charge you more for more “services” down the road. The biggest financial transaction of your life should be handled by a professional, not a used car salesman! V Darrin DeRoches is a local real estate and mortgage broker. He can be reached to answer questions, comments or stories about real estate experiences through this weekly column at mail@uniquerealty.c