Property guys vs. Comfree

sled_wrangler

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Im going to be listing my place south of stony at the end of the month just wondering what peoples opinions are on com free or property guys ... give the pros and cons of your experiences with them
 

rzrgade

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I have used Comfree with decent results,no idea about property guys..........Honestly most of our sales are from Kijiji...LOL

Good pictures are a MUST......

Also my son is a licensed real estate appraiser, this is important in terms of setting value. He could help you out. For financing its all about the Appraisal price. Know what it is before you list.......

good Luck.........!
 

LennyR

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I have used Comfree with decent results,no idea about property guys..........Honestly most of our sales are from Kijiji...LOL

Good pictures are a MUST......

Also my son is a licensed real estate appraiser, this is important in terms of setting value. He could help you out. For financing its all about the Appraisal price. Know what it is before you list.......

good Luck.........!


In an appreciating or even a static market place avoid getting an appraisal until after the sale price has been negotiated with a buyer. A good realtor will,be able to supply you a comparable market analysis of similar property's recently sold and presently for sale, that will show you what the realistic value of your property is, base your listing and selling price on that. If apples are selling for a dollar each , and you're selling an apple, it ain't brain surgery.
Sorry appraisers, but the reality is, appraisers depend on real estate transactions to supply them with sales data , which they compile into groovy color presentations to tell people what the value of their property is, at $500 bucks ish. My take, just hire a good Realtor, he already has the data, make him show it to you and do the comparisons. I get so sick of appraisers presenting a pretty glossy appraisal with their view of value based on yesterday's comparables, with no regard given to market trends up or down, take their fee and move on, if theyve made a mistake either optimistic or pessimistic, oh well, they've already got paid. The Realtor, he has to put up or shut up, cause he needs to market the property for the value he counseled you to expect. And unfortunately my experience has been most appraisers almost always err to the pessimistic side.
 

rzrgade

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Lol does the bank listen to the realtor or the trained appraiser.....
Lmfao .....there is NO lending without a certified appraiser!
This my friend is the facts....
 

sled_wrangler

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I do have to agree with Lenny on this one to a degree a Realtor will value your house at what market is and an appraiser will over value your property to make it look better for the banks ..but I do also understand what your saying rzr but if I put a price tag on the property that is higher then market value then I'm going to be sitting on it for a very long time

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arff

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In an appreciating or even a static market place avoid getting an appraisal until after the sale price has been negotiated with a buyer. A good realtor will,be able to supply you a comparable market analysis of similar property's recently sold and presently for sale, that will show you what the realistic value of your property is, base your listing and selling price on that. If apples are selling for a dollar each , and you're selling an apple, it ain't brain surgery.
Sorry appraisers, but the reality is, appraisers depend on real estate transactions to supply them with sales data , which they compile into groovy color presentations to tell people what the value of their property is, at $500 bucks ish. My take, just hire a good Realtor, he already has the data, make him show it to you and do the comparisons. I get so sick of appraisers presenting a pretty glossy appraisal with their view of value based on yesterday's comparables, with no regard given to market trends up or down, take their fee and move on, if theyve made a mistake either optimistic or pessimistic, oh well, they've already got paid. The Realtor, he has to put up or shut up, cause he needs to market the property for the value he counseled you to expect. And unfortunately my experience has been most appraisers almost always err to the pessimistic side.


Usually when a property is pending the inspection is done as well as the appraisal for the mortgage broker or bank. A realtor can do the CMA like Lennyr mentioned. Then come up with a listing price. The home owner can then decide if they like that amount or change it.

Absolutely the bank wants to confirm value before handing out cash.
 

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Only a small percentage of residential mortgage lenders call for an appraisal, and usually only if they perceive there to be red flags or peculiarities with the application, or if it's a unique property or location. But rzrgade is correct, they still do call for some, Lately a lot of the lenders aren't even calling for appraisals on acreage resales, again unless there are features like large detached shops/buildings or if it's a large piece of land.
My point isn't to knock the appraisers or what they do, my point is if the sale price has already been negotiated and established, I'm suggesting that would be actual market value, assuming the buyer is of sound mind and shopped around for the best available property. You bet there is gonna be the odd occasion where a buyer is paying to much, his choice. The appraiser is there to protect the lenders interest, but human nature being what it is, if the price is already established, and its not way out of the norm it's tougher IMO for that appraiser to go in after the fact and throw a monkey wrench into the works unless there is an a obvious disparity in the price. That's why I suggest Establishing the price realistically first, will usually result in a little higher sale price
 

Murminator

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I have used Comfree with decent results,no idea about property guys..........Honestly most of our sales are from Kijiji...LOL

Good pictures are a MUST......

Also my son is a licensed real estate appraiser, this is important in terms of setting value. He could help you out. For financing its all about the Appraisal price. Know what it is before you list.......

good Luck.........!


I'm with Neville save yourself 20G right off the top we have sold out properties FSBO for sale by owner sold fairly quick realtor really does nothing but opens the door for people. The bank and the lawyer does all the work. Do your homework compare what is for sale out there and compare them to the tax assessments get a feel how much % higher they are asking over taxes banks with usually go 10-15% higher but something like 20-30% they will actually send someone out to appraise it and usually reject it. And it is a lot easier negotiating across the kitchen table and writing up the paperwork rather than doing through the realtor.
Now when buying I will always use a realtor they open the door for you and it cost you nothing but make sure you find a good one that answers the phone....Guy i work with looked at a house on sunday they went home thought about it slept on it woke up Monday call realtor to put in an offer no answer left message...left message...called office receptionist couldn't get ahold of left message, left message called office again another message at 4:30 called another realtor she drove to the office met with him put in offer called original realtor left message told him to pound sand he called back and freaked said he was busy all day he said good i just freed you up some more time
 

rzrgade

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Let me clarify here. i have nothing against realtors ,a good one is worth there weight in gold......Now if you choose NOT to use one then that is a new ball game.....


I assumed this was more a question of a FSBO and such. if you dot use a realtor,i still think the best way to set value is with a good appraiser..........The appraiser has NOTHING to gain wether the value is high or low. It is just facts ,and market research.

There is nothing worse than putting a deal together,all is fine and dandy then the property appraises to low and the buyer gets cold feet! It is much better to know before hand....IMO

We have sold over fifty properties (our own)the last few years .........The only ones i dont remember the bank needing an appraisal were CASH deals with no financing required..........

I would reccomend you talk to VAL ,add is on here...........she is a great lady and knows her stuff. That being said we sell all our own and have great results...........BUT, its not for everyone !!!!!
 

LennyR

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Let me clarify here. i have nothing against realtors ,a good one is worth there weight in gold......Now if you choose NOT to use one then that is a new ball game.....


I assumed this was more a question of a FSBO and such. if you dot use a realtor,i still think the best way to set value is with a good appraiser..........The appraiser has NOTHING to gain wether the value is high or low. It is just facts ,and market research.

There is nothing worse than putting a deal together,all is fine and dandy then the property appraises to low and the buyer gets cold feet! It is much better to know before hand....IMO

We have sold over fifty properties (our own)the last few years .........The only ones i dont remember the bank needing an appraisal were CASH deals with no financing required..........

I would reccomend you talk to VAL ,add is on here...........she is a great lady and knows her stuff. That being said we sell all our own and have great results...........BUT, its not for everyone !!!!!

Sorry , not meaning to argue or one up you, just letting people know a different opinion. I've been privy to watching real estate transactions for a lot of years (like I mean a lot lol), and there is constant change as the lenders and mortgage insurers adjust policy based on losses and market swings. The use of EMILI which is a method of comparable by blocking areas in which property's sit, with a high and low parameter in each area, if your sale price fits in , no appraisal called for, if it's way high or low, red flag is one of the things that have been used, and some lenders and insurers do enough loans in certain areas where they already have a comfort zone as to whether or not an appraisal is needed to give them security. Also the appraisal institute works hard to convince all involved that an appraisal is called for on every transaction, that's understandable also. If you're selling in an area wher there's not many recent sold comparables, then quite often lenders will call for an appraisal biased on that, but my question then is, where does the appraiser then get those comparables, appraisers can only get comparable data from 2 sources, land title registry and Realtors. Plus , think about this, if you always base value on yesterday's sale data, how would the market ever increase. If you're the buyer or a lender I can see reasons why you would always want an appraisal.
So, I am very comfortable saying, if as a seller you always get an appraisal to determine the asking price, you have quite likely left an awful lot of money on the table, been there done that and seen it countless number of times.
 

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Your original question was which non realty service to use. Good thing you've realized on your own the lack of value Realtors provide. The entire Realtor industry was based on convincing home owners they will never understand the home sales process, instilling fear on what will happen if they try to cut them out, and why they pressure you into signing a contract with them. You know they are really terrified of the little thing called the internet, which will eventually replace them. Writing is on the wall. Anybody 30 or under sees that anything a Realtor does can be accomplished(marketing, et) by themselves, and all these non Realtor companies will help you with the legalities. Don't know if you've noticed the increase in advertising on "you need a relator" lately, but that's their only response to them loosing market share, and they understand they cannot offer any more value than an owner using a non Realtor service.

Use a non realtor service, advertise ahead of time for a weekend open house/viewings(state no Realtors), produce your own marketing handouts et, then set a date after the weekend that you will be accepting bids on the property. see how it goes.

I wouldn't have a problem using Realtors if they weren't not so outrageous with what they charge vs what they provide.
 

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We used a realtor but only because we had found our new place and needed to sell FAST. because he double ended on the deal I was able to negotiate the fees down from 7 & 3 to 4 & 2... reduced my fee from $13750 to $8500 and our place sold in under 24 hours. In this situation the Realtor was key because he had the buyers already in his pocket, knew they were starting to look and knew exactly what they were after.

My house in Lamont sold on kijiji in 3 weeks for full asking price and the lawyers fees were $800 including transfer of title.

In my experience bank dispatched appraisers are always low, we had to dispute our original appraisal and get a second opinion. almost cost us our dream home. I hate banks..... and CMHC (the most profitable non-profit entity out there)
 
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sledneck_03

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Realtors are thieves, put a sign in your yard and phone you maybe once to tell you another realtor is showing it for $7000, then the other realtor signs some paper work for the other $7000. They act like its so hard where even the newbie ones are driving $60-100,000 lux vehicles. Something needs to change cause the percentages they get is too fawking much. They have no liability on what your buying, neither does the ****ty house inspector.
 

arff

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Realtors are thieves, put a sign in your yard and phone you maybe once to tell you another realtor is showing it for $7000, then the other realtor signs some paper work for the other $7000. They act like its so hard where even the newbie ones are driving $60-100,000 lux vehicles. Something needs to change cause the percentages they get is too fawking much. They have no liability on what your buying, neither does the ****ty house inspector.



Wow,,,your will informed..:rolleyes:
 

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The whole Realtor vs. Private debate is interesting. I still dont know where I sit.....and I am a licensed Realtor! Its how I make my living, yet I do really see the point of private sellers. However, there is alot of value added with some realtors. My opinion is that the whole realtor system is buyer driven. Most people just arent comfortable buying a half million dollar item without some professional guidance. Take for example people that are moving to Creston......there are huge differences between the surrounding acreage communities. Some of these differences include climate, water systems, zoning, ALR, stigma, and a tonne of other factors. Alot of these things can be researched, but it is much easier and comforting using an expert that knows these things. Having said that though, if you really strip away alot of the realtor BS, we really arent allowed to put ourselves out as "experts" on most things! Seriously, we arent supposed to make comments on the structural integrity or soundness of a building........we are not building inspectors. We are not allowed to advise on any legal aspects....ie. charges on title, easements, etc.....we are not lawyers! So most of the time we are forced to refer buyers to experts for alot of questions in order to avoid legal liability.

One thing I will say about the money part is it can be very misleading. Even thought the commission on a property might be 15k, that is split 50/50 between listing and selling realtor. Then that 50/50 split is divided again with the realtor usually getting 60%. From that money we still have to pay all of our own expenses. So on a 15k commission I end up with 4500 and still have to pay all expenses. Plus for every client that you get paid this on, you have probably worked with 2 other goofballs that dont buy a house.

Ultimately I think a hybrid of the two systems will become the market leader, and I think property guys is onto this. It allows sellers to save a bunch of money, and yet still put the property on MLS and set a commission for realtors if the buyer chooses to work with one. The problem with the whole system that allows the current realtor structure to thrive is the demands of some people. I think a much more efficient system is possible, but as long as clients want a super high level of service, the money needs to be there to be able to pay for it.......hence the current high commission structure. Im talking about the people that insist on looking at 40 houses, yet still might not buy. Or people that insist that you take phone calls at 10 at night, and the minute you dont answer, go and buy a house with another realtor even though you might have put a tonne of work in for them so far.
 

Murminator

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Hmm I'm that guy that looks at 40 houses ...LOL I hope to find 1 in 40 houses and it may take a year If i'm spending half a million I has to the be the right house, right lot, right neighbourhood and they all have to line up. Like i have always said on everything a salesman has never sold me anything in my life. I have has agent drive up to a house and i wouldn't get out of the vehicle she used words like it's under valued, it's gorgeous inside, beautiful yard ya but it on a frigging bus route ya i wanna sit a my driveway waiting to back out because of all the traffic or no parking in front of my house as listen to buses drive by frigg....get mad thinking about it

ok ya so I'm rambling on.... salesman no matter what they are selling don't sell me anything they just right up the paperwork
 

TylerG

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Hmm I'm that guy that looks at 40 houses ...LOL I hope to find 1 in 40 houses and it may take a year If i'm spending half a million I has to the be the right house, right lot, right neighbourhood and they all have to line up. Like i have always said on everything a salesman has never sold me anything in my life. I have has agent drive up to a house and i wouldn't get out of the vehicle she used words like it's under valued, it's gorgeous inside, beautiful yard ya but it on a frigging bus route ya i wanna sit a my driveway waiting to back out because of all the traffic or no parking in front of my house as listen to buses drive by frigg....get mad thinking about it

ok ya so I'm rambling on.... salesman no matter what they are selling don't sell me anything they just right up the paperwork

yeah, but you're hard to please.
 

deaner

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Hmm I'm that guy that looks at 40 houses ...LOL I hope to find 1 in 40 houses and it may take a year If i'm spending half a million I has to the be the right house, right lot, right neighbourhood and they all have to line up. Like i have always said on everything a salesman has never sold me anything in my life. I have has agent drive up to a house and i wouldn't get out of the vehicle she used words like it's under valued, it's gorgeous inside, beautiful yard ya but it on a frigging bus route ya i wanna sit a my driveway waiting to back out because of all the traffic or no parking in front of my house as listen to buses drive by frigg....get mad thinking about it

ok ya so I'm rambling on.... salesman no matter what they are selling don't sell me anything they just right up the paperwork

A good realtor should sit down with you, find out what is important to you, and then carefully go through listings to show you based on that information. If being next to a bus stop is a deal breaker for you.......then why book an appointment for a place next to a bus stop? I think it is ridiculous to look at more than 10 houses before buying because most of the criteria can be decided upon before getting in the car. But this is what Im talking about.......most people would fire me and move on to the next realtor to look at the 40 places even though they are not right for them. Until people stop demanding this ridiculous level of service, I cant see things changing that drastically.
 
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