The shocking truth about selling your own home

Updated February 15, 2023

The real estate industry is a multi-billion dollar industry that has remained quite static for the last few decades. Traditional brokerages have a stronghold on the market, people are hesitant to buy or sell privately in fear of the intricacies and legalities involved, and commission fees are simply accepted as part of the deal.

But the internet has allowed some opportunities for different players to enter this market and offer alternatives to the traditional real estate model of realtor based commission. PropertyGuys.com is one such player that intends to change this, one sale at a time.

A For Sale sign

Should PropertyGuys.com have Realtors worried?

Propertyguys.com started out as a vision and an idea between a few university friends. Their goal: to re-invent the real-estate transaction, minus the lofty commission fees that come with a conventional brokerage.

In a nutshell, PropertyGuys.com offers you to sell your home privately, but with many of the resources and exposure that you would receive when using a real estate broker.

They offer two options or “packages” to you, the seller, that offer all the tools and knowledge that you need to make a private sale of your home totally hassle-free. This includes marketing, legal assistance, signage, strategies and support, and more.

Watch the video – PropertyGuys.com’s President and CEO Ken LeBlanc

Some features that are included with the basic package:

  • Signage
  • Listing on propertyguys.com
  • Social media exposure
  • Legal guidance

There is the option to use their full-service package, which includes all of the above, as well as:

  • listing on MLS
  • a customized marketing plan
  • full administrative support around booking showings and appointments
  • and many other specialty options

The PropertyGuys.com business philosophy is positioned to maximize technology and the savviness of today’s consumer to benefit from their services. With marketing fees as low as $349 and no commission due upon sale of the property, it’s an extremely attractive proposition for homeowners looking to keep more of the profits from the sale of their home.

Things your Realtor won’t tell you

In a nutshell, a lot of us strive to be self-sufficient these days, in many aspects of our life. Thanks to technology and do it yourself forums everywhere on the internet, if we want to….want can “do it yourself”. In real estate, you want to capitalize on a hot market and get the best price possible for the sale of your home. And you want to achieve this without paying a hefty commission fee to the agent for their brokerage’s services.

Anyone can learn to sell their home privately, You-tubing the ins and outs of the legal steps, marketing techniques, and other skills. However, it can be nerve-racking to actually follow through and take on the entire process of selling your home privately, simply because there is so much to know and so many steps to be undertaken.

This is where the PropertyGuys.com comes in. Their packages provide you with all the services that a real estate agent provides, but you keep that commission fee for yourself. This is very appealing to people, especially in a hot housing market where many houses seem to sell themselves.

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How to end costly commissions

Over 60,000 homes have been sold in Canada with the help of property guys in the last 15 years and they’ve just begun to penetrate the $9 billion dollar industry. PropertyGuys.com believes that the next generation of home buyers and sellers will see what they have to offer, compare the costs and benefits, and take the option of selling their home privately over paying high commission fees.

It’s not to say that property guys haven’t had to adjust their business model several times over the past 16 years to adapt to the changing market. In an industry that has remained quite static over the last decades, it’s no surprise that people are sometimes hesitant to try something new.

The grip that the largest brokerage brands have on the market has resulted in ongoing intervention by the government’s competition watchdog…which has meant many hurdles for the company. Walter Melanson of PropertyGuys.com

How to buy and sell your home without a Realtor

Over the last few years, PropertyGuys.com has launched a Canada-wide crusade, urging people to really take a look at their options when it comes to selling their home, and how they can assist them in the same way that a conventional agent would, minus the commission.

Taking on the establishment hasn’t stopped with the real estate market – they are expanding their horizons to include PropertyGuys.com Mortgage services. Their mission remains the same: to help customers make the best, most informed choices when it comes to purchasing a home.

But they are now engaging in the private sector mortgage market as well, to help their clients adapt to the fast-changing money market, but with the best interest of the client in mind, rather than the interests of the bank.

Conclusion

There is little doubt that the internet has revolutionized the way we work and do business. Overall, consumers today are demanding choices, flexibility and they want to save money. The power of the internet as a selling tool is its ability to quickly search and find the information required by the consumer.

Online real estate services now allow the consumers an opportunity to remove the agent by doing internet searches, virtual tours and drive buys, and setting up internet alerts that keep them up-to-date on any new properties coming onto the market.

This has enabled a number of service providers to enter the space traditionally safeguarded by realtors and there are signs a disruption may be under way. Time will tell if franchises like PropertyGuys.com are changing the face of the real estate industry by providing more options for less to consumers.

So, would you consider going the non-traditional route the next time you buy or sell a home?

Want to learn more? Visit our Home Buying, Selling and Moving resource centre for everything you need to know about real estate, buying a home, or moving. Or, get an online quote in under 5 minutes and find out how affordable personalized home insurance can be.

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