5 Reasons to Hire a Pro to Sell Your Home

This is an article I came upon in US News and World Report.

Great info when working unsure sellers and FSBOS.

You might say that today's topsy-turvy housing market is just too treacherous to go it alone. Below are offered five reasons why homeowners are better off selling their property with an agent:

1. Employ an expert: A typical property owner does not have anywhere near the home-selling experience of a real estate agent. Agents can recommend relatively simple improvements--painting, making repairs, decluttering--that can help a home sell faster and for a better price. The Realtor is the neighborhood expert. We can walk through a property and see right away what needs to be done to get the home sold. Independent sellers might not be aware of theses tricks of the trade.
2. Use better tools: Homeowners using agents can get their property listed on Realtor.com. It has more far-reaching access to market that property--with over 3 million properties on it--than the for-sale-by-owner sites, which have tens of thousands. Independent sellers do not have access to this service.
3. Sidestep lawsuits: Agents can also protect sellers from potential litigation. There are all kinds of liability issues that a seller could potentially face when--dealing one on one with a buyer. Agents, who have experience dealing with these liability issues, can help homeowners dodge such situations.
4. Duck the riffraff: Independents sellers might not have any idea whom they are letting into their homes during open houses. These potential buyers might not have the credit to make the purchase--and would therefore be wasting the homeowner's time--or could even "try to rob them later on." Homeowners working with agents will have qualified buyers visiting their properties.
5. Avoid hardball tactics: It's a buyer's market out there. And with all the information available online, today's well-informed buyers are tough negotiators, too. Real Estate agents have been through the home-selling process before and are trained in negotiating tactics--giving them a potential edge in hammering out a deal in the seller's best interest. It's hard to do that with your own property, particularly if you are not a professional.