Have you ever been tempted to buy a house from an owner? I think the theory owners use is that they know their property and can sell it as well as some real estate agent, save the commission thereby increasing the cash in the seller's pocket. That sounds reasonable.
Last week a customer who is looking for a new place in the Key West area sent me a link to a house she found on Trulia. Truila is a real estate search engine acquired by Zillow. They share the same information but put it out in the universe just a bit differently. Both acquire listings located in the Florida Keys from the three Florida Key associations of Realtors as well as other MLS sites which post listings for properties located in the Keys. This is legal. I called the listing agent located far away from the Florida Keys to set up a showing. "The property is no longer available", he said. He added "I should take it down". He should. I just checked. He didn't. The MLS link is still up. Is the guy forgetful, inept, dishonest, unethical?
Shortly after viewing this listing I decided to search For Sale By Owner sites. Several sites post FSBO online including Zillow and Trulia do FSBO. I think the owner pays to be listed. Not sure. Houses do appear there. The photo at the top is one of the FSBO houses available in the Keys. I gotta say it makes the house look tempting. Would you be tempted to buy from a For Sale By Owner or an out of area "forgetful" sales guy?
If you are looking for a home in Key West I think it makes more sense to work with a knowledgeable local Realtor in Key West. I am a buyers agent and a full time Realtor at Preferred Properties Key West.
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