About Us

We are the same as you, homeowners who have found the need to sell a home more than once throughout our lives. From our experiences as lifelong homeowners and custom home builders, buying and selling various types of properties, we know what you are going through. That is why we wish to make your experience easier and more enjoyable, and of course, more affordable.

We are discouraged to find the cost of selling a $300,000 home through traditional means to be $18,000, plus possible additional closing costs. Homeowners may see this as unavoidable, a financial hit that must be taken as the price one pays for the decision to sell. However, since buying a home is the largest single investment most people make, we think the homeowners are entitled to all of the returns they may make on the sale of this investment. They’ve earned the returns they receive. After all, it was the homeowner who paid the mortgage month after month- there’s no reason for anyone but the homeowner to benefit from that. This is why we created a low-cost service that allows homeowners to keep the money they’ve earned, because they are the ones who deserve it.

Our services provide solutions to the challenges both buyers and sellers face, and we have compiled resources based on those needs. FSBOMetroDenver.com offers the most affordable, efficient and convenient option available.

  Why FSBO?

“Why FSBO?” is a good question. Below are several reasons it may be to your advantage to go FSBO.

Protecting your investment
You are in control
What a commission means in terms of homeowner’s equity
The lack of incentive for an agent to get the best price for your home
What FSBO means to buyers
The New York Times on the real estate market and FSBO listings
Why FSBOMetroDenver.com?

  Protecting your investment

Again, buying a home is the largest investment that most people make, as well as the most important for their future financial security. We want to allow people to protect this investment and provide an option that does not force them to disadvantage themselves by losing a substantial portion of it. For a better idea of exactly what the financial results of a seller’s various options are, read What a commission means in terms of homeowner’s equity.

  You are in control

Apart from the money you will save, for many, being in control is the biggest advantage of being a FSBO seller. You set the price of your own home, you conduct open houses when it is convenient for you, you interact with potential buyers, you determine whom handles the final transactions and ultimately, you determine who you sell your house to.

An often overlooked advantage is that as a FSBO seller, you are only selling one home, your home, meaning that it is your only priority. In contrast, real estate agents will typically have more than one property for sale and may steer a buyer towards whichever property they feel will have the best chance of selling quickly.

  What a commission means in terms of homeowner’s equity

When a homeowner weighs the cost of a typical 6% commission it might be more useful to think of it in terms of equity rather than in terms of the total sale price. For example, if the selling price of a home is $200,000, and the homeowner has built up $35,000 in equity, a commission of 6% that goes to the real estate agent(s) doesn’t sound excessive. 6% of $200,000 is $12,000. However, if the commission totals $12,000 on our $200,000 house, that money will likely come out of the homeowner’s equity. A $12,000 commission coming out of the $35,000 in equity the homeowner has built up is 34.2%. Even if the homeowner has built up $50,000 in equity, a 6% commission ($12,000), going to the real estate agent would actually be 24% of the homeowner’s equity. Using FSBOMetroDenver’s resources allows the homeowner to successfully sell his or her property for a low cost and retain almost all profits and/or equity.

  The lack of incentive for an agent to get the best price for your home

As renowned economist Steven D. Levitt points out in his new bestselling book, Freakonomics (HarperCollins, 2005), some real estate agents may not necessarily act in the best interest of the homeowner when they make decisions. To support this, Levitt uses the math of real estate commissions, using an example of a $300,000 house which yields a commission of $18,000 at the typical 6% rate. He explains that this is then split between the buyer’s agent and the seller’s, leaving the seller’s agent with $9,000. Half of the $9,000 then goes to the agency, leaving the seller’s agent with $4,500 to take home. It makes sense for the seller’s agent to try to get the best price possible for the home because, after all, that means the agent takes home more money. However, Levitt does the math again assuming that the agent does some more work to advertise the house and show it to more buyers over the course of a couple of weeks, The agent eventually sells the house for an extra $10,000. This means the homeowner would receive an extra $9,400, but the agent would only take home another $150. Is it worth all the extra work and the extra advertising (which could easily cost $150 by itself) to the agent ? While we certainly can’t speak for all real estate agents, as homeowners, that isn’t a chance we would like to take! It may be that entrusting the responsibility for the sale of your home to someone else can be costly in more ways than one.

  What FSBO means to buyers

For many buyers, the fact that a property is FSBO is a definite selling point. From a buyer’s standpoint, FSBO means both parties will get a better deal because nobody is forced to absorb the substantial costs associated with a traditional real estate commission of 6%. For this reason, many buyers like the idea of conducting the business of buying a home independently.

Oftentimes buyers are in the market for a new home because they are selling theirs, and a seller will soon be in the market again buying another home. This means that even though buyers and sellers are on opposite sides of the transaction, they each know what the other is going through. This mutual respect can lead to a very positive experience for both parties.

Most importantly, though, as the homeowner, you know more about your home than an agent ever could. Having lived in your home, you know the truly positive aspects that it presents to its owners. For example, you know if the layout of your kitchen is the most convenient of any house you’ve ever lived in, or if the study room is located perfectly to block out the noise of the television in the family room. These are the things you are likely to tell a buyer, and it means much more to the buyer coming from you than someone else. You know your home beyond its room dimensions and its number of bathrooms; you know what it is like to live there and what you will miss about it. The more information buyers receive, the better chance they have of finding shomething they like.

Also, in the last few years, many people were encouraged to buy or re-finance their homes through interest-only loans. Payments for the first few years only cover interest and thus are much lower than a payment that includes principal as well. Of course, no equity builds up during these years other than appreciation of the property. Also, many homeowners took out home equity loans to pay off credit card and other debts. The problem arises when an owner unexpectedly must sell for whatever reason, and realizes that there is very little equity in the home. If housing prices have leveled off and the seller must pay a 6% commission, it is very possible to actually incur a financial loss under these circumstances. FSBOMetroDenver.com allows the owner to list his or her house as a FSBO property for only $150.00. Adding in reasonable legal fees for assistance at the closing or at any time during the transaction still is a fraction of what a real estate commission would cost.

  The New York Times on the real estate market and FSBO listings

With the advent of the internet, the informational advantage that was once enjoyed by real estate agencies is all but gone. Gaining access to the data that real estate agents use for their “market knowledge” when pricing a home is now as easy as visiting www.zillow.com which uses tax and other public records. A recent New York Times article calls online FSBO listings “a free-market real estate revolution”, giving homeowners an alternative to the traditional multiple listing service (MLS). “Those 800-plus local listing services, controlled by local branches of the Realtors’ association help dole out about $60 billion a year in commissions to real estate agents and the firms that employ them.”

This means that across the nation, homeowners invest $60 billion in the form of mortgage payments that they will never see again if they decide to sell. The article mentions that even “...the Justice Department...seem(s) to view the (MLS) as an unassailable monopoly”. However, through the information-gathering power of the internet, this has changed and the advantage has shifted in favor of homeowners, rather than against them. Online FSBO listings will play an increasingly important role in the way people buy and sell homes, giving homeowners the opportunity to save more and more of their $60 billion every year.

  Why FSBOMetroDenver.com?

It is obvious that we believe the FSBO route to be a great alternative But why FSBOMetroDenver.com in particular? We don’t want to provide merely an alternative option for homeowners, but the best option. We strive to bring buyers to our site to give our sellers the exposure they need.

We have compiled many helpful resources and information that we feel will make the FSBO seller successful. Ranging from access to professional legal advice through our partner law firms to extensive FAQ lists to tips on a variety of FSBO topics, it is a large but ever-growing wealth of information that will continue to expand in response to any questions, comments or suggestions we receive. Please visit our Resources for Sellers page to see what we mean.

We believe in giving homeowners the freedom to sell their homes without losing so much of their investment in the process. We are committed to providing the best option for homeowners now and into the future. At FSBOMetroDenver.com, we provide a solution to the most significant challenge FSBO sellers face: how to get the exposure they need to sell their properties quickly.

  Contact Info

(303) 501-9822
help@fsbometrodenver.com
FSBOMetroDenver.com, LLC.
P.O. Box 280662
Denver, CO 80228-0662