Agent or DIY?

The best way to sell your home

So you want to list your house. Do you get the help of a real estate agent or do it yourself? To shed light on both processes, two Auckland families with similar properties allowed Ben Leahy behind the scenes as they put their most valuable assets up for sale.

Siva and Sheila Batu say there was never any doubt they would choose a real estate agent to sell their fourbedroom Sandringham villa.

They didn’t have time to study selling regulations and believed an agent could get the best price.

“We opted for an agent, No 1 because it’s stress-free. No 2, they know the market,” Siva Batu said.

Ryan Pellett and Candice Ruthven decided to sell their four-bedroom Royal Oak bungalow themselves in the hope of saving on agents’ fees.

Family and friends told them the fees could reach $40,000.

“Once we looked at it that way, technically, I’m paying myself $40,000 to sell the house,” Pellett said. So we thought, ‘Why not give it a go?’”

Pellett and Ruthven took the road less travelled, with nine out of 10 Kiwis choosing to sell through an agent.

Real Estate Institute of NZ data shows private sales have fallen, from 17 per cent of all home and apartment sales in 2014 to 10 per cent last year.

Reinz also said agents typically get

better prices, with homes they sell fetching a median price 10.9 per cent higher than homes sold privately.

Reinz chief executive Bindi Norwell said private sales work “perfectly” for those “who have the time, inclination, expertise, understanding of the regulations and patience to do so”.

“However, for busy families, those without strong sales and negotiation skills or those who just don’t understand the regulatory environment, then it might be better to utilise the skills an agent has.”

Kevin Lampen-Smith, the chief executive of the Real Estate Authority, also warned private sellers to read up on the rules and regulations because mistakes could land them in court.

“As a seller, you are legally obliged to share all the relevant information about a property to prospective buyers, such as whether or not it’s subject to weathertightness issues, or is in an area prone to flooding, for example,” he said. “If [a buyer discovers] you’ve misled them to the extent that they suffer financial loss, they can even take you to court.”