Yay! We sold our house! 2019 was a tough market for real estate, but we managed to sell our home. We had several choices in how to list, but after market research, lots of reading and personal referrals, we ultimately decided our best bet was to list our house with Purplebricks.
What you need to know before listing a property:
- Traditionally, home sellers are responsible for paying both commission to their own realtor and commission to the buyer’s realtor, which is taken out of the proceeds when your home is sold. Typical commission is 7/3 – which means 7% on the first $100,000 and 3% on the balance – of which the realtors split. This means a $400,000 house costs the seller $16,000 in commissions – and don’t forget – they also add GST to that number.
- When listing your home, it is a good idea to get a professional inside to value your home. They will not only take into consideration the area, sq ft, and updates/renovations, but will also provide recent comparable properties with their listing and selling prices. This will help you to list your house at the right price. The right price is the most important part of listing a property – you want to get the most you can, but not turn away potential buyers by listing too high.
- Photos: Most potential buyers will either find your property online, or will be shown photos from your MLS listing by their realtor before booking a showing. It is important to have high quality, clean photos with lots of light so people can see clearly what there is to offer. Proper angles of the camera are important so the size of the rooms are not deceitful in your listing. A very high quality camera and a professional behind it are always a great idea.
- Contracts: offers, amendments, conditions, legal jargon – it’s all part of the selling/buying process. It can become confusing, things can be missed and your full rights may not be exercised if you do not have a professional helping you navigate the proper paperwork to close a sale.
- Questions: It is always good to have someone you can ask things you are unsure of. Can you ask the seller to leave furniture or art work? Can the buyer ask you to replace your furnace as a condition of the sale? (Short answer is yes, but you also have the right to refuse requests) – having a professional in your corner who can help navigate and give you advice through these things is a tremendous stress reliever and can save a sale!
Why Purplebricks?
- Good to know: Purplebricks is a recognized, licensed brokerage.
- Purplebricks takes only a portion of the cost that traditional realtors do for the seller’s agent portion: $499 to list and $2499 when the home successfully sells.
- Commission to the buyer’s realtor is your choice! You can offer the full amount, offer no commission, somewhere in between – AND, if you search for your new home with a Purplebricks agent, you get cash back when you buy. *See details on their website or ask about this incentive*
- When you list with Purplebricks, you get your very own licensed realtor to help you with your listing and answer any/all questions you have. Your home evaluation is free. The listing agent provides comparables and will help you find the right price to list.
- Your agent with Purplebricks can help you list your home during your first appointment. This includes writing the description, measuring all rooms, pulling up relevant property information, taking professional photos with a high-quality camera made especially for taking home photos, and giving you all service options possible – with no pressure. With Purplebricks, you have an expert with you every step of the way.
- Purplebricks brings you all signage including the front lawn sign, neighbourhood signs that point buyers in your direction, and more.
- Purplebricks listings go live on their website quickly and are also posted on the main real estate website for all house listings: Realtor.ca – and include an official MLS listing number, like all other homes listed with other brokerages.
- New listings on Realtor.ca are sent to people who have saved similar searches to your property, as well as to real estate agents who are always looking for new listings for potential clients – so your listing has the same exposure online as any other home listed with another brokerage.
Misconceptions about Purplebricks:
- That it is a “for sale by owner” type of program. Wrong. Purplebricks is a licensed brokerage with licensed realtors and access to Realtor.ca with official MLS listing numbers for each property they list, just like any other brokerage in our city.
- You are doing it on your own with Purplebricks. Wrong. Professional agents, a call centre with little-to-no wait time on the phone and several team members within the national company (both at head office and right here in Edmonton) are all ready and waiting to answer questions and help in any way possible with the same goal as you – to sell your home.
- Purplebricks doesn’t have the same exposure as other brokerages. Not true. Purplebricks listings are posted on Realtor.ca just like homes listed with any other brokerage in your area and are easily found in the same searches as any other MLS listing online when someone is looking in your area and price range.
Our personal experience:
My Purplebricks experience has been amazing. Not once did I feel pressure to list, to hurry, to make decisions according to someone else’s suggestions, or to do anything I was not comfortable with.
Booking my evaluation, photos and listing appointment was so easy. I just called them and they were at my home the very next day. Photos came out clear and I felt they really represented what my home actually looked like inside. The licensed agent was really nice and very professional. She measured every room, took multiple high quality photos, showed me comparables, helped me pick the right price and answered all of my questions. The appointment took less than an hour in total and included the agent posting up my lawn sign at the end.
Dealing with Purplebricks along the way was very easy. I have never waited on the phone to speak to someone for more than a minute. Customer service is so friendly and they go above and beyond to make sure your questions are all answered and anything you need is provided to you in a timely manner.
Navigating the website under my login was so easy. I could see how many people were viewing and saving my listing, see prices of recent home sale in my area, get information on selling and easily contact support when needed.
The selling process has been a breeze. When I accepted an offer (and when I sold) I just let them know and they updated my listing immediately. They have been there to answer questions, send over the documents my broker and lawyer have requested, and genuinely wished us congratulations on our home sale. I felt very taken care of throughout the whole process and was met with nothing but kindness in every interaction, even in stressful times that come with selling, showings and contracts.
Overall, I would recommend listing with Purplebricks. Not only did I personally save more than $15,000 (yes, seriously that much!) on commissions by using Purplebricks to list my home, but I had a stress-free and successful selling experience with them.
All opinions in this blog are completely my own. This is my authentic personal experience with the Purplebricks brokerage and their services, but I am receiving compensation for sharing my experience.