When Nicholas Gray decided to sell his home in regional Queensland, a real estate agent asked him for about $11,000 in commission fees and valued the property much lower than he expected.
So Mr Gray decided to sell the home himself.
He is one of thousands of Australians who have decided to ditch real estate agents and list their properties privately to maximise their profit.
"Just having that full control and not having to deal with that person in the middle, just being able to talk directly to potential buyers was nice," Mr Gray said.
He listed the home on a third-party website that allowed the advertisem*nt to be displayed on popular real estate websites for a flat rate.
Within 12 hours he had an inspection organised and three weeks later the home in north Queensland was under contract.
It also ended up selling for $40,000 more than the agent's estimate and Mr Gray saved about $11,000 on commission fees.
"I just think in the current market, with the demand, you can list it a little bit higher and still get the interest from people just because houses are so in demand at the moment," Mr Gray said.
Feeling the pinch
Australian Institute of Housing and Urban Research (AHURI) managing director Michael Fotheringham said selling privately was becoming more popular.
Dr Fotheringham credited that to the increased popularity of third-party businesses that charge a flat rate to list homes on real estate portals, such as realestate.com or Domain.
"Because of the way the market has become dependent on those [online real estate portals], these websites do signify a shift in the landscape," he said.
Colin Sacks runs one such website, ForSaleByOwner.com.au, which in the past 12 months has seen a 30 per cent increase in enquiries.
He said some people are struggling to service mortgages.
"A lot of people don't have enough equity in their properties to pay high agent commissions … so they are exploring the idea of potentially saving that commission," Mr Sacks said.
"People realise that they can do these things on their own."
A spokesperson for a website called SaleByHomeOwner.com.au told the ABC its listing volume had increased by 25 per cent this calendar year compared to the same period last year.
A more affordable option
Wendy Baxter and her family have spent the past year renovating their investment property in Rockhampton in central Queensland.
The cost of renovating has been intense and they have leaned on friends to help get the job finished.
Ms Baxter said when they sell the home, they will do so privately.
A recent appraisal by an agent valued the home at $500,000, with a 2.5 per cent commission of around $12,000.
"I see it [selling privately] becoming a norm unless you're a big investor or need someone looking for you," she said.
Ms Baxter said the need for agents had decreased because market demand was so hot.
"The house behind us was only on the market for a week … and the house next door was also on the market for a week," she said.
"[Agents] have just priced themselves out of the market."
Proceed with caution, real estate body says
Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) chief executive Antonia Mercorella defended the importance of real estate agents in the sale process.
"It remains incredibly uncommon for property owners to sell their own homes and with good reason," she said.
"Selling a house requires knowledge of various legislation and an understanding of how to complete a contract of sale.
"Even in a seller's market, selling a property is no walk in the park and is a big undertaking."
Mr Gray said there were challenges with the process.
He needed professional photos taken, which he had to lean on his friends to help with.
Mr Gray said the hardest part of the process was the time he spent getting the house ready, showing people through the house, and communicating with them.
"But for me, the money that I saved and the control I had over the process was completely worth it."
Dr Fotheringham said selling privately revealed the hard work done by agents.
"It seems to many vendors that the agent just turns up and the property sells itself," he said.
"But, actually, they do quite a bit of work to present it … to show the property to people and talk through its features.
"There is quite a bit of work involved."
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