When you're paying an agent to help sell your house the majority of the value you're getting for your money is the ability to list on MLS. That's the first place buyers go when they're looking. Additionally, if you're listed in MLS, then you get "free" advertising on all sites that mirror MLS (like JohnLScott.com). So when it came time for us to sell 3 years ago, we located a flat-fee MLS agent. It cost us $400 to get listed, and for that money we received: 1) an MLS listing (it took about two days to get in the DB) 2) a door lock for agents to enter the house when you're not there 3) a personal representative that was available anytime for consult 4) all the seller's paperwork (which wasn't much) that was to be completed upon closing. 5) yard signs Once listed, we sold our place in 6 days. It was an incredibly smooth process and I'd recommend it as an alternative to anyone who is considering using a seller's agent. There's one catch to keep in mind, however. If you have a buyer's agent bring you a buyer, someone is going to have to pay their fees. Since a buyer's agent typically will get half of the total commission from a single sale, you'll have to negotiate with the buyer and the buyer's agent to come to an agreement on payment. But consider, 3% of $300k is $9000+ less than listing with a traditional real estate agent and paying the standard 6%+. To find one of these services in your area just google: "MLS Flat Fee" (sorry, I don't remember the name of the company we used) Hope this helps next time you're selling a house! -Shawn

Thanks! That is useful - I expect I'll be moving again in another five years or so, and $9000 is certainly not pocket change for me.

A good way to make choices is by first being well informed. If you picked up a copy of a report called Flat Fee Real Estate Report you would learn a lot about how to approach the MLS and how to save a ton of money.
The site is at http://flatfeereport.com/
While commissions are high, it's that easy to just pick up a buyer and sell. But you don't have to pay 6% either.