How to Sell a House Without a Realtor in Connecticut

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  Written by Alex Long

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  Edited by Lindsay Stefan

Should I sell without a realtor? | Cost of selling FSBO | How to sell without a realtor | FSBO paperwork | Best alternative: discount realtors  | FAQs

Selling your home without a realtor means you won’t have to pay a listing commission, which in Connecticut averages 2.7% of the sale price. Considering a typical Connecticut house is worth about $351,000, that’s a savings of $9,337.

However, trying to sell a home For Sale by Owner (FSBO) can be tough. It will cost you a lot of time and energy.

In the end, selling a house without a real estate agent isn’t worth it for most homeowners in Connecticut. Especially considering there are low commission real estate companies that offer professional assistance for a lower cost. 

If you’re considering FSBO in Connecticut, read on to find out everything you need to know to do it successfully.

Should I sell my house without a realtor?

Selling a house for sale by owner in Connecticut comes with many pros and cons. While it’s not recommended for everyone, FSBO can help experienced home sellers save on commission—but only if they know what they’re doing. 

✅Selling your home without a realtor might be right for you if…

• You want to save on commission
• You have plenty of time to take on the responsibilities of a real estate agent
• You already have a buyer lined up 
• You’re in a hot seller’s market and you have a desirable home

🚫 Selling without a realtor might not be right for you if…

• You don’t have a lot of free time
• You’ve never sold a home in Connecticut
• You want to sell for market value – or higher

If you’re still not sure, check out our thorough guide to selling FSBO to help you decide. If you’re open to other options, some low-commission real estate companies, like Clever Real Estate, allow you to work with a top local real estate agent at half the typical cost.

Cost of selling a house without a realtor in Connecticut

Below, you’ll find a list of prices for common services you might want to consider if you decide to sell without a realtor. However, know that if your home is in need of repairs or is in a buyer’s market, you might need to spend a lot more to prep and market your property.

💸 Common costs for FSBO sellers

Appraisal	$300 to $375	To price your home more accurately
Photography	$180	To compete with homes listed by agents
Staging	$1,529	To stand out to local buyers
Real estate attorney	$300 per hour	To assist with paperwork, contracts, and legal requirements
Flat fee MLS listing	$500 to $1,500	To get listed on the MLS
Buyer’s agent commission	2.5% of sale price	To compensate the agent that represents the buyer (it’s customary for the seller to pay)

Overall, on average, it costs 7.5% of the home price to sell by owner and about 10% of the home price to sell with a real estate agent. However, the amount you’ll actually save will depend on repairs you need to make, concessions, and other expenses.

Use our calculator to get an idea of how much you can expect to spend if you sell without a realtor.

If you’re considering selling without a realtor in Connecticut, check out our friends at Clever Real Estate. Clever eliminates all the hassles and headaches of FSBO while helping you pay less than you would for a traditional realtor.

In Connecticut, sellers pay an average of 2.7% to a listing agent. Considering the median home value in Connecticut is $351,000, that amounts to $9,337. But with Clever, you can sell with a top local agent for just 1.5%, letting you keep more of your home’s equity in your pocket.

7 steps to sell a home in Connecticut without a realtor

Selling a home without a realtor involves many of the same steps as selling with one, except you’re on your own. To learn more about the basic steps to sell, read our simple, 12-step guide to selling a house. 

For Connecticut FSBO sellers, here’s what you need to know.

1. Get your home ready to sell

Getting your Connecticut FSBO ready to sell starts with some general prep work. This could include:

• Repairing visible damage
• Painting the house
• Removing personal items
• Mowing the lawn

It’s generally wise to avoid major expenses during sale prep because they usually offer a poor return on investment. That said, you shouldn’t let deal-breakers, like foundation damage, go unaddressed.

Before you post your listing, stage your home and take high-quality photos of the home. In Connecticut, the average cost of a photographer is about $140 and a stager is $1,529. If you decide to save money and do these things yourself, be sure to remove personal items during staging and ensure the photos are high-resolution.

Photography and staging are major contributors to a buyer’s first impression of your home, so make sure you do the best job possible with these tasks.

If your home needs too much work to sell to a typical buyer, you might consider selling to a cash buyer. You can quickly compare cash buyer offers against your home’s value on the open market with Clever Offers. Try it for free with no obligation.

2. Price your home accurately

Perhaps the most important thing when listing your house for sale by owner in Connecticut is getting the right list price.

In fact, research suggests FSBO homes sell for 5–26% less than comparable realtor-sold homes. For the average-priced home in Connecticut, that could be $17,500–$91,000.

We recommend going with one of the following options to ensure you accurately price your listing and sell your Connecticut FSBO for top dollar.

Get a comparative market analysis (CMA)

Creating a comparative market analysis involves researching recently sold homes in your neighborhood. Locate three or four properties similar to yours in size, condition, and number of bedrooms and bathrooms. Use their sale prices to estimate a likely selling price for your home. 

Usually a Connecticut realtor provides this service, but you can also create one yourself. Just make sure not to let your personal bias toward your home lead to a higher-than-realistic sale price. 

For a more objective analysis, consider working with a flat fee MLS company that provides a CMA. This provides you with a professional analysis without paying the fee for a traditional realtor.

Hire an appraiser 

Another good way to determine your listing price is to work with a professional local appraiser. They will prepare a CMA, but they will also probably tour your home and account for real estate trends in your area.

It’s hard to beat the expertise of appraisers in knowing the value of a home in your local market, so it may be worth the average cost of $300 to $435.

» LEARN: Should I get an appraisal before selling?

Once you set your list price, determine if you will need to pay any taxes based on the expected proceeds from your sale. It’s best to know this in advance rather than get an unwelcome surprise next tax season.

3. List and market your home

Before marketing your Connecticut FSBO, you should know the rules regarding real estate advertising in your area. This minimizes unnecessary headaches during the sale process.

When you’re ready to list, you can post on free online real estate venues such as:

• Facebook Marketplace
• Zillow’s and Trulia’s FSBO sections
• ForSaleByOwner.com
• Craigslist

There are also good paid options for FSBO listings, so you’ll have to decide if the cost is worth the extra exposure.

Beyond the internet, you should also use cost-effective methods like yard signs. The more exposure your listing gets, the more traffic you’re likely to see.

If you want maximum exposure, think about working with a Connecticut flat fee MLS company.

Connecticut flat fee MLS companies

The biggest benefit to working with a flat fee MLS company is getting your listing on the local MLS, which is typically only accessed through a realtor. Instead, you can pay a company a flat fee to make sure your listing is seen by all buyers’ agents in your area, as well as buyers looking on popular sites like Zillow and Realtor.com 

In Connecticut, a flat fee MLS listing runs about $80 to $1,000. Our top picks for flat fee MLS companies in Connecticut are:

🥇 EntryOnly.com: Best for customer service
🥈 Landfall Properties LLC: Best for selling and buying
🥉 Flat Fee Group: Best for experienced sellers

Read our in-depth guide to Connecticut’s flat fee MLS companies to decide which one works best for you.

Required Connecticut seller disclosures

Connecticut law requires that any seller of a one- to four-family residence provide potential buyers with a Residential Property Condition Disclosure Report. This informs buyers about any known issues with the property and needs to be shared prior to the signing of a purchase agreement.

Connecticut also requires homeowners to remove materials with toxic levels of lead if they have children aged 6 or under living in the home. This coincides with Federal legislation that requires sellers to provide a lead-based paint disclosure for any home built prior to 1978.

Flood risk disclosure forms are not required but may be a good idea to include if you’re in an area in which flooding may be a concern. If you share a report saying you have no knowledge of flood risk, it puts the buyer’s mind at ease. If there has been an issue with flooding in the past, hiding that fact and letting the buyer discover it during inspection increases the chance of the sale falling through later.

Make forms available to buyers before signing the purchase agreement. You can do this by attaching the disclosures to your listing, emailing them to interested buyers, or putting out physical copies at showings.

4. Manage showings on your own

Managing showings can be hectic, so you should have a system figured out early on.

At the very least, you’ll need a calendar for scheduling showings, preferably a digital version that can be shared with realtors like Google Calendar. You could use a more advanced scheduling tool like Doodle, but that isn’t required.

To make the most of your showings, here are some things to keep in mind:

• Schedule showing close together for efficiency.
• Allow a 5- to 10-minute gap between showings. 
• Open the shades or curtains to allow natural light in.
• Place subtle air fresheners around the house.
• Make sure the sidewalk and driveway are freshly cleared during the winter.

We recommend not actually being there during showings, as that can make buyers uncomfortable. However, you should be prepared to answer questions about the home and neighborhood, so be sure the buyer or their agent can reach you. You might use a lockbox so realtors can get into the home without you being there. 

If you’re overwhelmed by the idea of managing all this, some flat fee MLS companies offer packages that include additional support for managing showings.

Place any documents you want the buyers to see in a conspicuous spot, like the kitchen countertop.

5. Review and negotiate offers

Buyers usually make offers in the form of a purchase and sale agreement. 

Read these carefully and be sure you understand the implications of every aspect of the offer before accepting, denying, or making a counteroffer. If there is something about an offer that doesn’t make sense, you can contact the buyer’s agent or a real estate attorney for clarity.

In fact, since you’ll need to hire an attorney to complete the transaction in Connecticut, it’s probably wise to include sooner than later. There are a number of ways to select an attorney for your FSBO sale:

• Ask local and state bar associations about lawyer referral services.
• Ask friends who have used an attorney for a recent real estate transaction.
• Contact title insurers for a list of approved attorneys for real estate transactions.

Once you have an attorney, evaluate your offers and consider which one, if any, best meets your needs. Consider all factors, including the purchase price, buyer contingencies, expectations around repairs, and whether it is traditionally financed or a cash offer.

Cash offers often involve less red tape than traditionally financed purchases, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re the best offer in your situation. You’ll have to decide which items in the agreement are most important to you, and then negotiate to find a good compromise between what you want and what the buyer wants.

6. Allow the buyer to conduct due diligence

Once a purchase agreement has been signed, the due diligence period begins. During this time, the buyer can conduct any title research and schedule the appraisal and inspections of the property.

Depending on what’s specified in your purchase agreement, the following steps will likely take place:

• Inspection
• Appraisal
• Mortgage underwriting
• Property title search
• Final walkthrough

You will need to go through a second round of negotiations if any problems arise during the due diligence period. For example, if a buyer includes a contingency on an inspection and the inspector says the roof needs to be replaced, then they reserve the right to walk away or renegotiate the terms of the agreement. That could mean lowering the sale price or agreeing to replace the roof before they complete the purchase.

You may be entitled to the earnest money deposit if a buyer tries to back out of the sale for reasons not approved in the purchase agreement.

If you wish to cancel the sale without an approved reason, you should speak to your attorney first to understand the ramifications.

Hopefully, no issues arise during the due diligence period, or you’re able to successfully renegotiate. If so, you’ll be cleared to close.

7. Close

The date of your closing appointment will be identified in your purchase agreement, but you can reschedule if all parties agree.

Closing appointments are usually run by a third party such as a title company or real estate attorney. The process will involve going over and signing tons of paperwork, including the title to transfer ownership to the buyer.

You will also be provided a copy of the closing statement, which itemizes every part of the purchase and provides a total payment required to finalize the sale. You will receive the proceeds of the sale via check or wire transfer on the closing day.

For sale by owner paperwork in Connecticut

Here’s a list of the Connecticut paperwork you’ll need to sell your home without a realtor.

• Connecticut Residential Property Condition Disclosure Report
• Federal Lead-Based Paint Disclosure
• Flood Risk Disclosure
• Connecticut Purchase and Sale Agreement

Not finding what you’re looking for? Check out our comprehensive list of paperwork for selling your house without a realtor.

Best alternative: work with a discount broker

For many people, trying to sell without an agent isn’t worth the hassle. If you think you’ll need some help along the way, a discount broker is a good alternative.

Discount brokers are full-service real estate agents who are willing to work for a reduced commission rate. Sellers can save thousands while still receiving assistance from an expert local agent.

» READ: The Best Discount Real Estate Brokers in Connecticut

For discount broker services, we highly recommend our friends at Clever! Clever pre-negotiates with top agents to offer you low commission rates without compromising on service quality.

Related links

If you’d like some more advice about selling your home, here are a few great resources to check out:

How realtor commissions work in Connecticut: Even if you decide to sell your house without an agent, it’s still a good idea to offer commission to the buyer’s agent. Learn how much realtors expect to earn and what you can do to make your listing more appealing to agents and their clients.

Top We Buy Houses Companies in Connecticut REVEALED: If you need to sell your home in a hurry, a We Buy Houses company may purchase your house as-is for a reduced rate. Find out if this option could be the best option for you here!

How Much Does it Cost to Sell a House? True Costs Revealed: Wondering how much you’ll have to pay to sell your house? Check out this article to calculate your repair budget, closing fees, marketing expenses, and more.