The majority of home sellers take on the task with an ally: a Real Estate Agent. By no means does this suggest that this is the right course for everyone, yet most sellers feel that it is better to entrust the sale of their biggest investment to a professional, rather than attempting to learn about selling a house in a trial and error method. In addition, many people would rather use an Agent due to the complexities of modern Real Estate transactions since they incorporate numerous legal and financial attributes, which takes them well beyond more simple "self-selling" transactions, such as the sale of an automobile.

Some of the advantages of working with Agents that home sellers will list include: access to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) so that large numbers of buyers will have access to the seller's property, the fact that the Agent absorbs all of the cost of advertising and marketing, and the screening of potential buyers that will be done by Agents. For a complete list, see the advantages and disadvantages of selling with an Agent.

Deciding whether to use an Agent or not has a great deal to do with what you feel the level of your capabilities are. If you feel fully confident that you can handle all of the details (and the cost) of an extensive sales, follow-up and marketing effort, then you may well want to attempt selling your house on your own. If you have any doubt whether these may lie outside your expertise, you most likely will want to use an Agent and leave the details to them.

So how do you choose an Agent who will be effective? See the section on choosing an Agent, which will give you things to look for and questions to ask a prospective Agent.

Where can you find an Agent? To find an Agent in the area in which you are interested, click here. (You can compare a selection of top-performing Agents and remain anonymous throughout the search process.)

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