Sell a house without a realtor: three ways, what each costs, and the paperwork
You can list it yourself, pay a flat fee for the MLS, or sell directly to a buyer. Here’s what each one actually asks of you, and when an agent is still the better call.
You can sell a house without a realtor in Colorado three ways: list it yourself as for sale by owner, pay a flat fee for MLS access only, or sell directly to a cash buyer. A direct sale to us has no fees, commissions or showings. With us, you get one written offer within 24 hours and pick the closing date.
What does selling without an agent actually mean?
Realtor is the trademarked name for an agent who belongs to the National Association of Realtors. In plain terms, selling without one means no listing agreement, no listing agent, and no commission deducted from your proceeds at the title company. Someone still has to do the agent’s work. The question is who: you, a flat fee broker who places the house on the MLS and performs the minimum duties Colorado requires of every licensed broker, with photos, showings and negotiation usually left to you, or a buyer who purchases the house directly and carries the process on their side of the table.
Across Northern Colorado and the Denver metro the three paths look alike on paper and behave very differently in practice. For sale by owner means you price, photograph, market, show, negotiate, and coordinate closing yourself. A flat fee listing buys MLS exposure plus the minimum brokerage duties Colorado law requires; the rest is on you. A direct sale to Expert Cash Buyers means Amy or Jenny walk the house once, write one offer with the math shown, and a local title company closes on the date you choose.
This page lays out all three honestly, including the cases where listing with a good agent would clearly net you more. If that’s your house, we’ll tell you. You’re a neighbor, not a lead.
Six jobs the listing agent normally does, and who does them without one
- Pricing the house. An agent pulls recent closed sales and adjusts for condition. On your own, you study the same sales or order an appraisal. In a direct sale, we walk you through how we got from the after-repair value to the offer, so the pricing work happens in the open.
- Photos, listing copy and marketing. Daylight photos, a description that states condition plainly, a sign, the by-owner portals, and a plan for every call and text. In a direct sale there’s nothing to market, because there’s one buyer and no listing.
- Showings and access. Scheduling, securing valuables, stepping out while strangers tour, and the ones who never follow up. A direct sale is one walkthrough with the two people who write the offer.
- Negotiating and writing the contract. Price, earnest money, inspection and appraisal deadlines, what stays with the house, and the closing date. Without an agent, many Colorado sellers pay a real estate attorney to prepare or review the contract.
- Disclosures and the inspection period. Colorado’s Seller’s Property Disclosure form is required when the contract calls for it, and most contracts do, including ours. Regardless of the form, Colorado sellers must disclose defects they know about that a buyer couldn’t find on a reasonable inspection, and must give the statutory notices, even in an as-is sale to a cash buyer. In a listed or by-owner sale, the inspection period is where repair credits get renegotiated. A direct as-is sale usually has an inspection period too, but you aren’t asked to make repairs.
- Coordinating title and closing. Opening title, ordering the loan payoff, answering the closer’s questions, and getting every owner to the signing. A reputable local title company does this in nearly every Colorado sale; in a direct sale we open the file and cover the seller’s ordinary closing costs.
Is it cheaper to sell your house without a realtor?
Usually yes on commission, and sometimes no on the final number. Listing with an agent puts the commission on your side of the settlement statement, and it’s the single largest cost of a traditional sale. Removing the listing agent removes their share. But a buyer who arrives with their own agent has a written agreement to pay that agent, and since the August 2024 rule changes the buyer’s side is negotiated on its own: the buyer may ask you to cover some of it as a concession, and offers of buyer’s agent pay can no longer be posted on the MLS. Whether you contribute is your call, so the real savings vary from sale to sale.
The other half of the answer is price. In the National Association of Realtors’ 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, by-owner houses sold for a median of $360,000 against $425,000 for agent-assisted homes, and only 5 percent of sales were by owner (in the prior year’s survey, most by-owner sellers priced from an appraisal or nearby closed sales rather than an online estimate). Part of that gap is which houses sell by owner and how many go to a relative or neighbor without ever being marketed, but a house that fewer buyers see can sell lower or slower, and that can quietly consume the commission you saved. Your loan payoff, and whatever share of title, recording and prorated taxes the contract puts on you, are due either way.
A direct sale to us changes the arithmetic rather than shaving it. There’s no commission on either side, no fee to us, and we cover the seller’s ordinary closing costs. The trade is that our offer reflects the repairs, holding costs and margin we carry after closing. We walk you through that math, so you can set it beside a listing estimate and see which nets more for your house. Taxes sit outside every column on this page. If the house was your home, the federal exclusion depends on owning and living in it for two of the last five years; an inherited house usually takes a stepped up basis at the owner’s death instead, so an heir may owe little or nothing even without living there. If your address of record is outside Colorado and the price is over $100,000, the title company must hold back 2 percent of the price or your net proceeds, whichever is less, as a prepayment of Colorado income tax (C.R.S. 39-22-604.5), unless you sign the state’s affirmation that the house was your principal residence or that you expect to owe no Colorado tax on the gain. Ask a tax professional before you pick a date.
Read more: How Much Do Cash Buyers Pay for Houses? Our Offer Math, Shown →
What do I need to do if I sell my house without a realtor?
Treat a by-owner sale as a project with six stages and a deadline at each one. Miss a deadline in the contract and you can lose a right or hand the buyer a way out with their earnest money; skip a stage and the sale usually stalls at inspection or at title. Here’s the list, in the order it happens.
This is general information, not legal advice; confirm with a Colorado attorney. If the list that follows reads like a second job, that’s because it’s one. A direct sale exists for the seller who doesn’t want it: you do the first stage by telling us about the house, and we coordinate the rest. You still sign the contract and the deed, make the disclosures the law requires, and gather the documents listed below.
- Set the price from closed sales near you in the last few months, adjusted for condition, not from an automated estimate.
- Prepare the house: the repairs a buyer’s inspector will flag, a deep clean, daylight photos, and a written description that states condition plainly. If the house has a fuel-fired furnace or appliance, a fireplace or an attached garage, Colorado requires a working carbon monoxide alarm within fifteen feet of each bedroom before the buyer takes possession (C.R.S. 38-45-102).
- Market it: a yard sign, the by-owner portals, posts to your own network, and an answer for the agents who will call asking whether you pay the buyer’s side. Federal fair housing law covers your advertising even in a by-owner sale: describe the house, never the buyer you’d prefer, and treat every caller the same.
- Show it: schedule tours, secure valuables and medications, and expect buyers who look and never respond.
- Negotiate and write the contract: price, earnest money, inspection and appraisal deadlines, inclusions, and the closing date. Many Colorado sellers have a real estate attorney prepare or review this document.
- Deliver the disclosures and open title: complete the Seller’s Property Disclosure form if the contract requires it (most do), and disclose the defects you know about that a buyer couldn’t reasonably find, even to a cash buyer purchasing as-is. Colorado also puts a special taxing district notice in every residential contract (C.R.S. 38-35.7-101) and requires a radon warning with any test results you have plus the state radon brochure (C.R.S. 38-35.7-112); a house built before 1978 adds the federal lead-based paint disclosure, pamphlet and a ten-day inspection window unless the buyer waives it. Every Colorado residential contract, including a by-owner or cash-sale contract, must also state the source of potable water (C.R.S. 38-35.7-104), carry the bold oil and gas notice that the mineral estate may be owned separately and third parties may use the surface to reach it (C.R.S. 38-35.7-108), and disclose in writing whether you know the house was ever used as a methamphetamine laboratory (C.R.S. 38-35.7-103); knowing and not disclosing makes you liable for cleanup and later health costs. The title company handles the deed, the loan payoff and the money.
How to avoid realtor fees when selling a house?
There are three honest ways to sell a house without agent fees, and each removes a different piece. For sale by owner removes the listing commission; whether you contribute toward a buyer’s agent is negotiated separately, and you’re doing the listing work. A flat fee MLS listing replaces the listing commission with a fixed charge paid up front whether or not the house sells; the broker still owes you Colorado’s minimum brokerage duties, and a buyer’s agent may still ask you to cover part of their pay. Both routes also leave the seller’s share of closing costs on your statement.
A direct sale to us is the route that gets to sell house, no fees, in the literal sense. There’s no listing commission because there’s no listing, no buyer’s agent commission because we’re the buyer, no fee to us, and the seller’s closing costs are covered. (A by-owner sale to a buyer who has no agent can also close with no commission; you’re simply doing the listing work yourself.) You aren’t paying us to sell your house; we’re paying you for it. The money you’d have spent on commission doesn’t vanish, though. It shows up as part of the reason a cash offer sits below a full retail listing price, alongside repairs and holding costs, and you should weigh both columns before choosing.
One caution that applies to every route: anyone who asks you for a fee before they buy your house isn’t a cash buyer. A real cash buyer pays you through the title company and pays their own costs.
Read more: Sell My House for Cash: A Written Offer, Math Shown →
FSBO vs cash buyer: which one fits your house?
Selling by owner, or listing with an agent, tends to win when the house is move-in ready, sits in a neighborhood where listings draw multiple offers, and you have the weeks or months to wait for the right buyer. If you’re comfortable hosting showings, negotiating with strangers and reading a contract, keep that option on the table. In that case the higher retail price usually outruns what a cash buyer can offer, and we’ll say so after we see the house.
A direct sale tends to win when something about the house or the situation resists a listing. Repairs you don’t want to fund. Years of belongings you don’t want to sort. Tenants in place (the lease binds any buyer, and Colorado gives you 60 days after closing to transfer the deposit to the buyer and mail the tenant notice, or return it to the tenant). A move already scheduled. An estate with an out-of-state personal representative. A foreclosure sale date on the calendar, or a divorce decree that needs proceeds split on a specific day at title. In those cases certainty and a fixed date are worth more than the last dollar, and a written offer with the math shown lets you measure exactly what the certainty costs. If the house is in foreclosure, Colorado gives you specific protections when you sell to an investor; read our foreclosure page and talk to a HUD-approved housing counselor before you sign anything with anyone.
Two adjacent questions come up constantly. Selling to a friend or relative without an agent works fine: put the price and terms in a written contract, let a title company close it so the deed and money move correctly, and expect a lender appraisal if they’re financing. Whether you need a lawyer depends on the contract and your comfort; many sellers pay for an hour of review rather than a full engagement, and every route on this page normally closes through a title company or another licensed closing agent.
Read more: How to Sell a House Fast: Every Option Ranked by Speed and Net →
For sale by owner or direct sale to Expert Cash Buyers.
For sale by owner
- Commission No listing commission; any contribution toward a buyer’s agent is negotiated separately
- Who prices it You, from comparable sales or an appraisal you order
- Showings You schedule and host every one
- Repairs and cleanout Usually yours: buyers expect a ready house, and inspection objections get settled as repairs, credits or price
- Closing costs Split by contract; the seller’s ordinary share is yours
- Time to a firm contract Unknown; it depends on the market and the month
- Fall-through risk Financing, appraisal and inspection can each end the deal
Direct sale to Expert Cash Buyers
- Commission None on either side, and no fee to us
- Who prices it We do, in writing, with the math shown
- Showings One walkthrough with Amy or Jenny
- Repairs and cleanout None. Take what you want and leave the rest
- Closing costs Seller closing costs covered
- Time to a firm contract A written offer within 24 hours; close in as little as 14 days, on your date
- Fall-through risk Cash, so no lender approval to wait on
What to have on hand.
- The deed you received when you bought, to confirm how title is held and who must sign
- Your most recent mortgage statement, plus any second loan or line of credit, for the payoff
- The Colorado Seller’s Property Disclosure form if the contract requires it (ours does), completed to your actual knowledge and signed, plus the federal lead-based paint disclosure for a house built before 1978
- The purchase contract and any counterproposals, signed by every owner on title
- Homeowners association contact and documents, if the house is in one
- Property tax statement and utility account numbers, for proration and transfer
- Photo identification for every signer at the title company
- Keys, garage remotes, and any permits or warranties for work done on the house
Three clear steps, and nothing to surprise you.
Tell us about the house
The address and a little about the situation, by form or by phone. You talk to Amy or Jenny, not a call center, and nothing you say obligates you.
One written offer, math shown
We walk you through the after-repair value, repairs, costs and our margin, so you can set the offer beside a listing estimate. If listing would clearly net more, we say so.
Close at a local title company
You pick the date. No showings, no repairs, no cleanout, no fees or commissions, and the seller’s closing costs are covered.
Questions homeowners ask us.
Is it cheaper to sell your house without a realtor?
On commission, yes. You keep the listing side; whether you contribute toward a buyer’s agent is negotiated separately since the 2024 rule changes, so the savings vary. On net proceeds it depends: by-owner houses have sold for a lower median price in national surveys, partly because of which houses sell that way, and your loan payoff and your share of title fees and prorated taxes are due either way. A direct sale removes commissions and seller closing costs entirely, and shows you the math behind the offer so you can compare.
What do I need to do if I sell my house without a realtor?
Price the house from closed sales, prepare and photograph it, market it, host showings, negotiate and write the purchase contract, deliver the Seller’s Property Disclosure form if the contract requires it and disclose the defects you know about that a buyer couldn’t reasonably find, regardless, and open title so a title company can handle the deed, payoff and funds. Many Colorado sellers have an attorney review the contract. This is general information, not legal advice; confirm with a Colorado attorney. Or tell us about the house and let us carry every stage after the first.
How to avoid realtor fees when selling a house?
Three ways. Sell by owner and keep the listing commission, knowing a buyer’s agent may ask you to cover part of their pay. Use a flat fee MLS listing, which trades commission for a fixed up-front charge. Or sell directly to a cash buyer, which has no commission on either side (a by-owner sale to a buyer with no agent can get there too, with you doing the work). With Expert Cash Buyers there’s also no fee to us and the seller’s closing costs are covered; the offer is written, the math is shown, and you’re never obligated to take it.
What is it called when you sell a house without a realtor?
Listing it yourself is called for sale by owner, usually shortened to FSBO. Selling to a buyer with no listing at all is called a direct sale or an off-market sale; when the buyer pays cash and takes the house as-is, people simply call it a cash sale. In each case the closing normally runs through a title company, which prepares the deed, pays off your loan and disburses the proceeds.
What is the hardest month to sell a house?
For a listed house in Northern Colorado, the slow stretch usually runs from the holidays through deep winter, when fewer buyers tour, snow hides the roof, yard and driveway, and showings compete with weather. Spring and early summer typically bring the most buyers. For a direct cash sale the month doesn’t matter: we buy year round, write the offer within 24 hours, and close on the date you pick, in January or June.
How much does a real estate agent make on a $300,000 house?
There’s no set rate in Colorado; the listing commission is negotiated in the listing agreement and quoted as a percentage of the sale price. Since the August 2024 rule changes the buyer’s agent is paid under a separate written agreement with the buyer; the seller may agree to cover some of it as a concession, but nothing is split automatically and offers of buyer’s agent pay can’t be posted on the MLS. On a house at that price, every percentage point is three thousand dollars, and the agent keeps a share of whatever their brokerage collects. Ask any agent for the figure in writing before you sign.
No agent, no fees, and nothing hidden in the number.
Tell Amy or Jenny about the house and you’ll have one written offer, math shown, within 24 hours, with no obligation to take it.