Selling on your own or going through an agency is not only a question of commission. It is a trade-off between what you save and what you take on — time, legal skills, exposure of the property. The right choice depends as much on your availability as on the property itself.
What an agency does
An estate agent does not simply publish a listing. Their mandate covers in principle: the valuation, the presentation and the marketing of the property, the organisation of viewings, the screening of candidates, the negotiation, and support through to the preliminary agreement. The agent is moreover subject to the professional conduct rules of the IPI/BIV and to a duty to inform: this is a framework that protects both seller and buyer.
What the agency costs
The remuneration takes the form of a commission, often expressed as a percentage of the sale price — around 3% excluding VAT, but the rate is negotiable and varies by agency and region. VAT is added on top. On an averagely priced property, this is a significant amount: it is the heart of the financial trade-off.
The mandate can be:
- exclusive: a single agency, for a fixed period. It invests more since it is sure of receiving the commission; the rate is often lower.
- non-exclusive: several agencies, or a direct sale run in parallel. More channels, but each agency invests less.
What you take on when selling privately
Selling without an agency means saving the commission — but taking back on yourself: setting the right price, drafting and circulating the listing, handling the viewings and the sorting of contacts, conducting the negotiation, and gathering the mandatory documents (energy performance certificate, town-planning information, post-intervention file where applicable). A mistake on any of these points can cost more than the commission avoided.
The real common ground: the price
Agency or not, it is the starting price that decides. Too high, and the property stalls, "burns out" and ends up selling below its value; too low, and you leave money on the table. An agency brings its valuation here; selling privately, you have to build it yourself. In both cases, knowing where the property sits within the range of recent sales in its municipality is the non-negotiable starting point.