A
recent survey of 1,000 American home sellers found that nearly three-quarters (73%) prefer using a traditional real estate agent to sell their homes. This preference holds true even as the real estate industry undergoes significant changes due to the commission lawsuit settlement.

    The majority of recent home sellers (77%) opted for traditional full-service agents, outpacing other methods like For Sale By Owner (FSBO) and iBuyers by a wide margin. In fact, 76% of sellers who worked with an agent felt their services were worth the cost, despite some research suggesting that many real estate agents achieve similar price outcomes.

    The survey also found that traditional real estate agents are considered the easiest (58%) and often the fastest (40%) way to sell a home, although they are seen as the most expensive by 69% of sellers. However, concerns about marketing support linger, with 71% believing discount brokers provide less than traditional agents.

    Only a small percentage of recent sellers hired discount agents (3%), sold to cash buyer companies (5%), or used iBuyers like Opendoor or Offerpad (2%). Many sellers view cash buyer companies unfavorably, with 38% considering them the worst way to sell and 61% calling them "scams." Despite this, some sellers (65%) reported closing within a month after using a cash buyer company.

    The survey suggests that traditional real estate agents remain the preferred choice for many American home sellers, despite some criticism of their services. While some sellers are open to trading off certain services for cost savings, concerns about marketing support and agent performance continue to linger.