When Shaun and Kathy Shivers moved from Mississauga to Oakville, Ont., four years ago, it took just two days to sell their home.
They were happy about the speed of their sale but wondered why they had to pay $9,000 in commissions to the real estate broker that handled the transaction.
"The real estate agent wasn't even there for the sale. She was away for the weekend so a partner of hers that we'd never met came and did the close," Mrs. Shivers said.
"There was no advertising done," Mr. Shivers said. "The only thing we got for nine grand was the sign on the front lawn and the . . . listing. We found it very hard to justify that kind of money when we only met the realtor once. That was it. It was, thank you very much, and there's nine thousand bucks."
So this summer, when they moved from Oakville to a home just outside London, Ont., they decided to sell the Oakville property on their own, saving what they figured might have been more than $15,000 in commissions they would have paid a broker.
Each year, thousands of Canadian homeowners are doing what the Shivers did: Selling their own home without the services of a licensed real estate agent . .. [Read the full story in today's Globe and Mail and watch this story on tonight's CTV National News]