The Best Flat Fee MLS services in Florida | Free MLS Listing

Table of Contents

Can you save money by using any of the best flat fee MLS Services?

Pros and Cons of choosing one of the best flat fee MLS services

Pros

Cons

How to Advertise For Sale by Owner

How to get on sites like Zillow and Redfin and Realtor for Free

Flat Rate MLS Listing

Use an online Calendar for Booking

Professional Photography

7 of the Best Flat Fee MLS Services in Florida

Richr

Houzeo

Flat Fee Realty

Jack Keller Inc.

List with Freedom

XFlatFeeMLS

Best Flat Fee MLS

Can you save money by using any of the best flat fee MLS Services?

Before taking a look at the best flat fee MLS Services let’s look at how flat fee services have changed. Florida homeowners face a major crisis in the real estate market right now, overpaying on commission and losing tens of thousands of dollars on their sale price. In 1992, the average commission for real estate agents was sitting at 6%. Today, nothing has changed. But what has changed tremendously – the house prices for the seller and the workload for the agent.

In 1990, Florida home prices were averaging at $76,500. The average home value in June of 2021, according to Zillow home values, was $297,390. You could sell your home in the early 90s for $4,590 in commission. Today, it’s a whopping $17,843.40 based on 6% commission for the average Florida home sale. On top of that, closing fees can put you well over $20,000. With this increase in cost, agents should be working harder for you, right?

Well, with technology, their jobs got a lot easier.

Photography and videography have assisted agents in marketing listings, so they no longer have to take out pricey advertisements or be on the phone for endless hours booking appointments for buyers browsing “out of curiosity.”

They also aren’t writing offers on 5+ pieces of carbon paper to drive it back and forth to buyers and sellers. With online tools, everything can be done with the click of a button from the comfort of their home office.

Florida property owners have been struggling to come to terms with paying an outrageous commission because they’re afraid to go it alone. Skeptics will tell you that the fees you save in commission using a Flat Fee MLS Company will be lost in the sale price. Most of the time, you’ll be hearing that from a real estate agent that wants to prove their value.

Tech-savvy and self-self-sufficient Florida homeowners want to save thousands of dollars and are often left wondering how to advertise For Sale by Owner.

We went ahead and compared 7 of the Best Flat Fee MLS Companies in this article below, so that you can find out for yourself. Deciding to move is a tough one, and choosing how you’re going to sell can make things a lot more complicated. We empower decision-makers instead of telling you what you should be doing. Nobody knows what’s best for you better than you do. After all, they aren’t living with the outcome. You are!

Pros and Cons of choosing one of the best flat fee MLS services

A For Sale by Owner, commonly referred to as FSBO, takes on the role of a real estate agent to sell their home. This includes marketing, photography, getting it online, pricing it right, negotiating the offers, and piles of paperwork. If you’re up for the task, you can save thousands of dollars. In a Florida seller’s market, it’s a tempting route for the tech-savvy and self-sufficient to use the best flat fee MLS services. But there are some downsides, and it’s not for everyone.

Pros

• With the average Florida home selling at $297,390, you’ll be saving $17,843.40. Think about what you could spend on your new home with that.
• Nobody is pushing you to make a decision. You’re in the driver’s seat throughout the entire process.
• Who better to highlight the best features of the home than you. You know what’s great about the neighbourhood and can show potential buyers their future lifestyle waiting for them.

Cons

• No one is holding your hand; you’re in charge here.
• You may not price your home correctly. Too high and you’ll lose interest, too low and you’re leaving money on the table.
• You can’t get off totally Scott-free. If an agent represents the buyer, you’re likely going to have to give them the standard 3%.

How to Advertise For Sale by Owner

How to get on sites like Zillow and Redfin and Realtor for Free

Technology advances have drastically shifted the real estate market. Buyers are more in control, independent, and hungry for information. They also don’t want to feel pressured by an agent, so they wait until they find a home on popular consumer sites such as Zillow or Redfin. But here’s the secret – you don’t have to pay a full-service real estate agent to get it on the most popular real estate sites.

Here are 3 ways you can use technology to your advantage to sell your home without an agent.

Flat Rate MLS Listing

Choosing the best Flat Fee MLS Company that is 100% digital allows you to get all of the paperwork done online. This means you’re not losing anything, delivering documents, or organizing time to coordinate the paperwork. Better than the 5+ pages of carbon copy from the dark ages of real estate! With Richr, you can even get a complimentary review of any offers you receive and get the settlement agent fee included with their digital tools.

Use an online Calendar for Booking viewings

There are plenty of free software tools, such as Calendly, that allow potential buyers to book a time slot to view your home through a link. You can set your availability as you please and contact for cancellations.

Professional Photography

Photos speak a thousand words! You don’t even need to hire an outright professional. If you have the latest iPhone or Android, you’ve likely got a powerful camera right in your pocket. Check out a few Youtube tutorials for the angles, get a Lightroom Tutorial to touch them up, and you’re golden.

If you want to make the best first impression, you can use the funds you save from commission to hire the best in town. You can get unlimited HDR photos from about $150.00 so it doesn’t need to break the bank!

7 of the Best Flat Fee MLS Services in Florida

Richr

With a manifesto that believes in making homeownership attainable, Richr set the standard of a Free MLS Listing. The only time you need to pay is when upgrading to include Richr Title as a one-stop-shop for your closing needs where you can list for free, pay $499 with title settlement services included. 

Pros

• Get exposed to more than 750 MLS websites, including the big names Zillow, Redfin, Trulia and Realtor.com, for up to 12 months.
• Unlimited concierge support.
• Unlimited Photos.
• You can cancel anytime.
• Real Estate docs are provided.
• No fees for any changes to your listing.
• You can have your Title Settlement taken care of along with the support of Richr’s concierge services – all under one roof.
• You have access to competitively priced homeowners’ insurance policies.
• Richr has 4.9 star rating on google with awesome reviews

Cons

• 88% of buyers still use a real estate agent to buy their home, so you could be stuck paying a buyers agent commission to the buyer’s agent. However, at Richr you can choose to offer a level of commission you are comfortable with, from $1 to 3%, you are in charge. Also, the same study projected that 51% of buyers found their home on the internet compared to 28% through their real estate agent and Richr can help with getting your home on hundreds of websites at the push of a button.

Sell Your Home Smarter for 1% and save $10,000.

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Houzeo

Packages for Flat Fee MLS Companies vary, but Houzeo is one of the priciest. To advertise as a For Sale by Owner, packages range anywhere from $245-549 with a hefty $650 closing fee.

Pros

• They claim to auto-populate all of your property details from the moment you enter your address (but how much is really available and accurate is unknown).
• They are 100% digital.
• They list on popular websites like Zillow, Trulia, Redfin, Realtor.com.
• They have a 4.9 star rating on Trustpilot

Cons

• Higher fees than most Flat Fee MLS Companies without offering anything above and beyond.
• Even with their package of $299, you’re limited to 10 free changes for price, status, description in their popular packages while most competitors offer free changes. This package also only includes 24 photos and six months for the listing.

Flat Fee Realty

Even the bare bones come at a price. Compared to most Flat Fee Companies in Florida, their prices are low, but they aren’t the best in town for what comes with that price tag. Their packages range from $95-175, which include the same benefits. The only difference – the number of photos you can add.

Pros

• You can purchase lockboxes for the key and yard signs from their online store.
• They list it on the public MLS sites.

Cons

• Seller’s documents are not downloadable.
• There is no social media exposure.
• Their $95 tier only offers 6 photos and 6 months on the market for standard exposure.

Jack Keller Inc.

Another For Sale by Owner option is Jack Keller Inc. with packages ranging from $75-350 – however they are not available in all Florida counties. With no personal support, property owners are completely on their own to list their homes.

Pros

• You have flexible payment options, including monthly payments at $0 down or even bitcoin.
• Their website includes all the forms you need, including disclosures, contracts, amendments, and more.
• You can upgrade to use Showtime for scheduling.

Cons

• Their cheapest package is only available if you’re selling boat docks, commercial properties or vacant land.
• You have to purchase an upgrade to get any leads sent to you from Realtor.com instead of an agent that could lead them to a different property.

List with Freedom

If you’re an experienced seller, this is a flat fee MLS company with packages ranging from $89-295.

Pros

• No cancellation fees if you take your listing off the market.
• You can pay extra for showing and open house assistance.

Cons

• Only one photo is included in their basic package.
• No built-in pricing support for home evaluations.

XFlatFeeMLS

This flat fee MLS company claims that it will beat any competitor’s price by 10% – well, if a competitor is $0, then it’s time to look at their benefits. With packages ranging from $89-380, you have the option to defer payments until closing.

Pros

• Flexible payment options.

Cons

• The deferred payment plan costs twice more than the unlimited listing.
• The website is difficult to navigate, with no way to manage your listing.

The Best Flat Fee MLS Service

Comparing support, cost, features, and the opportunity for the best flat fee MLS services, Richr a one-stop shop, has broken the barrier of Florida standards in the best for sale by owner company category. Not only a significant benefit to sellers and offers a 2% cashback to buyers but Richr connects you with competitive home insurance and cost-effective closing solutions, all in one place at richr.com.