Yes, selling a house without an agent — commonly called For Sale By Owner (FSBO) — is legal in North Carolina, and some sellers choose this route to avoid paying listing agent commission. Doing so shifts significant responsibility onto the seller: pricing the home accurately, marketing it effectively, handling showings, negotiating offers, and managing the legal and disclosure requirements that a licensed agent would typically handle as part of their service. The commission savings can be real, but it's worth weighing against what's given up. Agents bring market knowledge for accurate pricing, access to the MLS for broad exposure to buyers and buyer's agents, negotiation experience, and familiarity with contract details that carry real legal weight — mistakes in disclosure, contract terms, or deadline management can create costly problems that outweigh commission savings. North Carolina still requires an attorney to handle closing regardless of whether an agent is involved, which provides some legal protection, but an attorney typically doesn't manage the marketing, negotiation, or day-to-day transaction coordination an agent would. FSBO sellers also need to consider whether they'll pay a buyer's agent commission, since most buyers still work with an agent, and a seller unwilling to offer buyer's agent compensation can significantly limit their pool of interested buyers, since agents may be less inclined to show a property that doesn't compensate them for their work. For sellers considering FSBO, it's worth honestly assessing how much time and expertise they can bring to pricing, marketing, negotiation, and legal compliance, since these tasks don't go away just because an agent isn't involved — they simply become the seller's direct responsibility, along with the legal risk that comes with getting any of them wrong.