Realtor commissions

[therubberduckie]

Realtors are crooks. My house is currently listed and do some reading on the net about interviewing multiple realtors before signing any contract.

When they are done giving you their BS sales tactics, comps, and other nonsense then ask how much them how about reducing their commission to help out.... Once you throw that out there you will see them start scrambling like used car salesmen.

The going rate is 3% for the sellers realtor and 3% for the buyers realtor and the seller of course has to pay both realtors so it's 6%.

Once you sign the contrat they spend about 500 listing it and about 300 for a photographer from what I can gather, after that they do nothing just sit back and negotiate the sale/offers if you get one.

After going through 3 realtors I found one that that reduced her commission to 1% as long as there was an agreement that when I purchased the new house she would be my realtor and I was fine with that especially since she's really nice, easy going, and has a great...

Now because my house is not in the lower price bracket like others in it's range it's taking longer to sell, and of course realtors being commissioned base are going to tell you "well maybee you should lower the price more to be more competitive and lure more shoppers/offers"

Do your own compairsons on the value of your home, the realtor before signing the contract will do comps that will put the house in the price range she thinks you want to sell it for but then after the fact start telling you "maybee it's too high" and then tries to presure you into lowering it for quick sale/commission!

Decide on what your situation is and what your house value is and what you are willing to take for it, then do your own comps from online sights and look at what others in your area are going for in the same sq footage and go from there.

Good luck, I will tell you the current "real estate comeback" is BS. Sure if you give your house away 20-30K below value it'll sell, or if it's in the 150-200K range you should be able to sell.

But if you look at how long houses in the 250K and greater range stay on the market you'll see whats really going on, even new houses in my area in the 250-300K range are staying on the market 60+ days. How can you have a housing market recovery with unemployment where it is and salaries where they are?

You have to look for a good Realtor. The problem is that many Realtors do it part time, or fairly casually. What you want to look for is a high-octane top sales agent. Call real estate offices near you and ask for their top agent, or look for recommendations.

The "typical" rate is 3% for each agent, and the good agents work hard for it so if you start asking them to reduce their commission, you're likely to get lesser service. How would you work if your employer came and asked you to take 1/3 less pay to help them meet targets by the end of the year?

I disagree with your statement "the current 'real estate comeback' is BS."... I have a family member who's sold 6 houses this summer, each in less than 1 week. I agree that most are in the 150-200k range, but the were getting top dollar. That range does seem to go faster than 250-300k simply because there are more buyers. But 60+ days on the market this summer means you don't have a good agent.

Sorry you have had so much trouble selling your house... I just came here to say that their are good agents out there. You just have to look a bit harder for them.

 

[therubberduckie]

Sell it yourself?

Pay yourself the commission?

On average you end up losing more money selling your house yourself than by paying for a high-octane Realtor.

 

[Aikibiker65]

There are no females on the internet
There are FBI Agents pretending to teenage girls
There are Vice agents pretending to be women
but there are no females on the internet!

Really! Crap! Time to clear my computer and all my files!

 

[IMaDad]

I have a great realtor if you need one.

also redfin.com is awesome. blows zillow and trulia away in my opinion, they are also have realtors and tell you commision up front. check em out

 

[fleebag]

Wow why are you so bitter. Didn't do your homework ?

 

[Jeddak]

We sold our house in AK ourselves. We paid for the MLS listing, did all the paperwork, open houses, etc. We did have an FSBO company help us out. Total cost to us was $600-800, not counting the regular closing costs. That's 0.5%. Signed the paperwork and handed over the keys in the title co office instead of an attorney's or realtor's office.

Usual overall commission is 6%. Definitely talk to more that one agent, if you decide to go with a professional. Ask for recommendations from your friends and family.

 

[efinchatl]

There are no females on the internet
There are FBI Agents pretending to teenage girls
There are Vice agents pretending to be women
but there are no females on the internet!

Put your hands up where I can see them! Now, back away slowly from the computer and no one gets hurt.

 

[efinchatl]

On average you end up losing more money selling your house yourself than by paying for a high-octane Realtor.

Yup. And you get less traffic because you're not listed properly or well in the MLS and buyer's agents will make sure that it's the last house their clients see, if at all, becuase they don't want to have to deal directly with a seller who has a chip on his shoulder about Realtors.

 

[Sargent]

Here is my two cents:
I have been involved in real estate, in one form or another, since the late 90s. I have been an investor, agent for a huge brokerage, and a broker for a couple of companies.

Commission is what you can negotiate, yes. However, that negotiated commission is split with the broker (Technically, all commissions are paid to brokers. The individual agent is paid by the broker via a pre-negotiated agreement) that represents the buyer. The average transaction sees a total of 6% commission with the listing broker and the selling broker (buyer’s representative) getting 3% apiece.

The commission paid to the buyer’s agent (broker) is sometimes called the “co-op” commission.

Most commission negotiation comes on the listing side of the transaction. The reason for this is that statistically, homes sell quicker and for more money when the co-op commission is at least 3%. I have done extensive research into this and if the co-op commission is less than 3%, the average number of days on market, as well as the selling price-to-listing price ratio increases dramatically. Therefore, when a seller negotiates a 5% commission, the listing agent is agreeing to 2% while offering a 3% co-op commission.

Why play to the buyer’s agent (broker)? Well, because upwards of 90%+ homes are sold with the help of a buyer’s representative. Downplaying them will decrease your odds of selling within a decent time frame at a decent price.

Flat fee: Ads for $149-595 listing packages are misleading because they fail to mention (until the listing agent is in your kitchen with paperwork) that there is a buyer’s fee of at least 3%. These companies also fail to mention that they offer no additional support at the advertised price point, but will offer “a la carte” services at an hourly or per-job rate. This is important as one of the guiding tenets of selling a home is Murphy’s Law. If there is anything wonky about the title, past liens, inspection issues, etc., the listing agent’s “a la carte” costs can go through the roof quickly. Also, from a lot of personal experience, these companies are very hard to work with when you are representing a buyer.

My advice: pick someone with good credentials that you trust. Make sure to call references and ask to see any statistics they have regarding their record.

Even though the emphasis is on the listing agent (this is the point that no one wants to hear), the responsibility of the sale is on the seller. The seller is where the buck stops in the process. Sellers tend to want to overprice the listing, not heed the advice from the agent when it comes to condition and curb appeal, and being a little stubborn when presented with the facts.
If you do choose an agent with good credentials and whom you trust, take his or her advice. They (we) see this daily while the average homeowner only sells every 5-8 years.

Hope this helps.

 

[GeauxLSU]

I spent years as a residential agent. The reason they will not give you a standard is because a "standard" percentage is illegal and will cost them their license. What you will typically see is 6-7% for regular residential. 8-10% for acreage. Typically your 1.5% will either be very low level, limited service or include additional fees in the small print. The entire commission is charged to the seller, goes to the listing agent and the listing agent then chooses how much of that they will offer to a selling (buyer's) agent. Something you will often see is a 6% commission with 25-50% of that 6% offered to the buyer's agent. Each agent will then usually split their respective commissions with their brokers ad that's between the broker and the agent. It varies among brokers and is often dependent upon annual transactional volume of that agent. Or, as is the case with most of the RE/MAX franchises, the agent will pay a very high flat fee to the broker (which is usually comparable to the amount of a mortgage payment of quite a nice home) and keep 100% of their earned commissions.

There it is.
Typically 6-7% of a new home purchase is going to various players (buyers and sellers brokers and agents). More for raw land.

Realtors are crooks.

Like most blanket statements, another one that is simply not true.
I've never personally met any agents that were 'crooks' but of course given the sheer numbers, presumably there are some. Are there lazy agents? Of course. But there are also great ones that earn every penny they make and then some. You know how much most get paid for showing the lovely couple 24 different homes over 4 weekends and the wife simply can never get over the wall paper so decides she doesn't want to move after all? Zip.
The agent I've used to BUY a couple of homes is a great low pressure but VERY knowledgeable guy who has been in the industry all his life. His temperment matches well with what I want in a BUYER's agent. I'd trust him with my wallet all day everyday. Now... if I was going to list my home and was in a hurry, I'd probably not use him.
There is a reason the traditional agent/broker has not gone anywhere and there is a reason the DIY shops and low flat fee shops have the market share they do. There is the 'right' model for every buyer/seller and property and nothing worth anything is 'free'.