Ok, I am paying 1.25% on a house I've just put on the market. How is it so cheap? Simple, I live in a country which does not require realtor licensing. Realtor licensing drives property agent fees up to *insane* levels. Realtor licensing costs the public billions of dollars a year in totally unnecessary extra fees. Some interesting tidbits - the difference between the lowest agent valuation and the highest one for this house was 31%. The highest two valuations were 11% above the median. If half a dozen agents can have a 30% spread, this should show you how dangerous it is to try and value a property yourself for sale. The two with the highest valuations are the two who have the most local knowledge and presence. They are valuing it higher because they know the latest sales in the last 3-4 weeks, whereas I could see most of the competition were out of date and valuing it based on 3-6 months ago (which is where the land registry starts showing recent sales prices). A realtor's value comes from access to the biggest pool of potential buyers, along with knowing how to get those buyers to pay the maximum possible, which requires good buyer contacts and good up to date knowledge of local sales prices. All you need is *one* buyer to desperately want your property and have the cash ready, and you can get a huge markup over what the typical agent (or yourself) would sell for. I honestly don't understand how the US public does not freak out over realtor commissions, it really is scandalous what you guys have to put up with. It's a classic case of over-zealous regulation being counterproductive. Property selling does not require much in qualifications. Qualifications don't help the buyer or seller to get better service. US brokers were licensed in 2005 and gave the worst advice of all time. Another thing I should mention is I was impressed by the professionalism and knowledge of several of the brokers. Since real estate agents are often listed as one of the most loathed professions which the public considers incompetent at their jobs, I thought this was interesting. Yet again, the general public reveal themselves to be ignorant and unpleasant people, as a group. Many realtors are good and provide an excellent service which more than pays for itself. All countries should abolish licensing requirements for real estate agents. I will update this thread with further findings as I progress to sale.
Nope, never my own. But I did do re-fi's a few years ago, and I know first hand there is a lot of stuff that goes into real estate deals. I took an independant RE course in Cali and was licensed to do re-fi's in 13 states, and still there is no way I would buy or sell a house without a professional on my side.
Wow someyoungguy, you couldn't be further off the mark. Just get a lawyer and he does all the legal stuff for you, including the title search, deed change, etc... and all the legal stuff. Never heard of a mortgage company that requires you to have a real estate agent! I bought my first house no agent, saved a ton of money. Cost me about $500 for the lawyer if I remember correctly. 20 years ago when the MLS listings were secret, maybe you needed an agent, but now it's pretty easy to see the MLS for yourself.
Real estate agents make buying a house look harder than it is. If you use an agent the first time you buy or sell a house, you will be scared for life to ever do it yourself with all the BS paperwork they have you fill out. Agents make buying a house so stressful, i swear. Although i will use an agent when buying if they kick me back some of their commission. zip realty kicks back 25% if i remember correctly. So if you purchase a 200k property, you get a check for $1,500 after close which is a nice little bonus.
Hey, bro it's your money. But, I highly suggest that you send your extra cash to an animal rights organization instead of donating it to some real estate "agent" for his/her enjoyment.
I just sold a house. I had 4 offers within the first 10 days. Do you really think I would have that much activity without a realtor? What you get for your money with a realtor is exposure. Don't need exposure? Then don't pay for it.
one thing i've heard is that RE agents who work on dirt-cheap flat rate commissions are "black-listed" by other agents. they're the equivalent of scabs on picket lines who are undermining the industry, so if you're looking to buy a home and you have a "scab" agent, your offer may not even be seen by the seller, as the seller agent may not want to deal with your agent. i don't know how much truth there is to this, but i think it is credible given how sneaky people in the RE field are and how they want to protect their way of doing business (ie, 6% commissions on every sale).
Maybe, maybe not. (There's lots of factors for each market/property.) Hey, if you're happy, I'm happy.
I got licensed with a small broker here in MN last year almost out of pure curiousity, so I'd be able to see behind all the smoke for myself and hopefully reduce my transaction costs in the process. It is in fact a simpler profession than the industry would like you to believe. With the development of online search engines that give you watered down but pretty good copies of all the MLS sheets, you can do most of the homework on your own and will have a good idea of what's out there before you even meet up with a buyer's agent for your first "client interview". Obviously there are risks associated with buying real estate, and details that need to be taken care of, but nothing an attorney and title insurance wouldn't likely catch. But like someone said here, you might as well use one because they're getting paid, and if you ask, they'll probably be happy to kick back if you're a low maintenance buyer.
OK, at the risk of you all accusing me of backpeddling, I did say I would have a licensed professional on my side, not specifically a listing RE agent. An RE lawyer qualifies as such in my book. That's not going it alone. My aunt and uncle sold their house in Cali right at the peak of the market to their neighbor, no need to list on MLS or show it, so they used a lawyer. I think it was $1000 and that's CHEAP peace of mind for a $600k transaction.