Use Realtor or For Sale By Owner???

[1blue99srx600]

We put our townhouse up for sale in March of 2006, right as things were starting to go bad. We had purchased a new home that was being built and would be done the end of July 2006. We did the by owner thing, with listing it on the MLS and we had people come through (mostly nosy neighbors) but not a lot of realtors, they didn't want to bother with the low commission. It was on there through the end of May, Beg of June when we decided to list it with an actual realtor as we were starting to freak out about 2 mortgages or a bridge loan. June 28th we had an offer, although we took a hit, we needed it sold, I am glad we changed over. In Hindsight the minute we signed the papers on the new construction I would have put it up for sale and delt with living with my inlaws for however long. In second hindsight we would have rented/saved until now and bought with way more money down and a lower interest rate and lower house price. Our house is worth $100K less than what we paid, but hey that's why it's called hindsight!

 

[nic]

Personally- I would use a realtor. I'm a smart chick who works in the business world. But I don't work in the real estate world. And home purchases are a big deal. When we sold our first house, we stuck a for sale sign in the yard just to see. Our neighbors house was also for sale (w/ a realtor) so someone looking at that one, rang our doorbell and asked to walk through. They made us an offer that night. We were probably priced a little low, but we wanted it sold, so were willing to do that. We also agreed to pay their realtor 1.5%. So even though we started by owner, we ended up basically paying the realtor fee. At the end of the day, it still worked out well b/c the house was for sale for about a week. To me, giving an agent 2-3% is worth it. They will contact who needs to be contacted. They walk you through the closing process. Call the surveyors, inspectors, etc for you. They also know how to price your home, have a built in pool of potential buyers, and can take care of showings and whatnot. At the end of the day- for a 200K home, I think they earn their 5K commission. The peace of mind knowing that someone experienced was handling things is worth it to me. That being said, I'd definitely make sure you do your checks on your realtor. Ask around, most people know someone... a friend/family member/etc in the business that they can recommend.

And I agree about the MN broker- that's not serving your clients well. I had a fabulous realtor when we were buying our first home (21 & 22 yr old 'kids')... I scoured the internet and would bring her listings and she brought us to every last one of 'em and pointed out good/bad/things to consider, etc. Bought us a great housewarming gift to closing (which I still have today). She truly wanted to help us through the process and was amazing. What a shame you don't show your clients great houses/opportunities b/c there isn't enough in it for you.

 

[frnash]

… it's called hindsight!

Hindsight: isn't that the view that every sled dog (other than the lead dog) gets?

 

[Hoosier]

Nic - interesting response. You said you paid 2.5%. So you didn't pay a seller realtor (i.e., you just paid the buyer realtor)? I'm assuming I'll have to buy the buyer realtor either way, or you won't get many looks at your property. I'm wondering whether to hire a realtor also. I'm starting to lean towards paying one. The difference will likely be 3% (assume we pay 6% if we hire a realtor, 3% if we do not). Our house will probably go for $175k or so, so it's about a $5,000 difference.

I've always said I'd sell it myself when the time comes, but now I'm re-thinking it as I see more of the details that are involved.

 

[nic]

I only paid 1.5%. The way it usually works- from what I understand, is if I have a realtor, I agree to their %age in my contract. So if I signed a contract for 3%, that's all they will take from the purchase price to pay the realtor. I sell my house for 200K, they subtract $6000, whatever other fees, and hand me what's left after paying off my old note. If my agent represented both the buyer and myself, they get $6000. Now if the buyer's realtor is not the same as mine (which is most common in home purchases), then they split it. So my selling agent would get $3000, and their buyer agent would get $3000. I'm not now on the hook for $12000 (3% each) since two people were involved. So since I didn't have an agent, I agreed to the 1.5% from their buyer agent to move it along- and she was fine w/ that since she wouldn't have to split it. I could be wrong on that, and those who do this should chime in- but I think that's the way it goes. I also sold my house in 2004 when the market was totally different, so 3% was about the norm for agents. FSBO was HUGE, and the market was hot. Lots of competition. So I think she figured if we were listed w/ another realtor, she'd only get 1.5% anyway.

Anyway- on one hand I felt like you- I can do this. They're just walking people through my house. On the other hand, I liked knowing that someone experienced was making sure all of the details were handled so we didn't have a fallout at closing. At the end of the day, I was taking that 'leftover' check and just bringing it to another closing as my down payment. So I kind of rationalized the fact that an extra 1, 2, 3K I could have had in that down payment, was not going to make that big of a difference in my new mortgage. Now if you had a million dollar home and we were talking about 6%, that's a different story =)

 

[yamaholic]

Normal listing works like this, lets say you list your house at 6% with Joe at Deep Snow Realty and Joe finds the buyer for your house that full 6% will go to Deep snow realty.
Now lets say that Mary at White out Realty finds the buyer for your house then 3% will go to White out Realty and 3% to Deep Snow Realty.Now Joe has an agreement with his broker of a 50/50 split on all commission earned that means if Joe finds the buyer he splits the full 6% with his broker = 3% each But when Mary finds the buyer they split 3%= 1.5% each. This is why all listing agents work hard to find the buyer for there own listings. You must also know that of the split that Joe gets uncle sam wants his share about 20% then he has advertisement cost all sellers want there homes advertised in the local papers real estate magazines,ect $$$,then he has the cost of gas in his car wear and tear $$,office supplys,cell phone,computer,ect, also has to be a member of the Board of Realtors with dues every three months and yearly dues.So you can take his split he gets and split it one more time very few of us are Donald Trumps. Thats why its best to list at full commission rate. hope this helps.

 

[Hoosier]

We're going to meet with the realtor tonight, just to hear the sales pitch.

Is 6% the going rate these days? How long is a typical contract for?

 

[xcr440]

I got 5% on my 200k+ listing, for 6 months. Some say that's a little long, but hey, give them a chance. THIS IS the time of year to be on the market through Summer.

 

[yamaholic]

6-7% norm 6 months norm. and this is the time to sell.

 

[frnash]

I got 5% on my 200k+ listing, for 6 months. Some say that's a little long, but hey, give them a chance. THIS IS the time of year to be on the market through Summer.

6-7% norm 6 months norm. and this is the time to sell.

"This is the time of year to sell …"
Yeah, that's what I thought last year when my tenants left in March and bought their own home (without ever mentioning their plans, or even asking if I'd sell!) Later, my agent met the former "Mrs. Tenant" in the grocery store, and she said she was sorry they didn't ask, as my place was so energy efficient and easy to care for, much more so than the larger place they bought! Tsk, tsk!

Right time, wrong year? Eleven months later: Sold! I paid 7% commission, but for all the effort my agent put into the place and me 1500 miles distant, not so bad a deal.

 

[lenny]

I am a Broker in WI. Its interesting to hear you as a broker in Mn clearly put compensation ahead of representation which in Wi at least is aginst the law and very unethical. If fact it would be a direct conflict of your fiduciary duties owed to your client. So it seems you are putting your own intersts ahead of your clients. While a agree a higher payout does attract more agents/buyers to show a property. You are stating you wont show a property to a client if you cant make enough money on it. Do you actually tell your buyers you wont show them a house because you wont make enough money on the sale? I would say its agents/brokers like you that make it tougher for us agents that truly want to represent clients fairly and honestly. Your atitude gives us all a bad name. In fact if I was a potential buyer or seller I would never hire you or your company after your comments. Nice job on showing the world who you really work for, Yourself!


I'll have to look up the case, but I believe there was a Real Estate/Brokerage in Ohio a few years ago that was sued for this very thing. I believe it cost them around ten million bucks.

I second that, money is the motive for so many. I listed my house FSBO and paid to get it on the MLS. For 6 months I didn't get 1 call. I had the commision at 2%. I had the property listed at $499,000. With no interest I decided to list with a realtor and 21 days later it was gone. To me, I have no doubt the commision was the problem. I really despise realtors, which is wrong of me to lump them all together but come on.

 

[yamaholic]

Lenny, Sounds like a Realtor did in 21 days what you couldn't do in 6 months sell your house but yet you despise them.You better stick with chasing bright lights lol leave the house selling to the Realtors.Takes more then just putting it in the MLS system come on.

 

[anonomoose]

I am a Broker in WI. Its interesting to hear you as a broker in Mn clearly put compensation ahead of representation which in Wi at least is aginst the law and very unethical. If fact it would be a direct conflict of your fiduciary duties owed to your client. So it seems you are putting your own intersts ahead of your clients. While a agree a higher payout does attract more agents/buyers to show a property. You are stating you wont show a property to a client if you cant make enough money on it. Do you actually tell your buyers you wont show them a house because you wont make enough money on the sale? I would say its agents/brokers like you that make it tougher for us agents that truly want to represent clients fairly and honestly. Your atitude gives us all a bad name. In fact if I was a potential buyer or seller I would never hire you or your company after your comments. Nice job on showing the world who you really work for, Yourself!


I'll have to look up the case, but I believe there was a Real Estate/Brokerage in Ohio a few years ago that was sued for this very thing. I believe it cost them around ten million bucks.

What we have hear is a failure to read and comprehend what was written and stated, CLEARLY.

This Minnesota Broker, CLEARLY states that he BUYS (READ THIS TO MEAN THAT HE IS REPRESENTING HIMSELF...and not others) and FLIPS property.

Because he is REPRESENTING HIMSELF, in these transactions, it is perfectly okay to ignore low compensation paid to the SELLING BROKER..AKA, HIMSELF as a measure of whether or not to show or to not show the property.

In fact this is obviously a smart agent/broker, who states the obvious in these transactions. Had he said that he REPRESENTED OTHER PARTIES in the transaction as a buyer's agent, THEN he would have a fiduciary relationship putting the interests of the party who hired him first and unless he said he would NOT show properties that compensated below...xxx percentage of the sale, he then would be in violation of the laws of all states.

What YOU have done is to ostracize this fellow for doing his job on BEHALF of himself, and YOU Mr. Olsmann, didn't read what he said. Futhermore your spelling ability makes me suspect of your limited level of education (Therefore, if I was looking for a Broker in Wisconsin and found an agent/broker with such short attention span and/or inability to read and comprehend what was stated, spelled like a 3rd grader....and about to enter into legal and binding transaction)..I would run....not walk from your business table. In short I wouldn't hire you unless I was desperate and you were the only agent within 140 miles of my home. You either can not read or can not understand what someone is writing. Neither one is a very good trait for a broker/agent who's livelihood depends upon clearly reading and comprehending what directives are important to "the" client.

Go back and read his post...and then next time try and comprehend what he was saying before your flame this guy for doing what he clearly does very well. He is an agent for HIMSELF and being selective about what he shows is all up to him, not you. And for pete's sake....get a spell checker before you flame someone for being ignorant.

 

[lenny]

sounds to me like you have no clue as to what you are talking about. When the crook realtor saw the larger commission compared to the 2% they finally went to work for me. My house was out there for all the realtor's to see and not a single call. Soon as it hit the market w/realtor (full commission) they saw $$$$$$$. This proves my point just as the other realtor who posted on this thread saying he doesn't bother with FSBO on the mls because not worth it. Sounds like your the same, good luck with that. I suspect your type is probably moving a bit more lately on FSBO/mls because you gotta get something coming in but it's a well know fact that you guys shy away from FSBO/mls for fear of the momentum it is gaining and you guys are loosing your position in the market. Don't you guys go to conventions to have stratigies against FSBO. With this depressed economy God forbid your association of realtor's not continue to corner the market. It's also very nice of you to be glad that people have to pay the same percentage on a $500,000 house as the guy selling the $85,000. When I sold the commission was 29,500. You know someone had a happy day. The broker sold it and got the full commission, So next time you decide to insult someone, think a bit about the details before you flip out

 

[lenny]

What we have hear is a failure to read and comprehend what was written and stated, CLEARLY.

This Minnesota Broker, CLEARLY states that he BUYS (READ THIS TO MEAN THAT HE IS REPRESENTING HIMSELF...and not others) and FLIPS property.

Because he is REPRESENTING HIMSELF, in these transactions, it is perfectly okay to ignore low compensation paid to the SELLING BROKER..AKA, HIMSELF as a measure of whether or not to show or to not show the property.

In fact this is obviously a smart agent/broker, who states the obvious in these transactions. Had he said that he REPRESENTED OTHER PARTIES in the transaction as a buyer's agent, THEN he would have a fiduciary relationship putting the interests of the party who hired him first and unless he said he would NOT show properties that compensated below...xxx percentage of the sale, he then would be in violation of the laws of all states.

What YOU have done is to ostracize this fellow for doing his job on BEHALF of himself, and YOU Mr. Olsmann, didn't read what he said. Futhermore your spelling ability makes me suspect of your limited level of education (Therefore, if I was looking for a Broker in Wisconsin and found an agent/broker with such short attention span and/or inability to read and comprehend what was stated, spelled like a 3rd grader....and about to enter into legal and binding transaction)..I would run....not walk from your business table. In short I wouldn't hire you unless I was desperate and you were the only agent within 140 miles of my home. You either can not read or can not understand what someone is writing. Neither one is a very good trait for a broker/agent who's livelihood depends upon clearly reading and comprehending what directives are important to "the" client.

Go back and read his post...and then next time try and comprehend what he was saying before your flame this guy for doing what he clearly does very well. He is an agent for HIMSELF and being selective about what he shows is all up to him, not you. And for pete's sake....get a spell checker before you flame someone for being ignorant.

No offense bud but your justification is weak at best. Here is exactly what he said, I'm not sure how you neglected to over look it, maybe you can elaborate a bit on that

" I am a Broker in the State on MN- I never show FSBO properties on MLS cause its too much work having to deal with the seller unless it has a high payout for the commision"

ITS TOO MUCH WORK HE SAID, that is unless it has a larger commission. So, we know he does represent sellers but only under his personal terms of $$$$. It's just the way people are. He said "high payout", Didn't say average of good or anything like that. What's in it for him drives his motivation. I realize it's a job and a job is to make money but the seller is poorly represented. I can just see it now with everybody in the office, "who wants this one" and everybody looks at each other "you took the call so it's yours" , "but I cant do that one BECAUSE" bla bla bla

 

[anonomoose]

sounds to me like you have no clue as to what you are talking about. When the crook realtor saw the larger commission compared to the 2% they finally went to work for me. My house was out there for all the realtor's to see and not a single call. Soon as it hit the market w/realtor (full commission) they saw $$$$$$$. This proves my point just as the other realtor who posted on this thread saying he doesn't bother with FSBO on the mls because not worth it. Sounds like your the same, good luck with that. I suspect your type is probably moving a bit more lately on FSBO/mls because you gotta get something coming in but it's a well know fact that you guys shy away from FSBO/mls for fear of the momentum it is gaining and you guys are loosing your position in the market. Don't you guys go to conventions to have stratigies against FSBO. With this depressed economy God forbid your association of realtor's not continue to corner the market. It's also very nice of you to be glad that people have to pay the same percentage on a $500,000 house as the guy selling the $85,000. When I sold the commission was 29,500. You know someone had a happy day. The broker sold it and got the full commission, So next time you decide to insult someone, think a bit about the details before you flip out

Lenny, I presume this was directed at me, the last poster...so I will try and point out a few things for you to consider.

I am not a broker, but I know very well how this process works.

You are/were burned by the fact that you thought you could simply list your home as a FSBO on the MLS and pay the simple fee to get your home included in the listings available to all buyers interested in purchasing along with other brokers who are members of the Board of Realtors and pay fees to belong and subscribe to the standards that this association requires, or be fined and penalized if you do not and are found by other peers in the association to have violated the standard this sets.

Unfortunately, you lack a clear understanding of what a broker does for his client. When you sign an "exclusive right to sell " listing agreement, you "wipe" away a whole bee's nest of issues that await a broker who decides to sell your home as a FSBO. This means, basically that the broker not only has to facilitate all the buyer end of the transaction, but he also has to educate and help YOU- the seller, through the transaction. In many states this is called acting as a dual agent because you are doing both ends of a transaction and it is hard to do a good job for both parties without compromising one or the other. It also means twice as much work, and twice as much liability because you are actually doing two transactions together. Many brokers/agents don't want to do that for fear of being sued. Others just feel that to do this right YOU need your OWN agent so that he can do whatever it is that needs doing on your behalf and it won't be questioned later on.

Finally, once you list your home.... this is a flag to other brokers/agents, that you have signed all necessary paper work to conform to the standards THAT they require before a transaction is entered into. Imagine getting part way through a deal and finding out there is no recourse if you back out other than to sue for a commission? Or some paper work which you were supposed to provide was not filled out properly? Who pays then? Chances of a deal falling apart is very good if the deal is a FSBO because there are NO experts involved to make sure things go right and if things start going wrong...who knows better what to do to salvage a transaction than a professional who does this for a living.

Broker's aren't there to provide charity work; they earn a commission and it is a living for many that do a good job. While this "fee" they charged you looks like a huge fat paycheck to YOU....in reality, after all the expenses are paid out from the broker, including, advertising, networking, printing, clerking, staffing a staff to do the legal and paper work, right on down to paving the parking lot of the broker house, there simply is not that much money left over for someone to "run off to some sun filled beach somewhere and sip iced tea".

You pay a surgeon to do surgery on you, you pay a lawyer to defend you in court, you pay a plumber and carpenter, an engineer to design things and they all charge money for their end of the work that they must do. The money they charge is not cheap. But you believe you got your monies worth and you know that they must make a living too. Why would you single out a broker who got your home sold for you and charged you the going rate for doing it? You tried it yourself but you didn't get the job done...would you operate on yourself at discount too?

If someone does it just as well and cheaper, go to them. If they can stay in business and pay all the bills they will succeed and do well. But over time this level of "charge" has been tested and tried and there is NO free lunches.

Nobody forced you to use a broker...you chose it because you couldn't get the job done yourself. If you could have done that, you would have saved a bunch of money...if you did it right, and if you didn't get sued down the road because you didn't do it right or didn't tell the truth.

There is a reason there are firms that just handle real estate transactions. It looks easy, but it is far from easy and if you can do it yourself without the need of a broker, my hat is off to you. But for the largest percentage of people who farm for a living, work on boats, dig pipelines, teach school, or a million other occupations, a broker is not only a smart person to employ for this job, it is the only sane way to get the job done and done right.

While there might be some huge conspiracy to get you to list your home and charge you a fat fee...I rather think that you simply misunderstood what it was that the broker actually did for you. And if the broker you used didn't do a good job (and your assessment is fair and legitimate)...tell you friends and family and anyone else you meet about how you were treated unfairly and stay away from that firm/brokerage. They will expire and be out of business in no time. And if they stay in business...maybe your assessment was not all that accurate.

 

[lenny]

Lenny, I presume this was directed at me, the last poster...so I will try and point out a few things for you to consider.

I am not a broker, but I know very well how this process works.

You are/were burned by the fact that you thought you could simply list your home as a FSBO on the MLS and pay the simple fee to get your home included in the listings available to all buyers interested in purchasing along with other brokers who are members of the Board of Realtors and pay fees to belong and subscribe to the standards that this association requires, or be fined and penalized if you do not and are found by other peers in the association to have violated the standard this sets.

Unfortunately, you lack a clear understanding of what a broker does for his client. When you sign an "exclusive right to sell " listing agreement, you "wipe" away a whole bee's nest of issues that await a broker who decides to sell your home as a FSBO. This means, basically that the broker not only has to facilitate all the buyer end of the transaction, but he also has to educate and help YOU- the seller, through the transaction. In many states this is called acting as a dual agent because you are doing both ends of a transaction and it is hard to do a good job for both parties without compromising one or the other. It also means twice as much work, and twice as much liability because you are actually doing two transactions together. Many brokers/agents don't want to do that for fear of being sued. Others just feel that to do this right YOU need your OWN agent so that he can do whatever it is that needs doing on your behalf and it won't be questioned later on.

Finally, once you list your home.... this is a flag to other brokers/agents, that you have signed all necessary paper work to conform to the standards THAT they require before a transaction is entered into. Imagine getting part way through a deal and finding out there is no recourse if you back out other than to sue for a commission? Or some paper work which you were supposed to provide was not filled out properly? Who pays then? Chances of a deal falling apart is very good if the deal is a FSBO because there are NO experts involved to make sure things go right and if things start going wrong...who knows better what to do to salvage a transaction than a professional who does this for a living.

Broker's aren't there to provide charity work; they earn a commission and it is a living for many that do a good job. While this "fee" they charged you looks like a huge fat paycheck to YOU....in reality, after all the expenses are paid out from the broker, including, advertising, networking, printing, clerking, staffing a staff to do the legal and paper work, right on down to paving the parking lot of the broker house, there simply is not that much money left over for someone to "run off to some sun filled beach somewhere and sip iced tea".

You pay a surgeon to do surgery on you, you pay a lawyer to defend you in court, you pay a plumber and carpenter, an engineer to design things and they all charge money for their end of the work that they must do. The money they charge is not cheap. But you believe you got your monies worth and you know that they must make a living too. Why would you single out a broker who got your home sold for you and charged you the going rate for doing it? You tried it yourself but you didn't get the job done...would you operate on yourself at discount too?

If someone does it just as well and cheaper, go to them. If they can stay in business and pay all the bills they will succeed and do well. But over time this level of "charge" has been tested and tried and there is NO free lunches.

Nobody forced you to use a broker...you chose it because you couldn't get the job done yourself. If you could have done that, you would have saved a bunch of money...if you did it right, and if you didn't get sued down the road because you didn't do it right or didn't tell the truth.

There is a reason there are firms that just handle real estate transactions. It looks easy, but it is far from easy and if you can do it yourself without the need of a broker, my hat is off to you. But for the largest percentage of people who farm for a living, work on boats, dig pipelines, teach school, or a million other occupations, a broker is not only a smart person to employ for this job, it is the only sane way to get the job done and done right.

While there might be some huge conspiracy to get you to list your home and charge you a fat fee...I rather think that you simply misunderstood what it was that the broker actually did for you. And if the broker you used didn't do a good job (and your assessment is fair and legitimate)...tell you friends and family and anyone else you meet about how you were treated unfairly and stay away from that firm/brokerage. They will expire and be out of business in no time. And if they stay in business...maybe your assessment was not all that accurate.

Nice try, I am not a 18 yr old kid with no experience in these matters. I'm 45 years old and on house # 6 now. So when you tell me the list of costs involved, including the driveway on the brokers house I get a good chuckle. I do know whats involved. I wouldn't have such an attitude if the going percentage was limited to a final sale cap. For instance, if you sell under $100,000 a 6-7 % is fair but now look at the $500,000 house. The costs and fee's are basically the same, the seller does the same work, of course there is more advertising and costly advertising when you climb into high end markets. I understand this but the ratio of commission should be substantially lower on the bigger sales. 3 house ago I built a 2300sq ft ranch, sold for 314,00 with a popular realtor. Sold the custom 3700 sq ft with same realtor, same exact advertising for 7 days only compared to the 32 days on the ranch and had to pay the same commission. Say what you will, there is a fundamental flaw in the system and I will continue to try an sell on my own. I did sell my $50,000 camp here in da UP on my own just 3 months ago by owner. I had it listed with a large local realtor for 1 yr and no luck. Was not the realtor's fault, very good seller, had no problems and was willing to pay the commission but I don't have to be happy about it. The commission on the small sales I can justify, but the % should be considerably lower as the sale raises to big bucks. Greed is the root of this issue and that is why you see fsbo growing big time. Not always is the trend the best way, were all looking to see better days and huge commissions only worse the situation. You bring up law suites, people are stupid and smart. I paid for an inspectors, surveys, home warranties, etc, I know the routine, much of it is BS and a waste of cash all at the expense of the seller. This is typical, doesn't mean it's right.

When I closed on the last place in Illinois the closing was a 3 hr ordeal with lawyers from both sides and no a single hitch. Big city sales are becoming so complicated now days it's a joke. i bought up here in the UP and I didn't have to take my coat off. Had title insurance, paid half the fee's no surveys. I bought a 5 acre lot in Illinois years back from the developer and had a survey copy of all his lot plots. I knew the guy well and had no concerns. When I went to build I paid a surveyor to do my property because I needed good black dirt for septic field and needed to be certain I was within the proper set back to lot line. I sold the house 2 years later and the realtor insisted I pay AGAIN for another survey. realtor's want the sales to go without a hitch and rightfully so but don't care as much as they should about the sellers cash.

here is a good one. When I listed the ranch, the realtor suggested 319,000 and I knew she was wrong and insisted 329,000. I got full asking price but gave the guy my riding mower he wanted. I may be cynical but maybe you can see why now, I have not had the best experiences with realtor's, yes my houses sold but more so as a result of me offering a house that shows extremely well. I had a attorney I trusted in Illinois so I was covered legally. There are other ways to sell and I see them gaining popularity.

 

[anonomoose]

Let's analyze this a bit!

You say as the sales price goes up, the commission rate should go down. Basically you are right and many brokerage houses charge a lower commission rate on the higher tiers of the price. 7% on the first 100k, and 5% on the second, and 2% on the third right on up to a million dollars and beyond. Why didn't you negotiate one with your realtor? If you have a clean product, shows like a gem, and you picked the right location when you bought it, demand for it is good, you should have looked for a broker who would take a more proportioned commission. Of course if you HAD to use THE broker in the area, then THE broker can charge you whatever HE wants because YOU had to have him because HE built a reputation on HIS business and getting the JOB done, didn't you? You want one builder, one plumber or one car company....then you are now stuck with whatever they charge because YOU won't go anywhere else. When this happens, EXPECT to leave money on the table....just supply and demand at work. His sales pitch sucked you in, and YOU paid the price. You can't fault him for that can you? Whining about it afterwords is simply sour grapes. YOU knew HE was the guy who moved product and YOU had to have him, didn't you?? Did you shop around, or hand it over to the "big guy" doing the job in YOUR neighborhood??? EVERYTHING IS NEGOTIABLE...ISN'T IT?? You didn't do YOUR job at the time the papers were signed up and do YOUR best job to get the best deal you could. After the job is done, you are like the guy who said he paid too much to get his toilet unplugged and couldn't get it unplugged on his own. This just means that you were frustrated that YOU could do the job right and YOU had to hire the "expensive guy" to do it...or at least you THOUGHT you had to hire him...when in fact perhaps you didn't do your due diligence prior to hiring THE most expensive guy around who would NOT negotiate commission. Sometimes you just have to concede that they guy knows what he is doing and has built his reputation on good work, and can now enjoy the benefits of his reputation because of his expertise in the field. No different than any other business in the world. If you have it, people will come and pay you whatever you charge....they think YOU are the only one who can do the job...and maybe they are right!

As far as selling your camp for $50k, well did you sell it on land contract, and offer that same contract to the broker? Did you get the real worth of what the place was likely to bring, or did you discount the place so much that it became far more likely that someone would buy it no matter who bought it?

Maybe you just got lucky. Sticking a sign on property and HOPING that someone will drive by it, call, get excited and hand you cash is a tall order unless you are right where everyone wants to be, have the best deal available anywhere (after the buyer does his research...assuming he is smart enough to do that) and you have the smarts to put the deal together and overcome any anxieties that the customer might have about buying something unknown, and trusting the SELLER to do the right thing and not paste his hind end to the wall, and run laughing all the way to the bank that he found another sucker who bought that place called a camp that has been nothing more than a place you throw money at over the whole time you owned it.

Maybe you should give up your job and become a realtor and make a fortune since this was so easy to do?? After all, maybe it could be YOU that make the $35k commission and how many of those do you need to make a living on easy street??? (Quiet down out there...this is not a laughing matter and for those who sell real estate for a living, I am attempting to provide a real life situation where everyone who thinks you get rich selling real estate get the facts...which is nearly 90% of the time people who think the business is easy and get in and right back out of the business in less than 5 years...which of course would NOT be the case if you loaded the bank after every transaction would it???)

Nearly every single transaction I have seen or heard of with a FSBO, the seller tosses in the commission the broker "would have charged" to sweeten the deal with the buyer...who now thinks he is getting a super deal. For that price you might as well had the broker get his commission and you lay back and let them do all the work rather than sweat the details.

Hey, I am NOT saying all brokers are worth what they charge, because many are very inexperienced, and often brokers are sought without the due diligence you should be paying attention to. Has he sold many properties like yours (I am not talking about his brokerage...but himself) or has he only been selling for a few months or years. Experience, like anything else is a huge factor in "been there done that" process that any transaction can fall into as it moves along the path to a closing. You probably spent more time on picking the brokerage than you did "interviewing" the agent who was the vital link in the transaction. Lack of experience is 90% of the problem when a problem comes up. Unfortunately, in many brokerage houses the actual broker who is supposed to be overseeing the deal never gets involved unless and or until there is a problem. Therefore things can go wrong because someone with experience is not there to recognize what needs to be done and when to do it.

You say that YOUR broker insisted on doing a survey again. That was unnecessary if you would have signed a sworn statement that you did NOT construct anything since the last survey which should have been enough to satisfy the mortgage requirements, or the buyer who wanted it. Yes, brokers do recommend re-survey because they have a guide that tells them to do that and they don't deviate from that guide. An experienced agent could have moved you over to the sworn statement process and satisfied both your wallet and the requirement that the mortgage company required or the buyer would "like".

Once again, did you ask ahead of time about this? Did your broker tell you that you would have to use a new survey even though you just did one a few years ago, PRIOR to signing his listing agreement. If you didn't do that then you are at fault for not getting costs cleared up before you signed on the dotted line? If he insisted and you knew that it wasn't necessary and would go on the record and attesting to that fact, then you should have found another broker who WOULD take a sworn statement prior to listing the property.

You say you just sold the camp yourself. Will you be sued (they have several years to uncover latent defects) when they find that the well fails this spring, or the septic, or the foundation settles?...you are NOT out of the woods on that one for quite some time and many people saved a nickle but toss back dollars because they cut a corner and didn't even know enough to protect themselves at the time of closing. Even an attorney doesn't always know enough to get the right documents signed at closing and therefore you might still pay. Did you find a real estate attorney to close the deal or did you simply shop for a local attorney who does many things, but none of them really well because he was "cheap" to use and would "only" charge so much for "reviewing the documents" leaving glaring issues and dwelling on a sewer bill that has limited concern? I have seen hundreds of attorney's over look things that they surely should have been concerned with because they were not savvy to current issues or simply did not have the where-with-all to know how to properly protect a client. They lacked experience and didn't do real estate closings for a living and protect their client because they simply didn't know. Would you go to a general practitioner to have him do specialized surgery on your heart? Why not?? He probably would be cheaper. Common sense enters here my friend, and you need to have proper education and experience to do a good job and that process doesn't change for plumbers or brokers or candlestick makers.

 

[xcr440]

You guys are arguing about this that and the next thing about real estate and commissions and sale prices, when thats just 10% of it.

If the RIGHT BUYER that WANTS your property doesn't walk by for over a year, it really doesn't matter what a commission, real estate agent, broker or the joe next door have to say about it, unless you are willing to give it away.

Location location location.

Without too many details, I currently live at and own the most beautiful house I have ever had, and it has been for sale for over a year. I've had a half dozen tire kickers in that time.

My last house was the biggest DUMP I have ever lived in, and it sold in less than 30 days, for almost what my current house is on the market for, because of where it was located.

With that said, there is something to be said about the greater exposure a real estate agent and his advertising can provide, BUT......

 

[yamaholic]

sounds to me like you have no clue as to what you are talking about. When the crook realtor saw the larger commission compared to the 2% they finally went to work for me. My house was out there for all the realtor's to see and not a single call. Soon as it hit the market w/realtor (full commission) they saw $$$$$$$. This proves my point just as the other realtor who posted on this thread saying he doesn't bother with FSBO on the mls because not worth it. Sounds like your the same, good luck with that. I suspect your type is probably moving a bit more lately on FSBO/mls because you gotta get something coming in but it's a well know fact that you guys shy away from FSBO/mls for fear of the momentum it is gaining and you guys are loosing your position in the market. Don't you guys go to conventions to have stratigies against FSBO. With this depressed economy God forbid your association of realtor's not continue to corner the market. It's also very nice of you to be glad that people have to pay the same percentage on a $500,000 house as the guy selling the $85,000. When I sold the commission was 29,500. You know someone had a happy day. The broker sold it and got the full commission, So next time you decide to insult someone, think a bit about the details before you flip out

I still say you better stick with chasing bright lights.Leave the house selling to the Realtors!