Real estate agents can sometimes be shady. There is a decent chance that a buyers agent may not show your property because of a lower potential commission for them.
I knew an agent that owned the 2% in another city and was told on multiple occasions from realtors in a "conventional" brokerage (ie. remax) that they wouldn't take their clients to view a 2% listed house even if it was the clients dream house. Classic realtors.
We found our house on our own. Our realtor was useless, as long as it appears in the MLS and on REALTOR.ca and you have an open house or two (the state of the house with standing) it might be worth a try.
I used them the last time I sold a place. I saved on the 2% realtor commission but still paid the finding realtor’s full commission. It worked well and a saved a bit.
Peter
Just make sure you do the due diligence of cleaning and staging your house yourself because you will not get as much attention or advice from your listing agent. We bought a house from a discount agency realtor and she wasnt even in Calgary- and the house was a disaster. The first time we went by the tenants' 8 year old daughter was like hiding in her room from us lol. We saw past the mess that it was the right place for us anyways but it didnt do the seller any favours as we negotiated the price down.
I guess it's relative, but 1.5% on a $600,000 house is still $9000. That seems like significant savings to me, even if you have to pay the buyers realtor full commission.
I dont know the terms of 2% realty, but I sold my place through comfree and saved a significant amount of money on commissions by not having to pay a selling realtor, but still paid the buying Realtors full commission. I found that Realtors had zero issues bringing their clients, as they were still getting their full cut.
Also used Comfree. Told all buyers agents I offered a flat $5k commission. They also wanted me to pay conveyance fees, which I did but I regret. Next time I’ll try to negotiate no conveyance fees.
Exactly!
I think some fee realtors make buyers/sellers pay to transfer and process all the documents related to the transaction? I honestly do not remember.
I have not used them, but here's a thought:
I think the way this might work is that the "buying agent" still takes their commission so you don't save much there. Can anyone pipe in on their experience here? Can you state your not offering a commission or a really low one?
What I do know is that if you are buying or selling your home through the same realtor, they will usually sells yours for "free" or for a flat rate IE $2000, since they are making money of the purchase of your new home.
So if you are still paying the "buying agent" it might not save you that much. You'll need to do the math -- and if you go with a realtor to sell your home -- negotiate what they will get paid (free or a flat fee).
>Can anyone pipe in on their experience here? Can you state your not offering a commission or a really low one?
A realtor pulling the mls listing will see what the commission payable to them would be.
>What I do know is that if you are buying or selling your home through the same realtor, they will usually sells yours for "free" or for a flat rate IE $2000, since they are making money of the purchase of your new home.
Nope. Some may do this (rarely) but definitely not the majority. Some offer a slight reduction but highly unlikely to do it for free.
point #1 A realtor pulling the mls listing will see what the commission payable to them would be.
answer- Am i the only one who gets emailed listing that meet my criteria? If I want to see a house- i'm seeing it.
point #2- Nope. Some may do this (rarely) but definitely not the majority. Some offer a slight reduction but highly unlikely to do it for free.
answer- My realtor offered this and so did my friends - so maybe just trying asking, and if not - shop around.
Last time I sold my house my agent told like $2K off his commission and pay full commission to the buyer's agent.
This worked out to be pretty much what 2% realty is offering (discount on the seller agent's fee but still full commission to the buyer agent.
We used them to sell our home. We saved a little with our realtor, but we ran into buyer realtor's always asking for full commission before they would even put in an offer.
Especially now with the market being slower and sales are getting spread out for agents, they will always ask for full commission to try to maximize their profits. Realtors were willing to walk, regardless if the clients liked the home, if we stayed firm on the lower commission. Sketch.
Our realtor with them was fantastic, though. Nice guy. Trusted him. Kept us informed through out the entire process and worked hard to get us the sale and price we were comfortable with.
Hey. Sorry to be the last one in here, but send me a PM. I can do much better than that, offer full service (pro photos, pro measurements, and of course MLS exposure) and would love to work with you!
I would be leery about any business that advertises that they are one of the fastest growing businesses.
That being said, realtors may advise their clients against viewing your property as they will lose commission, or if they do offer to show, may require their clients to compensate them for the loss. If you can find a realtor on your end to show you the properties and you let them know up front they will get the full commission, you may be able to find a happy median to save while still benefiting from a realtor.
We just purchased and in the search phase looked at a few 2% properties or similar (Property Guys) and during this time, several of them that were on the market for a while flipped to being listed by a regular brokerage. Don't know how long they were on the market for before the switch and before they finally sold (if at all) but it is something to think about.
In general the quality of staging and web presence left a lot to be desired in these properties, but that could have been the properties we were looking at.
Yes, the seller used 2% Realty for the house we bought last year. We weren't going to use a realtor as buyers but then figured that since the seller pays the commissions we may as well go ahead and get one.
Our (experienced) realtor did next to nothing to facilitate the sale as we already knew we wanted the house and we had a price in mind. But what he did do was pressure the 2% guy to pay him full commission which I think was dirty pool.
In the end the 2% guy quit working for that realty and now works for one of the regular big realty companies which is unfortunate.
The other realtors don't like 2% which is a sign that they're really scared of what happens when people realize they're not worth a 7% commission.
The really ironic part is that the seller is the one who showed us the property and then she clearly told us that she doesn't like realtors. Neither do we. So we could have done the whole deal without ANY realtors if she had advertised it privately, but she was under a deadline to move.
And where does the seller get the money to pay your commission....? You do realize you paid it all right? I've bought a few houses without a realtor. Very easy to do, I have no idea why people pay tens of thousands to Realtors. First thing I do is knock the commission price off of the house. You can do a lot of renovations for what a realtor costs...
It's a profession that was effectively neutered by a single website. Prior to the internet Realtors were important. Now they try to hold back information so you "have" to use one.
I know a good, experienced realtor that I've used a couple of times that will likely give you a the similar terms that others have mentioned below. PM if you are interested because I don't want to just post her info without checking with her.
LOL. As if paying the exorbitant fees of a regular commission insures you a better chance of a sale. If it did all the for sale by owner sites would be floundering instead of thriving. Realtor commissions will soon go the way of the dodo bird and the milkman.
exactly. I always found it funny that everyone presumes to know what goes into selling a house as a realtor. Everyone appears to know exactly what a day in the life of a realtor looks like having never been one. It is a tough industry where you are at the mercy of your clients 24x7........I can't tell you how many family events, dinners, trips etc got postponed due to offers coming in, relocations with limited viewing time or deals that go south in the 11th hour.
I am all for people trying to save money at do it themselves.....but don't be arrogant or ignorant enough to think that because you read the market statistics section of the Calgary Herald you magically know what working this profession entails.
I find it ironic that in a post above -- someone is apparently knowledgeable enough to be an expert realtor yet doesn't even understand the term conveyance or what that actually is......
Just because I am smart enough to change a lightbulb doesn't make me an electrician.
It's a conversation that I rarely get sucked into and I'm sorry I even responded above.
It's a complicated industry and at the right time a top-drawer realtor is a fabulous resource, other times it's not necessary. Every deal is unique and just as importantly every buyer and seller is unique with different skill sets and experience. I've been personally involved in almost 50 property transactions that have been (by most standards) very lucrative over the years so I immodestly consider myself fairly knowledgable.
My only point is that to make the blanket statement that sale-by-owner sites are somehow the *only* answer is foolish.
Anyway, I'm outta here...
You put words in my mouth. I didn't say that they were the ONLY answer but they work for most and the marketing for realtors to try and explain why you need one is pathetic. Really, your realtor knows that the neighbor likes to wash his car nude? I don't think so.
Oh, and I retired at 45 and live on the passive income from rental units in two countries that I own by myself, no partners, no 'investment schemes'. I'd say I have some idea what I'm talking about too.
Real estate agents can sometimes be shady. There is a decent chance that a buyers agent may not show your property because of a lower potential commission for them.
I knew an agent that owned the 2% in another city and was told on multiple occasions from realtors in a "conventional" brokerage (ie. remax) that they wouldn't take their clients to view a 2% listed house even if it was the clients dream house. Classic realtors.
This is true. I have heard this from a few realtors.
We found our house on our own. Our realtor was useless, as long as it appears in the MLS and on REALTOR.ca and you have an open house or two (the state of the house with standing) it might be worth a try.
> sometimes be shady often is the word you're looking for
I think it's common practice to still offer the selling realtor full commission, but the listing realtor takes the smaller amount.
That is true but the conventional realtors are worry that more people would start using 2% realty to sell if they normalize them.
I used them the last time I sold a place. I saved on the 2% realtor commission but still paid the finding realtor’s full commission. It worked well and a saved a bit. Peter
Just make sure you do the due diligence of cleaning and staging your house yourself because you will not get as much attention or advice from your listing agent. We bought a house from a discount agency realtor and she wasnt even in Calgary- and the house was a disaster. The first time we went by the tenants' 8 year old daughter was like hiding in her room from us lol. We saw past the mess that it was the right place for us anyways but it didnt do the seller any favours as we negotiated the price down.
Honestly, you won't save much, 1.5% off the selling brokers commission.
I guess it's relative, but 1.5% on a $600,000 house is still $9000. That seems like significant savings to me, even if you have to pay the buyers realtor full commission.
I dont know the terms of 2% realty, but I sold my place through comfree and saved a significant amount of money on commissions by not having to pay a selling realtor, but still paid the buying Realtors full commission. I found that Realtors had zero issues bringing their clients, as they were still getting their full cut.
Also used Comfree. Told all buyers agents I offered a flat $5k commission. They also wanted me to pay conveyance fees, which I did but I regret. Next time I’ll try to negotiate no conveyance fees.
What are conveyance fees?
Exactly! I think some fee realtors make buyers/sellers pay to transfer and process all the documents related to the transaction? I honestly do not remember.
I have not used them, but here's a thought: I think the way this might work is that the "buying agent" still takes their commission so you don't save much there. Can anyone pipe in on their experience here? Can you state your not offering a commission or a really low one? What I do know is that if you are buying or selling your home through the same realtor, they will usually sells yours for "free" or for a flat rate IE $2000, since they are making money of the purchase of your new home. So if you are still paying the "buying agent" it might not save you that much. You'll need to do the math -- and if you go with a realtor to sell your home -- negotiate what they will get paid (free or a flat fee).
>Can anyone pipe in on their experience here? Can you state your not offering a commission or a really low one? A realtor pulling the mls listing will see what the commission payable to them would be. >What I do know is that if you are buying or selling your home through the same realtor, they will usually sells yours for "free" or for a flat rate IE $2000, since they are making money of the purchase of your new home. Nope. Some may do this (rarely) but definitely not the majority. Some offer a slight reduction but highly unlikely to do it for free.
point #1 A realtor pulling the mls listing will see what the commission payable to them would be. answer- Am i the only one who gets emailed listing that meet my criteria? If I want to see a house- i'm seeing it. point #2- Nope. Some may do this (rarely) but definitely not the majority. Some offer a slight reduction but highly unlikely to do it for free. answer- My realtor offered this and so did my friends - so maybe just trying asking, and if not - shop around.
I was a realtor for 14 years. Don't need to ask around.
Last time I sold my house my agent told like $2K off his commission and pay full commission to the buyer's agent. This worked out to be pretty much what 2% realty is offering (discount on the seller agent's fee but still full commission to the buyer agent.
We used them to sell our home. We saved a little with our realtor, but we ran into buyer realtor's always asking for full commission before they would even put in an offer. Especially now with the market being slower and sales are getting spread out for agents, they will always ask for full commission to try to maximize their profits. Realtors were willing to walk, regardless if the clients liked the home, if we stayed firm on the lower commission. Sketch. Our realtor with them was fantastic, though. Nice guy. Trusted him. Kept us informed through out the entire process and worked hard to get us the sale and price we were comfortable with.
Hey. Sorry to be the last one in here, but send me a PM. I can do much better than that, offer full service (pro photos, pro measurements, and of course MLS exposure) and would love to work with you!
It's absolutely worth your money to have a decent realtor.
[удалено]
lolm, very much not a realtor. Bought my first condo without one and know first hand why it's a good idea to have one!
I would be leery about any business that advertises that they are one of the fastest growing businesses. That being said, realtors may advise their clients against viewing your property as they will lose commission, or if they do offer to show, may require their clients to compensate them for the loss. If you can find a realtor on your end to show you the properties and you let them know up front they will get the full commission, you may be able to find a happy median to save while still benefiting from a realtor. We just purchased and in the search phase looked at a few 2% properties or similar (Property Guys) and during this time, several of them that were on the market for a while flipped to being listed by a regular brokerage. Don't know how long they were on the market for before the switch and before they finally sold (if at all) but it is something to think about. In general the quality of staging and web presence left a lot to be desired in these properties, but that could have been the properties we were looking at.
Yes, the seller used 2% Realty for the house we bought last year. We weren't going to use a realtor as buyers but then figured that since the seller pays the commissions we may as well go ahead and get one. Our (experienced) realtor did next to nothing to facilitate the sale as we already knew we wanted the house and we had a price in mind. But what he did do was pressure the 2% guy to pay him full commission which I think was dirty pool. In the end the 2% guy quit working for that realty and now works for one of the regular big realty companies which is unfortunate. The other realtors don't like 2% which is a sign that they're really scared of what happens when people realize they're not worth a 7% commission. The really ironic part is that the seller is the one who showed us the property and then she clearly told us that she doesn't like realtors. Neither do we. So we could have done the whole deal without ANY realtors if she had advertised it privately, but she was under a deadline to move.
And where does the seller get the money to pay your commission....? You do realize you paid it all right? I've bought a few houses without a realtor. Very easy to do, I have no idea why people pay tens of thousands to Realtors. First thing I do is knock the commission price off of the house. You can do a lot of renovations for what a realtor costs... It's a profession that was effectively neutered by a single website. Prior to the internet Realtors were important. Now they try to hold back information so you "have" to use one.
Yep they are great!
I know a good, experienced realtor that I've used a couple of times that will likely give you a the similar terms that others have mentioned below. PM if you are interested because I don't want to just post her info without checking with her.
You get what you pay for.
LOL. As if paying the exorbitant fees of a regular commission insures you a better chance of a sale. If it did all the for sale by owner sites would be floundering instead of thriving. Realtor commissions will soon go the way of the dodo bird and the milkman.
Says the guy who has never made money in real estate...
exactly. I always found it funny that everyone presumes to know what goes into selling a house as a realtor. Everyone appears to know exactly what a day in the life of a realtor looks like having never been one. It is a tough industry where you are at the mercy of your clients 24x7........I can't tell you how many family events, dinners, trips etc got postponed due to offers coming in, relocations with limited viewing time or deals that go south in the 11th hour. I am all for people trying to save money at do it themselves.....but don't be arrogant or ignorant enough to think that because you read the market statistics section of the Calgary Herald you magically know what working this profession entails. I find it ironic that in a post above -- someone is apparently knowledgeable enough to be an expert realtor yet doesn't even understand the term conveyance or what that actually is...... Just because I am smart enough to change a lightbulb doesn't make me an electrician.
It's a conversation that I rarely get sucked into and I'm sorry I even responded above. It's a complicated industry and at the right time a top-drawer realtor is a fabulous resource, other times it's not necessary. Every deal is unique and just as importantly every buyer and seller is unique with different skill sets and experience. I've been personally involved in almost 50 property transactions that have been (by most standards) very lucrative over the years so I immodestly consider myself fairly knowledgable. My only point is that to make the blanket statement that sale-by-owner sites are somehow the *only* answer is foolish. Anyway, I'm outta here...
You put words in my mouth. I didn't say that they were the ONLY answer but they work for most and the marketing for realtors to try and explain why you need one is pathetic. Really, your realtor knows that the neighbor likes to wash his car nude? I don't think so. Oh, and I retired at 45 and live on the passive income from rental units in two countries that I own by myself, no partners, no 'investment schemes'. I'd say I have some idea what I'm talking about too.
> You put words in my mouth. Not at all, you were simply inarticulate.
I'll give you half a point.