The world of options for consumers to pay for real estate services is changing-for the better.
In the past, Sellers would “PRESET” the amount that was paid to the real estate agent for you, the buyer, this could have been TEN THOUSAND DOLLARS OR MORE. Where do you think that money was coming from? You bet, you paid for it in terms of a higher sales price. We might go further and guess that your agent didn’t even tell you that you could pay them less and use some of that money for your closing costs. In fact, the agent probably tacked on ANOTHER FEE for you of hundreds of dollars! And to boot, they may have tied you up in the contract for months and months. Do you think that those contracts were for you, or for them?
GOING FORWARD- in order for them to be paid, real estate agents will be required to have you sign a contract, before you see any homes with them, which outlines WHAT YOU WILL PAY THEM REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE SELLER WILL PAY ANYTHING! That’s right, in the future the Seller will not be able to PRESET what you have to pay. It’s up to you to decide. While the Seller MAY agree to pay something toward the costs of YOUR agent, they don’t have to do that and the amount, if any, will not be disclosed to agents in the MULTIPLE LISTING (MLS) WEBSITE used by agents. In the past, before recommending a property to you, the agents knew what they would be paid and could make their decision on what house to show you and which house to urge you to buy based on the amount of the commission that they would receive.
TRANSPARENCY- is the new name of the game. If you want to pay your agent tens of thousands of dollars and add it to the sale price on the home that you may never be able to pay off, that’s your option because you can always ask the Seller to pay YOUR COMMISSION just like you have always been able to ask them to pay your closing costs and it would get added to the sale price.
Or, you can opt of a more consumer savvy way of purchasing a home. Just call the actual agent who is working for the Seller and tell them that you want to see the property. This is one of their jobs (just ask the seller, and by the way, this is the norm for higher priced homes). Then seek out an attorney of your choosing to help you NAVIGATE THE SYSTEM. Our office represents buyers and can help with a mortgage through our company and the closing. We expect to see many or real estate attorneys advertising their services at rates far below the traditional real estate commission. Of course, you can still elect to hire a real estate agent, if THE PRICE IS RIGHT!
