Month: August 2013

Sign Petition – No Copyrights on Client Data!

Please Sign Our Petition: No copyrights on client data! MLSs are claiming copyrights on seller data and then using those “rights” to limit market exposure of properties.The unfortunate result is that consumers lose their right to representation and houses are not freely marketed the way that should be. Brokers get a double commission.

 
Examples of MLS and data abuses.
 
MLS data is gathered by listing brokers who owe duties to their seller clients to sell their houses for the highest price and in the shortest amount of time possible. Unfortunately, by limiting access to MLS data, those brokers increase the opportunity to collect a double commission and in so doing reducing demand for their clients’ properties.
 
1.  MLSs are suing firms that freely redistribute MLS data (click here to read our story). MLSs are only willing to license their data if the redistributor helps brokers collect a double commission. They are claiming copyrights on this seller data. 
 

 

Seller Tip – Require Your Broker to Share Their Commission With Unrepresented Buyers

Sellers want to increase the market demand for your house and eliminate the competition? Require your listing broker to share the fee offered to cooperating brokers also directly with buyers. If your property is listed on the MLS, then your broker is likely offering a 3% commission to cooperating firms that find a buyer. Make sure that same money is also offered to “do it yourself” homebuyers who find your property without a broker.

Today many homebuyers are finding their homes through internet searches without the help of a Realtor. However, when they go to buy that home they are often unwillingly and unknowingly providing the listing broker with an opportunity to hog both commissions (the listing commission and the buyer broker’s commission). Although some listing brokers claim that unrepresented buyers require more work, we find that to be untrue. Many claim that they have to spend time showing unrepresented buyers the house and possibly writing the offer. Isn’t that their job? We believe listing agents should be present at every showing to help sell the house and protect the seller’s property. Request the buyer to hire an attorney to write the offer.

First, negotiate two commissions, not one bundled fee. One commission is payable to your broker and another commission is typically offered to brokers who procure a ready, willing and able buyer who purchases your house. There is a widespread practice throughout the united states of concealing this information from both buyers and sellers. Your listing broker will be offering compensation to your adversary’s agent and you have a right to be the controlling party in setting that amount and how it is paid. That means determining how much is paid to your broker and determining how much will be offered to cooperating brokers representing the buyer. It also means that you have a right not to offer compensation to the buyer’s broker or make that compensation payable directly to buyers who can use that money to pay their brokers directly or represent themselves and use the money to be applied towards the purchase price or closing costs.

Second, ask your broker to see the full MLS listing of your house and verify that your broker is offering fair compensation to other co-operating brokers. Some brokers offer substandard cooperative commissions reducing the demand on your home and at the same time increasing the probability that their firm will collect a double commission. This fee is a key element of your contract and should have been offered up for negotiation to you prior to you signing the listing contract. Failing to do so may be grounds to void the contract (check with your attorney). 

Next, once you determine that your broker is offering an agreed amount to cooperating brokers, demand that your broker offer and widely publicize this same amount to “do it yourself” buyers. If your broker refuses, you should try and find one who will agree to this. Most large and medium sized brokers will refuse to do this, however, for smaller firms that rarely engage in dual agency, this could be a fabulous market niche. 

When “Do It Yourself” homebuyers find your home, they will see that the 3% normally offered to buyer brokers is also available to them*.

Caveat – Make sure that buyer reports this seller’s contribution directly to their lender as soon as possible to avoid violating any lender requirements that could delay your closing.

*     There are a handful of states (click here to see the 11 states that have price fixed commissions) where it is illegal for listing brokers to share their commissions directly with buyers. In this case, offer to reduce the purchase price by that same amount if they are unrepresented.

Home Seller Tip for Today – Negotiate Both Parts of the Commission

Sellers – When you negotiate your broker’s commission, remember there are two parts to negotiate: The amount that goes to your broker and the amount that is offered to buyer brokers. Do not ever let your broker determine the buyer broker fee!

The Problem

For sellers, real estate commissions are one of the most misleading and anti-consumer aspects of residential real estate.  Real estate brokers typically omit (except in those states that require more thorough fee disclosures) negotiations on how much is going to be offered to the buyer broker. And they almost never publish the buyer brokerage fee that they are offering. In addition, we have yet to find a broker who offers this same amount to an unrepresented buyer who is trying to save money by doing the work themselves. 

The Solution

  1. Unbundle the Commission! Always insist on negotiating the commission as two commissions. Negotiate the fee you are going to pay your listing broker and the fee that is going to be offered to brokers working with buyers. Buyer brokers have to do a lot more work and invest a lot more time and money into their job, so do not be afraid to offer a larger percentage to them.
  2. Offer the buyer broker commission to buyers! If you want to generate more interest in your property, make sure that the money being offered to buyer brokers is also offered to unrepresented buyers or “do it yourselfers.”  Your listing broker will likely try to negotiate a price differential to unrepresented buyers against your favor. Do not fall for it. Unrepresented buyers should not require more work if they use an attorney to draft the offer.  Finally, insist that the listing broker publish the fees being offered to buyer brokers and unrepresented buyers in all their advertising on your house.

Example:

Seller calls 5 listing agents with this offer:  I will consider listing my house with you if you agree to a 2% commission and offer 3% to buyer brokers and unrepresented buyers (total of 5%). You agree to publish the buyer broker/unrepresented buyer offering in all your ads about my house.  

Click here for TIPS on how to negotiate commissions a seller’s Realtor.

Click here for TIPS on how to negotiate the terms of your listing contract.

 

Check Out Our Lists of Service Providers!

We have state-by-state lists of:

Exclusive Buyer Agents

Discount Buyer Agents

Independent Title Agents

No one else has lists like this and provides them at no charge. Beware of firms that offer to find you discount agents or exclusive buyer agents and seek your personal information. All of them that we have encountered are collecting large referral fees from the agents to whom they refer you.