Real Estate and Commissions

If you are thinking about buying or selling a home the commission paid to a Realtor has probably crossed your mind at least once.  Many people feel that the Realtors get paid or CHARGE too much!  At first glance and depending on the Realtor, I can understand why many people feel this way.

There are differences between Realtors themselves and the services they offer.  With the emergence of several "Discount Brokers" a consumer now has choices on what services they wish to pay for at a given time.  Some people opt to have their home listed on the Multiple Listing Service and pay the "Buyer's Agent Commission" and take care of flyers, showings and advertising themselves.  Some people go the For Sale By Owner route and do everything themselves in hopes of saving the full commission amount for the area they live in.

There's no right or wrong answer to how you choose to sell your property or buy it.  There are some questions you need to answer for yourself prior to making your decision.

1. Do you know your legal responsibilities when selling your home?  What forms will you need and where can you get them?
2. How soon do you need to move?  A realtor worth their commission will have a marketing plan designed to give your home the most exposure possible in your market area.  The more places people can see and find information about your home, the easier it is for a buyer to come along.  Which leads to another important item. . .
3. How will you determine the Market Price or Selling Price for your home?  While many people think that what they paid for their home when they bought it is a good start in beginning price this is not usually true.  Added to that many times homeowners will add any improvements and additions made to the home.  Doing it this way could make you over price your home and or under price your home.  When using a Realtor, they will find comparable homes (homes that are built and have options similar to yours) in your area and how much they've been sold for in the last six months.  An honest Realtor will give you a price range for your home and help guide you in setting a price based upon the information they pulled from active, pending, sold and expired listings.
4. When prospective buyers come to your home, how will you know if they are ABLE to purchase your home?  Realtors are trained at asking the right questions and getting the right documentation to help identify who is and who is not.
5. And probably one of the best services that a Realtor provides is writing and negotiating the contracts and paperwork involved.  There's several facets to this area from the contract to the home inspection to titlework to pay-offs on mortgage/s to surveys and to cordinating a closing date and move out date.

Resources

Carpenter Realtors