# Minimize Real Estate Agent Fees



## Justinian (Feb 3, 2015)

I scrolled back 10 pages of threads to almost a year ago and didn't find a recent discussion of this specific issue. So wondering if anyone has had good/bad experience lately with methods such as these to minimize real estate fees

- http://ontario.onepercentrealty.com/index.cfm
Flat fee of $6900 which includes $3000 paid to the buyer's agent

- https://feeduck.com/
Agents supposedly bid against each other which results in a lower percentage for their service.

Both my Mom and I are selling properties this spring and we're looking to save cash obviously. She unfortunately will likely go the traditional route and pay %5 to Royal Lepage but she is elderly and on her own, concerned about security and peace of mind. On the other hand I have an abundance of time but no experience and want to spare as much of my equity as possible.

Any tips and pointers welcome particularly with respect to an $899 select listing that I am looking at with the Usher Group in Ottawa http://theushergroup.ca/ottawamls/ What pitfalls can be avoided if I do this mostly on my own?


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## dougboswell (Oct 25, 2010)

Justinian said:


> I scrolled back 10 pages of threads to almost a year ago and didn't find a recent discussion of this specific issue. So wondering if anyone has had good/bad experience lately with methods such as these to minimize real estate fees
> 
> - http://ontario.onepercentrealty.com/index.cfm
> Flat fee of $6900 which includes $3000 paid to the buyer's agent
> ...


If you feel you can do this without losing sleep at night you could try advertising it on Kijiji as a private sale to test the market. On a private sale the buyer will be expecting a good reduction on the price as they know you are saving real estate fees. However to get proper exposure you need to get it on the MLS which the $899 will do. Be prepared to get calls from real estate agents willing to help you out hoping that you will give up in the future and list with them. 

I would be hesitant about listing it on Craig's List. When I did it I got several emails from Africa about a military person who was returning home and looking for a place. I immediately deleted those

Negatives are:

-do you have it priced correctly ie have you underpriced it
-as you do not have a real estate agent representing you , do not sign any offer without letting a lawyer read it over first. Some agents may bring an offer where they want you to sign in the next 6 hours or the buyer will walk. Do not get pressured - let them walk
- the biggest negative is that an agent will want a commission if they bring a buyer who buys. Offering $3000 as above may not bring you results. As much as I hated it ( I sold my last home with a mirror listing) I offered 2.5% to the selling agent. It depends on where you live and how hungry the selling agent is. 

It is a gamble if you try it. If it sells like this you have saved money. As I mentioned above if you will not be able to sleep at night worrying you may have to rethink your strategy.

Good luck.


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## sags (May 15, 2010)

Who does the negotiating on your behalf ? Who will check out buyer finances ?

Are you prepared for a savvy buyer telling you everything that is wrong with your house ?

Ever hear the comments people make during open houses..........when the real estate agent is there ?

I took an open house one time and the interior decorating was really awful. Stripes and every wall was painted a different color. It looked like the circus was in town.

I made a comment like "This is awful..........who would decorate their home like this"

The guy went red in the face and said.......'actually, the real estate agent is sick today so I am showing my own house"............


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## nobleea (Oct 11, 2013)

sags said:


> Who does the negotiating on your behalf ? Who will check out buyer finances ?
> 
> Are you prepared for a savvy buyer telling you everything that is wrong with your house ?
> 
> ...


Do realtors really check out buyer finances? Not from what I've seen. The buyer agent asks, "you preapproved?", buyers say yes, ok good to go.
I don't think anyone who comes in and nitpicks all the things wrong with the house would be called a savvy buyer. More like a cheap nickel and dimer. All houses are sold as is. The seller will know what is wrong with it. Making a comment about the decoration is pointless - it's obvious to everyone who enters. Keep it in mind if you make an offer as the decorating probably gets rid of 60% of the potential buyers. A good negotiator keeps all those things in their pocket til the very end.

We bought our current house without an agent. They had a selling agent and we approached him directly. When something came up in the house inspection, the listing agent was practically begging us to buy it. All his negotiating skills somehow disappeared.
Our tear down property we bought without an agent on either side. I asked to buy their house, they said ok, we agreed on a price and sale in 20mins.
Realtors have an interest in getting the sale. The sale refers to you signing them on as your agent, NOT the actual house sale. They'll tell you a high list price to hook you, get you signed, then after a couple weeks of no action, say the market is in a bit of a lull and we need to drop the price down.


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## Justinian (Feb 3, 2015)

Should've mentioned - my property is a 9 year old condo unit that is in quite good condition and presumably therefore a straightforward thing to market and sell... as compared to a house.

Good point @dougboswell concerning payment to the buyer's agent which I had omitted. The %1 Realty guys claim to take care of this with a $3K payment _ I copy their explanation of this below. For a property in the range of $400K then, the $6900 flat fee would be cheaper than sale by owner with a %2 or %2.5 payment to the buyer's agent. Would be great to hear from someone who went with %1 Realty and their experience good or bad.

Will Other Agents Show My Home

The simple answer is yes. Our MLS® listings are shown, and sold, by lots of Cooperating REALTORS® all of the time. Logic would dictate that if our system was unable to attract Cooperating REALTORS® to sell our MLS® listings then we would be selling most of our own listings to our own Buyers. In fact, its quite the opposite. In Ontario offices in 2011/12, over 89% of our listing sales were sold by Cooperating REALTORS® representing the Buyer. That is the proof in the pudding that our system works great. 

Why is that. We believe it is two reasons. Firstly, our listings (under $600,000) typically offer $3000 commission to Cooperating Brokers. While $3000 might not be as much as some of other listings, it still is a decent amount of money for a paycheque for Canadians these days including a lot of REALTORS®. The more important reason why other agents cooperate and sell our listings is that it is the Buyers who are dictating the shots these days. As mentioned above, if the Buyer loves the home does the amount of commission matter to the Buyer?

Our $6,900 commission includes $3,000 for the Buyer’s agent. Some Buyer's agents, with their client's consent, may request more than the $3000 commission offered on MLS® (in our $6900 listings). The Seller and their One Percent agent will discuss all their options and the Seller will decide what is in their best interests. Many of our Sellers choose to decline any additional commission and the transaction's proceeds with our posted commission.


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## donald (Apr 18, 2011)

List for a 3 mth period using a agent,when his/her contract is done go private(try to intercept in the later days at open housing)
Play the agent(make him do the trial homework)
The play the public good and hard,no reason u can't legally leverage them for a bit
I sold house previously where my contract ran out and interested parties came back when it got renewed and it work good for both the buyer and I(we cleared away the excessive amt that needed to go into the lame ducks pockets out of the 3 of us in the transaction imo)

As a generally rule-real estate agents could give a F about potentials
Business is business.(it is your asset)


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## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

Commissions are negotiable. If you and your mother live in the same area perhaps an agent would offer their %, if you list both properties with them.


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## dougboswell (Oct 25, 2010)

donald said:


> List for a 3 mth period using a agent,when his/her contract is done go private(try to intercept in the later days at open housing)
> Play the agent(make him do the trial homework)
> The play the public good and hard,no reason u can't legally leverage them for a bit
> I sold house previously where my contract ran out and interested parties came back when it got renewed and it work good for both the buyer and I(we cleared away the excessive amt that needed to go into the lame ducks pockets out of the 3 of us in the transaction imo)
> ...


In Ont. the listing contracts have a holdover period. This allows the agent to collect the commission during this period if a buyer who purchases the house that he/she had previously introduced to the property during the listing term.


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## mrcheap (Apr 4, 2009)

I sold my condo using the method detailed in "How to Sell Your Home in 5 Days" http://www.workman.com/products/9780761148463/ and had a very good experience with it.

Basically you sell your home yourself (no agent), in 5 days through a round robin auction. It will get your market price (NOT top dollar).


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## LBCfan (Jan 13, 2011)

dougboswell said:


> I would be hesitant about listing it on Craig's List. When I did it I got several emails from Africa about a military person who was returning home and looking for a place. I immediately deleted those


Surprisingly enough, when we bought our current house, it was owned by someone who had moved to Africa and rented it to his sister. A year or so later he decided to sell. The odd one of these is ligit.


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## Pvo (Jul 4, 2013)

Just sold our house this month using ComFree in under 2 weeks. Great experience.

We had an open house and it went very well. The only annoying bit was all the realtors who called trying to get us to list with them.

We cooperated with an agent on the buying side and paid them 1.5%.

Good luck!


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