Topic: realestate agents

[Zombie]

Hey guys I was just wondering what the popular consensuses is on realestate agents.
My personal view is that with the internet they are becoming more and more Obsolete.
Also what exactly do they do for there money?
Giving some one $8-15K to sell your home seems a bit ridiculous to me and why should they make twice as much money if the home is worth twice as much would they do the same amount of work? or in there case the same amount of no work.

[quadzilla]

Hey guys I was just wondering what the popular consensuses is on realestate agents.
My personal view is that with the internet they are becoming more and more Obsolete.
Also what exactly do they do for there money?
Giving some one $8-15K to sell your home seems a bit ridiculous to me and why should they make twice as much money if the home is worth twice as much would they do the same amount of work? or in there case the same amount of no work.

Do you tip by the amount on the bill? 

Maybe its harder to sell homes that cost more so they have to work harder for it?

[Loudpedal]

I don't think that I'd ever buy or sell a home without one.

Having said that, I do agree with the saying that it's the most money one can make doing the least amount of work.    

Anyone who I've dealt with has split their commission with me.    

[initial_D]

Have you sell a home by yourself before?

There is a lot of work involved in selling a home, and showing a home is very time consuming. Most of the time, 99% of the people are just browsing, and can't really afford the house, a lot of wasting time.

It is market dependent. The pass few years in Alberta, anyone can sell a home themselves. The pass 10 months the market is flooded with houses, and it is much tougher to sell a house. A listed house can attract buying agents with qualified shoppers.

[mrthompson]

I'll let Wetson answer this one...

[Ex-airbalancer]

Too bad you cannot just pay to listed your house on MLS

[initial_D]

There a 'discount' Broker in my area, they will list the house for a flat fee, do all the paper work. The buyer is responsible for the showing, and the commission for the buying agent.

[ArticSteve]

That's not a bad system in many instances.  Often more efficient.

[tpl]

For buying a house in an location you are not familiar with I think an agent is quite necessary.  They tend to know what neighborhoods are the ones that would suit you and that you can afford.

for selling a house I would still use an agent but it would be a neighborhood specialist... when we sold in cabbagetown we used a pair of guys that had an intimate knowledge of every street in the area and they gave good advice on preparing the house and then got it sold very quickly.   

So overall we are  on agents, but I do think that the fees are excessive.

[inco]

But the pie has to be split at least four ways as a rule and so the agent really doesn't see all that much. And it's not like they are selling homes every day. Wetson I know will want to add his 5%.

[sailor723]

You're not only paying an agent for selling your house,you're also paying him for all the houses he doesn't sell 

[jcon]

You're not only paying an agent for selling your house,you're also paying him for all the houses he doesn't sell 

BUT you only pay him/her if your house sells. You don't pay his/her time if it doesn't, the advertising, etc.

[sailor723]

Sorry,that sort of was my point (although not well expressed)

 Real Estate fees may seem high but they have to cover all the time,effort and expense Realtors put into marketing houses that don't sell before the listing expires.

[dash]

I believe in BC, there is a flat fee plus % depending on the level of selling price. I think this is better then what we have here in ON,  we have seen house appreciation significantly outpacing inflation in the past 10 years, and I too feel that fees are not fully reflective of service provided.  
To me it is a lot of money for the service (selling), that is advertising, dealing with clients and providing legal  service (but not all inclusive).  

[The Mighty Duck]

A perspective on real estate agents I hadn't thought of, but find very interesting, is one argued by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner:

Say an agent's commission is 5%, and your house is listed at $300 000.  An offer comes in at $250 000 - the agent's fee is $12 500.  They encourage you to take the offer, since the alternative is waiting for a buyer with a higher offer to come along.

For you, waiting for a buyer who will pay the asking price is worth $47 500 - a lot of money.  But for the agent, who has to show the house during the period, the extra commission only amounts to $2500.

The argument is that, as a result, real estate agents tend to see houses sell for less then they might otherwise, because they'll sell faster and it means less work for the agent, with relatively little loss in how much they make (but sometimes big losses in how much the owner might have gotten).

[Cord]

Is there anywhere in Canada that it is illegal to sell your own house without a realtor? If not, then instead of crying about how much they cost, why don't people just sell their homes themselves? It never ceases to amaze me how people will complain about what somebody charges for their services when they won't (or can't) just do it themselves.

[dr_spock]

You can definitely sell your house yourself without a real estate agent.  There are books on how to do it.  One of my neighbors tried selling his house himself but eventually brought in an agent after several weeks.   It sold shortly after that.   I think you need to have time and patience for the right customer/offer to come along.  Kinda like selling your car privately.

[marineboy]

It all depends on the market. Here in Edmonton it is pretty hot. The guy across the street sold his house by himself in about 7 days. That was a $600,000 + deal. He must have saved a bundle. Of about 5 houses sold on my street last year his was the only FSBO though. I would certainly persue this idea in todays market.

[tenpenny]

It certainly is a market-driven thing;  five years ago, when we were looking to build/buy in the neighborhood we live in now, there was pretty much nothing for sale.  A simple private 'For Sale' sign would go up on a lawn; the house was sold the next day.

Now, however, there are a half dozen houses for sale, some by agents, some private sales, one brand new spec house has been on the market for a year now, brand new.

If I were selling, I'd use an agent, because dealing with potential buyers is a pain in the butt if you ask me.

[dash]

Listing with an agent provides exposure to MLS and all agents in area of interest. As others have said, you can sell your house on your own, I think it depends on many factors, specifically which way the market is going-sellers or a buyers market, timing. If you have already purchased a house, time becomes a constraint, and most likely you can work out a lower commission rate combining buying and selling transaction with same agent.

My mother in law just recently sold her house, there is no way she could have done it on her own. Sell was very quick, so in this case the broker /agent came out well ahead on fees on this transaction, but this is not always the case-where houses can sit on the market for a long time incurring advert costs. Regardless, she is happy and conforted to know that transaction was smooth and professionally handled.