Buyers have been convinced over decades of marketing that buyer agents are "free". Some members of the National Association of Realtors continue to perpetuate this misconception in the hopes of maintaining the status quo. Most firms charge between a 5% to 6% commission to the seller. The firms then offer to split those commissions evenly [...]
Believe it or not we have seen a resurgence in situations where multiple buyers are bidding simultaneously on the same home. In these situations buyers need to find a competitive edge when trying to outbid other buyers. There is no more powerful tool in gaining that advantage than "The [...]
In the world of homebuying the term "Rebating" refers to the practice of a real estate brokerage firm returning or refunding a portion of its commission from the seller or seller's agent to their buyer [...]
It seems like with every new Holiday Season American consumers are demanding more and more value from retailers. In our technological age shoppers have become ultra savvy when it comes to value and price. No longer are consumers fooled into simply assuming that the most expensive item is the highest quality item. Consumers instinctively [...]
Because Flat fee shares its commission with its buyer clients, our buyers have a competitive edge when bidding on houses. Here is an example:
A home is listed by a firm and the seller is offering buyer agents a 3% commission. The home is listed for $350,000.
A buyer with an agent that does not share their commission offers $325,000 for the [...]
With bone chilling temperatures outside it may be difficult to think about Spring and Summer. However, because purchasing a home is typically the largest financial investment an individual or family will make in a year, it is important to begin planning well ahead of the time you actually want to buy. For most families the preferred buying [...]
We are often asked what is the best strategy for buying a home when you have to sell your current home. Unfortunately there is no correct answer or optimal strategy. Instead you have to evaluate each buyer's personal situation in rendering [...]
There seems to be a misunderstanding of what the standard is for "procuring cause" for a real estate agent to be entitled to a commission as a buyer's representative in Vermont. The Vermont Supreme Court has set the standard under Vermont law. Buyers (and sellers) should be aware of this standard when a real estate agent claims that they are [...]
Many agents seem confused on what levels of radon, if any, are acceptable in a home. There seems to be an industry wide misconception that the EPA recommends that action to reduce radon levels only be taken if a test shows levels exceeding 4.0 Pi/Cl. This is [...]
How is it that despite incredible advancements in the technology available to real estate agents and tremendous increases in agent productivity and efficiency is it possible that the commission charged by most firms has not changed in the last 30 years and is still 6% of the sales price? That defies every basic economic principle. I cannot [...]