All Commissions are negotiable between me and my clients. Neither of us dictates to one another in that regard.  After experimenting over the last two plus years, I have come up with a loose schedule of fees that seems to work most times for me and my clients.

We reach a good understanding of what is likely to be involved, how much they want to participate in the process on their own, and then we agree on a commission.  That is true for both buyer clients and seller clients. Communication is always open and a two way street and renegotiation is always an option as long as all parties agree.

For instance the commission for an attorney real estate client should not be the same as for someone who needs a lot of support on the contract and escrow side of things.  The commission for someone who is buying for over a million dollars should not be substantially more than someone who is buying a $500,000 home.  Striking a fair bargain that is a good fit for all parties is what we do for a living, and it starts at commission issues.

My favorite clients are those who like to participate in their own fate, and who do a large portion of the searching and narrowing down to area and property on their own.  Not all of my clients use the internet, but clearly most do.  Many of my clients are Microsoft employees who work in Redmond aka Bellevue where my office is.  Some are Google employees who work in Kirkland where I live. 

The majority of my transactions involve hundreds, even thousands of emails and very little contact by phone.  In person and by phone is on an "only when needed" basis.  I like to meet my clients up front, in a property or two or three of my choosing if possible, vs. in the office.  The first step is to meet in person as soon as possible, so we can "choose" one another...or not.  That is true for both seller clients and buyer clients.  Many of my clients have busy lives and I don't want to waste their time in any way, shape or form.  Rarely do I use written agreements for buyer clients, it is their choice not mine.  I don't need one and they generally don't like to sign them.  So our relationship is most often based on mutual trust.

This Active Rain platform does not permit discussions regarding commission, so that is all I have to say here or on this "blog".

Visit me at www.RainCityGuide.com/author/ARDELL

or at my blog where I have more freedoms to discuss commission issues at:

www.SearchingSeattleBlog.com

I have experimented much with various commission options with much success for me and my clients.  Testing and tweaking various commission models has been fun and exciting and I dare say I offer more options to consumers than most agents when it comes to commission issues. 

If you are relocating to Seattle, see the link below for an ongoing discussion that has lasted for about two years between Seattle Area residents, agents and people moving to Seattle.  You may find your questions and answers addressed there by others over that time.  It is clearly one of the best sources of info for people thinking about Moving to Seattle that is available on the internet.

Top 10 Things You Should Know Before Moving to Seattle, Seatttle and Seatle

http://www.raincityguide.com/2006/03/07/10-things-you-should-know-before-moving-to-seattle/

Remember, the info is in the comments, not just the post itself.

The majority of my clients already live here and are both selling and buying in the area.  Many are selling in Seattle or Edmonds or Shoreline or most any part of North Seattle through Mt. Baker and Leschi (I do very little if any real estate in West Seattle), and are moving to the Eastside and often to Kirkland, Bellevue or Redmond, but sometimes Kenmore and Bothell in the Northshore School District.  Lake Washington Schools and Northshore Schools being my primary focus on the Eastside.  Kirkland is annexing, or expected to annex, some areas toward and to Kenmore.  So the Juanita and Finn Hill markets are interesting and more affordable at times.  The new (not there yet) Totem Lake Mall will also be an interesting development as will be the revamping of the area near Overlake Hospital and Microsoft.

I have assisted buyers in the purchases on the Seattle side, but those clients were very internet savvy and did a lot of the looking on the internet and did drive bys as well.  Rarely do my clients want "tours" of homes except on a first time out.  Mostly we target homes to see via the internet and jump up and meet at only the best homes.  Buying a home and the home search process has gone way beyond looking at what is "for sale".  Often it involves the home listed 30 minutes ago and finding property that is not for sale.  Life has changed and me and my clients run at the top fo the ridge in that regard.  No old fashioned real estate except for my "having their back" part.

• Seattle Real Estate is broken down into North Seattle, Downtown and everything else.  Then by neighborhood such as Green Lake, Fremont, Capitol Hill, Leschi, Mt. Baker, etc.  A good resource is The Newcomer's Handbook for Moving To and Living In Seattle, which defines these neighborhoods really well.  In fact you will likely know more about the neighborhood than the people who live there if you have this book :)

http://www.amazon.com/Newcomers-Handbook-Moving-Seattle-Handbooks/dp/0912301732

• Seattle Real Estate is not all about Seattle.  You will hear The Eastside as much as you will hear about Seattle.  In fact it is more about the Bridges over Lake Washington which are floating bridges.  The housing on either side of the 520 Bridge will deserve the same consideration.  For those who work further south, then the I-90 corridor and housing on either side of the I-90 Bridge is more important.  Because of all the water here, where you work plays an important role in where you live.
• The Eastside is mostly about Bellevue, Microsoft, Redmond, Kirkland, Issaquah, Sammamish and Lake Washington and Lake Sammamish and lots of other stuff of local interest moreso than Seattle stuff.  Eastside people are less likely to be the ones walking around Green Lake.  People who like Crossroads tend to hate Belle Square and Kirkland is defined as NOT BELLEVUE LOL!!!  Lots of variety.  But you need to know "Who You Are" before buying property as lifestyle is drastically adjusted depending on where you live in the Seattle Area.
• On The Eastside a townhome is a condo.  In Seattle a townhome is a Single Family Home.  Click here for a bit more about that, or email me direct.

• Want to know how the Seattle Real Estate Market is Doing?  Want to know how your neighborhood in Bellevue is doing, like Tam O'Shanter?  Want to know how Kirkland Condos are doing or Kirkland Real Estate East of Market, West of Market or Juanita or Finn Hill.  Easy, just ask and you can remain anonymous.  Go to either of these sites, though I suggest RainCityGuide.com vs. my blog, and ask away.  I get an email if you make a comment on one of the posts that I have written on Rain City Guide, but not other people's posts, so try to use one of the links below.  Important, I do not capture email addresses or contact you if you comment on my blog or RCG.  I do not have a big net :)  If you want me to contact you, you have to email me at Ardell@RainCityGuide.com  You call the shots on that. I do not use blogging as a means to capture you simply because you provided an email address to comment.  That would be dirty pool in my book.  So feel free to comment, use a fake name, etc.  But you don't need to use a fake email addrss, as I am not going to contact you unless you ask me to.

Sunday Night Stats for King County Washington

http://www.raincityguide.com/tag/sunday-night-stats/

Neighborhood Stats, this one is for Tam O'Shanter in Bellevue, but by special request I will do any neighborhood that I work in as "my service area".  Just ask on this blog post and I will get the current info for any neighborhood by request.

http://www.raincityguide.com/2008/03/01/tam-oshanter-in-bellevue/

My blog is a place where I can write anything I want, but I don't notice comments there as well.  So ask on the http://www.raincityguide.com/ site on one of my posts for quick response.  My blog is a good source of more detailed market stats for those who like to Track the Seattle Area Real Estate Market beyond the Sunday Night King County version above.  I try to keep them all in one category and the stats go back to 2005 and maybe even 2004.

http://www.realtown.com/Ardell/blog/tracking-the-market

ARDELL DellaLoggia - Seattle Area Real Estate - For all of your real estate needs.  If you just want to talk about the market without being obligated to buy or sell real estate just because you spoke with an agent...just comment anonymously on my blogs here and there as noted above.