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Is this commission fair/ethical??

I discovered yesterday that there are apparently agents out there who do not share the commission paid by the seller 50/50 with the agent who was kind enough to bring them a buyer...........

Now I have as a listing agent taken LESS commission then the selling agent, but this is the first time that I have come across an agent who would offer me 2.5% and takes herself as the listing agent 3%.

Mind you that is what was offered in the MLS, but I was not aware of the uneven split untill I saw the preHUD.

I feel this is something that should be disclosed in the MLS.

What do you all think?

Posted by Nick & Trudy Vandekar on 08/28/2009 11:58 AM

Comments (3)

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commission, listing agent, split, selling agent

3 Comments on Is this commission fair/ethical??

AUG

Hi Nick and Trudy~ All is fair. They are supposed to pay what was disclosed on the MLS. There is no rule that says you have to split it... but they are supposed to pay what was disclosed on the MLS unless you agreed differently....did you print out the MLS sheet and what amount does it reflect?

How does the commission level affect the principals in the transaction? They come out all right, I am sure.

I see no ethical requirement of a 50/50 split anywhere, including NAR COE and my local MLS rules.

If it was disclosed as a 60/40 split, or the 55/45 split it appears it was, would you still have brought your buyer? Or would you have dismissed the property? IMO, that is where behavior would embrace the question of ethics.

I don't see anything unethical about the listing agent giviing the split as indicated in the MLS.

Well Nick, welcome to real estate. It's not un-ethical, but it isn't always fair. Many agent have to take the listing at a commission rate as requested by their brokers, and the broker offers up what the split will be. This gives them the right to try and make sure that advertising is covered by the extra, etc. Plus the differential may just allow for the agent that took the listing to come away from the transaction with something in their pockets after they have done all the work.

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