Have you ever sold a home and found yourself wondering why real estate agents charge X percent?  There are several ways professionals, like attorneys and financial advisers charge for their services.  They can charge  a flat fee, a retainer, by the hour or a contingent fee. 

Generally in real estate, the norm is a contingent fee or some percentage based on the sale price of the home.  But who is this "norm" benifitting is it one sided or is it a win-win?

The traditional percentage base method of selling real estate works on the assumption that the real estate agent/brokerage firm is spending money up front, to advertise the property in order to find a buyer. That same brokerage firm has to also pay insurance, licensing fees ( both agent and firm ), continuing education, gas, signs, websites etc.  Some homes however don't sell and the firm/agent is out of money. 

Due to the perceived "high" brokerage fees many home owners turn to "for sale by owner".  They miss out on the large number of home buyers who are represented by buyer brokers, and many times can't show a for sale by owner property due to the buyer broker agreement.

I believe that real estate professionals provide an invaluable service to both the buyer and the seller, however, I also believe that many times home owners can do a lot on their own and only require a real estate consultant.  A real estate consultant, like an attorney, provides services such as contracts, statistics, reports, a listing for the property, disclosures, virtual tours, syndicating and access to marketing tools that a home owner otherwise would be unablt to gain access to due to real estate licensing requirements.

As a real estate professional I offer my clients the option of real estate consulting services verses the traditional real estate services found with most other firms.   Many others brokers would consider this a "discount" brokerage service simply because it doesn't mirror the "traditional" method.  If you are a home seller in Hampton roads and would like to learn more, let me introduce you to the Sellers Choice, my non-traditional real estate consulting service. Call today.