I was looking at the closing attorney's Buyer Information Sheet for an upcoming real estate closing, and admiring my penmanship where I marked, "N/A" in the space allotted.
The next line requests my commission amount. That seems to be enough money to allow me to assemble and transmit the North Carolina Association of Realtors paperwork that goes with my side of the transaction. I mean, we're talking about 30 pages or less...
Personally, every time I buy a car, I get aggravated at popping many thousands of dollars to buy, and being told that there is an additional $399 "DOC Fee," i.e., a paid opportunity to have the F&I guy give me a free coffee mug while he tries to hard sell me some maintenance package or window etching or some other high profit margin add-on... "Scotchgard! Oh, Yeah! Gotta have Scotchgard! Cha-ching!"
I mean, if I am paying them for the car, don't they just flat-out OWE me the title? That exchange, cash for title, seems like part of the job, you know, undeniably intrinsic to the transaction. What's with the $399 junk juice just to take my check?
And in the world of real estate, junk fees from lenders are the source of legions of tales of infinite, myriad, endless, countless complaints.
The way I see it, if my Cary, NC, client is paying me for a complete job, for the all important contract-to-close in the commission, I think the necessary contract documentation is an intrinsic part of the job. Transaction complete? Pay me my commission. That's enough, and, "Thank you very much! Enjoy your new home!"
See, I was brought up to believe, "The Job isn't Finished until the Paperwork is Done!"
No junk DOC Prep Fee here.
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