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Is Hiring a REALTOR® Solely On Their Commission A Wise Choice?

By
Real Estate Agent with Great Life RE 313389

Early this morning we received a phone call from a person we have never met before that was interviewing Knoxville REALTORS® to sell their Knoxville TN Home.  The conversation went something like this:

Seller: "I really want to sell my home, what is the lowest commission you will offer.  I want to go with the REALTOR® that will give me the lowest commission."

After questioning this person a little more I find out: 

1)  That their home has been on the market for over 2 years and with 4 different listing periods/agents. 

2) That they really want/need to sell their home. 

3) The last 4 agents were picked ONLY because they offered them the lowest commission.

I then state "well you have tried 4 times now to base your decision solely on commission and you still have not gotten the results you want, your house has still not sold.  Unfortunately housing prices in your area have dropped and I see that with each listing you had you decreased your list price and still has not sold.  Do you think there might be other things you may want to consider when hiring your next REALTOR®?  For example, how they advertise and market their properties?  There is a lot of work that goes into marketing and advertising and commission is only one small piece of that puzzle. "

Seller then states "The only reason that my home has not sold is because only 20 house in Knoxville TN have sold in the past 2 months".

Me: "Sir, that is not at all correct, homes are still selling, in fact there have been over 700 home sales (not including condos) in the past two months.  Do you mind me asking where you have gotten your data?"

Seller: "I just know the truth and am not going to argue with you".... CLICK

 

I can't think of a single person who "enjoys" paying a service fee, be it that of a plumber, doctor, electrician, or even your dog groomer.  Everyone would love to pay less.  However, service does come with a price and for me personally, I am happy to pay for a job well done.

 

 

 

 

 

Comments (3)

Linda Urbick
RealtyOne Group - San Ramon, CA
Selling San Ramon Valley - 925-786-5132

This homeowner is not being reasonable. Listed 4 times and still no sales - either he is not understanding the market or the agents he has been hiring are not providing the service. If you pay a discount, generally that is the type of service you get - discount.

 

Aug 01, 2011 07:58 AM
Tony Lewis
Summit Real Estate Group - Valencia, CA
Summit Real Estate Group Valencia & Aliso Viejo

It's best to remind the seller that a Realtor that needs to "buy" their listings and charge less are most likely being over paid!

Aug 10, 2011 05:46 PM
Dawn P Faulkner
Dawn Realtors - Atlanta, GA
in ATLANTA,GA

Great points! The right agent will pay for him/herself and get paid by actually selling the house...

Aug 30, 2011 01:28 PM