I am starting to see how people are upside down on their homes in the US. The person who is supposed to be giving you the advice (your real estate agent) isn't always working towards your best interest.
In the current system the real estate broker gets typically 3% of the sale price. But if you are looking to buy a house you can afford and want to get the best price possible...why would they help you do that? The more they make you pay for the house the more they will actually make. Sure, they can only push it so far until you don't buy the house at all and they make no money...but still.
I think they should change it so real estate agents get 3% of the LIST price not the SALE price. That way you and their goals are aligned.
Of course if I was selling a house I would base it on the sale price...
Don't get me wrong...not hating on the agents..some of my closest friends are agents.
Crooks apparently but close friends nonetheless. ;)
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Gavin is a lactose- intolerant entrepreneur and software engineer in Orlando, FL.
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Except that one that Alex helped on. Which is ironic, because of the post's very content.
1. Jun 6th 2008, 10:45AM Alex Rudloff
The primary job of the buyers agent is to help you navigate all the noise, not so much to help you negotiate.
What I mean by that is, they're showing you listings they pulled from MLS. If its a list price thing, that doesn't change anything. The buyers agent just shows you the higher listed properties.
The only thing keeping agents in the mix right now is MLS. It's heavily guarded and expensive to have complete access to. It's a definitive information gateway arrangement.
The only way I found to get past it was by working with my brother, who is a part time agent and just enjoys evaluating property. If you get someone who you trust and is just doing it for fun, the rest of it kind of falls into place.
2. Jun 8th 2008, 5:37PM maureen
I saw you post from awhile ago about the FTD flowers and I wanted to let you know for online flowers my husband and I always use Proflowers and have NEVER been stung.If the flowers are not fresh they send new ones right away no questions asked.The flowers come directly from the growers so they stay REALLY fresh and are nicely priced.
3. Jun 8th 2008, 5:47PM maureen
AS for real Estate my husband and I were recently stung THERE though when we signed to buy a house with and had a CONTRACT signed by the seller.The listing agent however had THREE buyers on hooks at the same time.Another buy that previously had lost the bid due to not being able to get a mortgage and so she told our real estate broker it was all clear for us.We had a contingency on our contract for six months that our house sold (which she obviously did not want to wait for to get her money)She calls up my broler this week and told her the former buyers "deal went through"Much to our dismay and shock since we should have been told and made to sign a second buyer sort of buyer in waiting claus (which she never told our broker to have us do..she saved all her e-mails).We could fight it but we would have to get a real estate lawyer and that would cost money we don;t have right now.She even had the nerve to say to our broker she was not going to "wait six months for her money" Virtually admitting she found another buyer to nix our deal.We are reporting her which I hope helps.But in the mean time we lost the house.:-( But we believe things happen in our lives like this for a reason.