Real Estate Commision

[Sportbilly]

Hi all,

I'm thinking of selling my newly built project home (Melbourne outer suburbs) and could do with some advice.

How much commision should I be paying a RE agent? Should I be aiming for 2-2.5%?

Also, would it be better to spend money on doing up the garden (presently soil) before I sell. Note - this is not an investment property and would be suited for a large family.

Many Thanks

 

[granev]

dont know about commision , but definatley do the garden , even if a large % is woodchipped

IMO you will easily make what it costs and then some , with far more general appeal

 

[ozi]

Where is the house located? I think 2-2.5% might be a bit steep. Does this include advertising? How much is the property roughly worth? Agent commissions generally work on a sliding scale depending on price. I find that most agents would sell for 1.5-2%. Its all negotiable. Agents would normally cut their commission to get your business as there is a lot of competition out there.

Ozi

 

[urban cowboy]

Agents would normally cut their commission to get your business as there is a lot of competition out there.

might be different down south, but in Brisbane most of the agents that cut, will cut because they are going hungry and are desperate - we hardly ever cut, except for family/friends and repeat clientele we might jiggle some figures... there are several agencies local to us that do cut and we still win a good share of the business.

I will caveat that by saying that i am talking about full fee agencies...not the discount agents that are popping up...they are a different kettle of fish entirely and folks like Kev Hockey on this forum from Go Gecko are a legitimate business offering big discounts - more than most agencies will cut their comms.

 

[Prakman]

Hi Sport, agents commission are like most things in life.. you pay peanuts and you'll get monkeys. A bad agent will cost you more in the selling price cos low fee agents work on higher turnover, therefore they will most likely want your property sold at ANY price rather than push for that extra $5-10K.

Good luck with selling your propery.

 

[twobobsworth]

I would completely ignore the commission structure and focus more on finding out how good the agent is.

When we sold our PPOR earlier this year I think we paid 2.4% + advertisting. I would have paid more.

 

[lizzie]

personally i would say - do the gardens, even if it's just a bunch of grevilleas, a pile of mulch and some turf. would look 1000% better.

i pay 2.2% which includes all advertising - but i do a lot of business thru my agent, and her associated pm.

 

[Sportbilly]

Thanks for all of the replies guys.

I think that my house will sell itself as it will be a brand new, double story with decent fittings i.e I don't think an agent would have to do much expect price it correctly.

As for the garden, I would have though that giving the soil a scrape and making it neat would mean that any buyer could do it up to their own style.

I plan on doing the front garden. However the side and back is such a large area. Block size 647 sq m!

 

[GIDDO]

Interesting reading about real estate commissions.

I have paid the FULL amount in the past, but have formed a relationship with one agent over the past 3 years. They also manage a rental for me.

In Qld the normal rate is 5% for first 18,000 and 2.5% for the balance I think.
Plus advertising.

I recently put some of my family's business his way and I negotiated a fee of 2.5% for the whole sale. easy .

Now I am wondering how much further would he go????

He is a well known and respected FULL SERVICE re agent with a good profile in town.
Should I expect him to go as low as these discount agents go??

 

[Aimjoy]

I think that my house will sell itself as it will be a brand new, double story with decent fittings

Houses generally tend not to "sell themselves" - otherwise you could just put up a for sale sign and let the house do its work.

As for the garden, I would have though that giving the soil a scrape and making it neat would mean that any buyer could do it up to their own style.

Depends on what your target market is. If for instance it is the first home buyer - these guys typically get all excited by the fact that "we can move straight in and there is nothing to do!" So you will restrict your market (perhaps) by taking this attitude OR at the very least have ppl make offers taking into account the garden work that needs doing OR having a longer sale period until all the other homes like yours WITH gardens sell first.[/QUOTE]

However the side and back is such a large area. Block size 647 sq m!

That's what potential buyers will be thinking also

Just MHO,

Cheers,
Aimy

 

[urban cowboy]

In Qld the normal rate is 5% for first 18,000 and 2.5% for the balance I think.
Plus advertising.

CORRECT

I recently put some of my family's business his way and I negotiated a fee of 2.5% for the whole sale. easy .

you saved $450 in comms (plus ads??)- but it all counts

Now I am wondering how much further would he go????

He is a well known and respected FULL SERVICE re agent with a good profile in town.

you can only ask - but if he is as good you you say, he prob won't cut by much

Should I expect him to go as low as these discount agents go??

not in a million years will a good agent even try to match the discounted ones. it goes against the whole point of being a full fee/full service agent - you may get him to negotiate some, but again most good agents won't cut by much at all