It's not uncommon for me to have sellers asking me what I charge for commissions. I have a spreadsheet that goes over those figures in detail, with very competitive commission rates considering what I offer, but it's important to lay out some caveats about heavily discounted commission agents in advance so that sellers don't lose more money net than they gain by using too low of commission agents who offer bare-bones marketing, with even 2 great agents at times having vastly different net sales prices even at the same commission rates.
Who is in the Best Position to Use a Limited Service Agent? Long Time Former Local Agents Willing to Put in Some Time & $
How to Find Heavily Discounted Listing Agents
They likely do high volume & what they offer needs to be "bare bones" in order for them to keep in the business
They likely don't have many good reviews &/or the reviews are very mixed.
Contact agents with much lower average price than your property.
Contact new agents without many sales.
Offer to sell a high volume of properties.
Contact many agents at many firms located in the area of your home.
What to Watch Out For with Heavily Discounted Listing Agents
Are there any admin fees?
What will the agent offer?
What commission will be offered to the buyer's agent?
Do they regularly participate in dual agency?
How detail-oriented are they?
What do their sales in your price range at the commission level they are offering say about their marketing?
Do they care about staging, cleaning, and repairs to your property?
Fast Facts
Agent quality, not commission amount, is the most important consideration in your home selling process.
$40k difference in sales price with 2 different agents
Commission amounts are important to consider in your agent selection process.
The lowest commission agent out of 10 agents is typically not your best bet.
The highest commission agent isn't always the best agent.
Very low commissions are like For Sale by Owner (FSBO) sales in yielding significantly lower profits in many cases.
Some excellent agents offer competitive commission rates.
Related: