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He let us in the house, he forwarded paperwork over the internet for us to sign, he sent us the contract over the internet, and talked to us on the phone a few times.
What could have added up to more than 8 hours? ok ok I will even give you the benefit of the doubt and double it and say 16 hours lol thats still over 3500 a day for pay purposes lol
You can get as technical on the minutes and hours as you want, but basically "some" not all, not every one, not every time, but "some" buyers agents just get overpaid.
The big pay day your agent got may be the only one for weeks or months depending on how busy the agent is. Given the current commission structure of all or nothing, some sales will pay for time spent on others not going through. If you had decided not to go through with the sale, would you have payed your agent for his time?
Well let me give you an example of a transaction we're getting ready to close on next week and keep in mind, pretty much the same amount of work is done whether it's an $85,000 house or $1M. Being international a lot of people find properties they're interested in seeing via the internet. The clients located some properties they were interested in, we verified the specific details (because not everything on the internet is correct), my agent showed them the properties one of which was the 'one' for them - all in one day.
Then comes the 'fun' part and where as the BIC, I come in. The offer is drafted, we go though the counter, get everything to attorneys, constant emails and phone calls to get said attorneys to hit deadlines and to actually communicate with each other, review the contracts that are drafted by the attorneys to ensure details are correct and by the time it's all said and done I figure my hourly rate will work out to be about $4 an hour - oh, what the heck let's say $7 an hour - because let's not forget about pesky taxes (corporate, city, retail tax - yes, down here RE is considered a retail operation so let's deduct 5% from gross commissions), Bond (insurance), our professional board dues, overhead, etc. that as the owner I pay for.
Just because a client locates a property on the MLS or other on-line venue, it's more than 8 hours of work. We only WISH it was that easy and all of the other pesky details weren't involved. Yes, sometimes a transaction goes more smooth (like 2 good attorneys involved who actually do their job, etc.), but there is still a lot of work that has to be done after the home is located and getting it through a smooth closing.
Heck, even in the States with an actual MLS, I only wish it took 8 hours from start to finish - did have a a property close in 7 days from offer to closing, but nearly killed myself from lack of sleep and racing around like a mad woman. So before people think 'oh buyer agents don't do any work' possibly think about everything that happens 'after' the house is shown and the initial contract is signed plus, once again, pretty much the same amount of work goes into a lower priced home as a higher end home. Sometimes things go smooth and sometimes there are a lot of problems.
Then let's talk about all of the wonderful things Realtors in the states get to pay: There's MLS fees, board fees, E&O insurance, added insurance on their vehicles, continuing education fees, splits with their brokerage, desk fees in some cases, business cards, advertising and oh, let's not forget the tax man = minus, minus, minus, minus.
I have no complaints about our agent, he did everything we needed, we got into the house on time, with a great deal, so why would you say I should question working with him? Other than questioning the whole realtor %??? I guess i don't understand why we should question it otherwise. lol
Would you have paid your real estate agent an hourly rate and if so what rate would you think fair?
Well let me give you an example of a transaction we're getting ready to close on next week and keep in mind, pretty much the same amount of work is done whether it's an $85,000 house or $1M. Being international a lot of people find properties they're interested in seeing via the internet. The clients located some properties they were interested in, we verified the specific details (because not everything on the internet is correct), my agent showed them the properties one of which was the 'one' for them - all in one day.
Then comes the 'fun' part and where as the BIC, I come in. The offer is drafted, we go though the counter, get everything to attorneys, constant emails and phone calls to get said attorneys to hit deadlines and to actually communicate with each other, review the contracts that are drafted by the attorneys to ensure details are correct and by the time it's all said and done I figure my hourly rate will work out to be about $4 an hour - oh, what the heck let's say $7 an hour - because let's not forget about pesky taxes (corporate, city, retail tax - yes, down here RE is considered a retail operation so let's deduct 5% from gross commissions), Bond (insurance), our professional board dues, overhead, etc. that as the owner I pay for.
Just because a client locates a property on the MLS or other on-line venue, it's more than 8 hours of work. We only WISH it was that easy and all of the other pesky details weren't involved. Yes, sometimes a transaction goes more smooth (like 2 good attorneys involved who actually do their job, etc.), but there is still a lot of work that has to be done after the home is located and getting it through a smooth closing.
Heck, even in the States with an actual MLS, I only wish it took 8 hours from start to finish - did have a a property close in 7 days from offer to closing, but nearly killed myself from lack of sleep and racing around like a mad woman. So before people think 'oh buyer agents don't do any work' possibly think about everything that happens 'after' the house is shown and the initial contract is signed plus, once again, pretty much the same amount of work goes into a lower priced home as a higher end home. Sometimes things go smooth and sometimes there are a lot of problems.
Then let's talk about all of the wonderful things Realtors in the states get to pay: There's MLS fees, board fees, E&O insurance, added insurance on their vehicles, continuing education fees, splits with their brokerage, desk fees in some cases, business cards, advertising and oh, let's not forget the tax man = minus, minus, minus, minus.
Then there's the other little things we do. Got an email from the seller's agent (closing's on Monday) that one of the seller's four dogs needs a new home as the rent house that the seller is moving to won't take it - sweet dog, very well-trained, just large. The listing agent and I are working on finding a home for the dog (we're getting close, have a strong maybe) because that's just one of the things you find yourself doing as an agent in order to make things go smoothly.
Not a big thing, but it does consume some time. All in all, on this particular deal, because of another one that didn't go through, I figure I'm going to be making somewhere in the neighborhood of $3.00/hour.
Others go much more smoothly. Most, as said above, fall somewhere in the middle (but closer to this one than to one that goes very smoothly).
Again, if most clients were willing to pay an hourly fee of, say, $50/hour, for the work I do attempting to get them the house they want, I'd be more than happy to go along with that. (Most of that would, of course, go the fees and expenses mentioned above just to stay in business because the broker doesn't pay ALL the expenses, there's plenty left over for each individual agent to deal with.)
Most clients would prefer to pay only upon closing. And then complain about it when the agent is the one taking the risk.
That is all fine but there is still no need or a requirement to sign any kind of a contract. Its the realtor's job to be honest and provide the appropriate tools and options for the buyer, its his/her job to do their job well, because thats what their job is really about....servicing their clients needs. Unfortunately, since most realtor's compensation is tied directly to commission on the sales they make, making a buyer sign a contract only makes them look dishonest or greedy to start out with. Why should a buyer be tied down to one realtor? Its a free world, we as a consumer have the ultimate right to shop around and go with whomsoever gives us a good deal.
The buyer's rep agreement makes it clear to all parties who is working for whom. In some states, if you do not have a buyer's rep agreement you are automatically required to represent the seller's interests, and this is not always clear to buyers. So, if both parties sign the buyer's rep agreement, which spells out the agreement between the parties, there is no confusion or misunderstanding and the agent is bound legally to represent the buyer's interests.
The time for shopping for an agent is before you choose one. Then, once you've chosen one, sign on with them and move forward.
That is all fine but there is still no need or a requirement to sign any kind of a contract. Its the realtor's job to be honest and provide the appropriate tools and options for the buyer, its his/her job to do their job well, because thats what their job is really about....servicing their clients needs. Unfortunately, since most realtor's compensation is tied directly to commission on the sales they make, making a buyer sign a contract only makes them look dishonest or greedy to start out with. Why should a buyer be tied down to one realtor? Its a free world, we as a consumer have the ultimate right to shop around and go with whomsoever gives us a good deal.
That is all fine but there is still no need or a requirement to sign any kind of a contract. Its the realtor's job to be honest and provide the appropriate tools and options for the buyer, its his/her job to do their job well, because thats what their job is really about....servicing their clients needs. Unfortunately, since most realtor's compensation is tied directly to commission on the sales they make, making a buyer sign a contract only makes them look dishonest or greedy to start out with. Why should a buyer be tied down to one realtor? Its a free world, we as a consumer have the ultimate right to shop around and go with whomsoever gives us a good deal.
A Buyer Representation Agreement(i.e. contract) is required by Tennessee law if a client wants agent representation. The consumer is still in a free world as they can decide to sign with whatever agent they want.
By the way, written agreements with real estate agents came about because of consumer complaints(and court cases) related to issues around agency status and agent/client responsibility.
A Buyer Representation Agreement(i.e. contract) is required by Tennessee law if a client wants agent representation. The consumer is still in a free world as they can decide to sign with whatever agent they want.
By the way, written agreements with real estate agents came about because of consumer complaints(and court cases) related to issues around agency status and agent/client responsibility.
A Buyer Representation Agreement(i.e. contract) is required by Tennessee law if a client wants agent representation. The consumer is still in a free world as they can decide to sign with whatever agent they want.
By the way, written agreements with real estate agents came about because of consumer complaints(and court cases) related to issues around agency status and agent/client responsibility.
Thats just Tennesee law, how about the other states? There's no requirement that I am aware of in all states.
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