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OP - just go ahead with your theory that if you bypass the agents the cost will be equal to the sale price with agents minus 6%, then you won't have to convince anyone to give you their money. Plenty of FSBOs out there.
Of course your economic theory doesn't actually work out in practice, becuase the FSBO knows what their house is worth, and includes the 6% they'd normally pay to the agents. But spend the time and money to discover that yourself.
OP - just go ahead with your theory that if you bypass the agents the cost will be equal to the sale price with agents minus 6%, then you won't have to convince anyone to give you their money. Plenty of FSBOs out there.
Of course your economic theory doesn't actually work out in practice, becuase the FSBO knows what their house is worth, and includes the 6% they'd normally pay to the agents. But spend the time and money to discover that yourself.
In my opinion, FSBOs usually have no idea what there house is worth. Mostly they are way overpriced.
I spoke with a broker yesterday. He confirmed that his brokerage (one of the big ones) did not engage in this practice, and that to his knowledge the other major brokerages also do not. So, to everyone who laughed at me and poked fun at me: congratulations, you were right (well except in the case of Redfin).
There are no FSBOs among the houses I'm looking at and so that option is out.
Looking without a buyer's agent and crossing my fingers that the listing agent will cut the commission in half rather than taking it all doesn't seem too attractive of an option.
So I think I'm left with the option of using Redfin, and probably accepting lesser service, experience and market knowledge, or using a regular buyer's agent at the standard commission rate. It is hard to get a sense for what I'd be giving up or what risks I'd be exposing myself to in exchange for getting the Redfin rebate, but I guess that's the decision I have to make.
Thanks again to everyone who provided helpful suggestions and insight.
I'd be a little cautious about Redfin. Not that they provide bad service, but they do not have very many agents on Long Island. As KB stated earlier, most of the agents who work the high end market are very specific to their area and have tons of market knowledge. The chances of finding a Redfin agent who specializes in the area you are looking is slim, but I guess you could check it out.
Personally, I would be more concerned with finding a good buyers agent specializing in the type of homes and the area in which you are looking. He or she could save you a lot more then the amount that you might receive in a rebate.
Why are you worried about getting a buyers agent? It won't cost you a dime. It's the sellers agent that would have to split the fee with your agent. All you accomplish by not having a buyers agent is that the sellers agent makes more money. It doesn't affect you one iota.
I'd be a little cautious about Redfin. Not that they provide bad service, but they do not have very many agents on Long Island. As KB stated earlier, most of the agents who work the high end market are very specific to their area and have tons of market knowledge. The chances of finding a Redfin agent who specializes in the area you are looking is slim, but I guess you could check it out.
Personally, I would be more concerned with finding a good buyers agent specializing in the type of homes and the area in which you are looking. He or she could save you a lot more then the amount that you might receive in a rebate.
Why should the original poster be cautious with Redfin or, at least, any more so than any other real estate agency? Redfin does exactly what he is looking to do. It sounds like the buyer has researched many of the properties he is interested in, he also claims to know the areas. So the buyer himself should have fairly good knowledge of the market rate for properties - I found that Redfin's site made it easier to get that information.
I personally used Redfin and thought it was the best experience I had with any real estate agency. The agents had quite extensive knowledge of the areas they served. They also were paid bonuses by providing great service rather than by sales commission so I found it allowed them to be more honest and straightforward. I also got back 1% of the purchase price at the time.
I understand that there are some buyers that don't want to put the time and energy into researching a bunch of properties. That's were the value of a good local agent may come in, but even there you have to do your research and make sure you have one.
Why are you worried about getting a buyers agent? It won't cost you a dime. It's the sellers agent that would have to split the fee with your agent. All you accomplish by not having a buyers agent is that the sellers agent makes more money. It doesn't affect you one iota.
I don't think you're following the situation. I am definitely getting a buyer's agent. My decision is between using a traditional buyer's agent and using Redfin. Regardless of who "pays" or splits fees, using Redfin results in the buyer receiving a commission rebate, and using a traditional buyer's agent results in the buyer getting nothing.
The question should be-Why are you wasting so much time trying to find someone to agree to receive less than what you think they are worth? At your job do people "offer" you less to do your work?
Try finding a house you like and add 3% to the price.
I can only imagine negotiating with a buyer who is only concerned with the agents commission.
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