Question:
“Hi Gary. I made an offer on a condo last week. The agent wrote in that I had to pay their company a $395 transaction fee? I didn’t get what that was for. Do you know?”
Answer:
Some real estate agents and/or firms charge clients an extra fee they call by various names, such as “transaction fee” or “processing fee.” They typically range from $250 to $600.
It pays for a person who handles the mountain of paperwork involved in a sale.
When I started in 1984, the contract was two pages long (one mostly blank!) and the file was perhaps 1/4″ thick by closing.
Today, contracts are often 10-20 pages long (plus dozens of disclosures and reports) and files are 2” thick, unless the office has gone “paperless.” But whether it’s paper or digital doesn’t matter—it’s a lot more work than it used to be.
So while I don’t fault other agents for charging such a fee, I absorb the cost and do not charge my clients such a fee.
