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If you are thinking of selling your home, you may think you’re saving money by hiring an agent who discounts his or her fee. However, that discount agent will actually cost you money in the end.
Why?
Many people look at the commission as something very quantifiable. They look at the real estate fee and say, “Well, I know I can potentially control that number. If I can get the agent to discount their fee from X to Y, I’ll save some money.”
Unfortunately, this line of thinking misses the other side of the equation: What are you getting for that discounted fee?
In most cases, you tend to get an inferior agent that does less and has fewer skills.
I know some agents in my marketplace that tend to discount their fees and, honestly, I eat them for lunch in negotiations. They easily give up their client’s money. When they represent a buyer, I ask, “How much will your client pay?” And they’ll just tell me! That’s not what a savvy agent does.
“When it comes to discount agents, you get what you pay for.”
When discount agents represent a seller, I ask, “What price will your owner take?” There’s nothing wrong with me asking that. Discount agents will say, “Oh, they’ll come down $20,000.”
That homeowner thought they could hire the discount agent and save $5,000 or so on the fee when in reality, they end up losing $20,000 on the sales price because the agent is so bad.
Ultimately, you get what you pay for.
If you are interviewing agents and one of them is willing to discount their fee, I would run in the other direction. Buying or selling a home is too important to hire a minimum wage agent who discounts their fee.
If you have any other questions about buying or selling a home, just give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!
