thanks for stopping by and commenting.

I have yet to work with a part-time agent who

1) could competently represent his client as well as a full-time agent
2) was a well-versed in local and national issues – both politics and real estate that are applicable to real estate representation
3) could market a property effectively.

The market shift will likely weed out a lot of the part-timers who do such a disservice to their clients and the profession.

Kenneth Fach, REALTOR
Weichert, REALTORS-Anchor, Tallahassee, Florida
Direct/Cell/Text 850-339-5753 http://KennethFach.com

Each office is independently owned and operated.

If I sign a listing agreement for 120-days with a Realtor, and that person lists the property on MLS, the Realtor gets 6%. If they split it with Redfin, and Redfin rebates the money to me, OK. Redfin can keep 1%. Of course, an individual ‘buyer’ agent would keep 1.5% under normal circumstances after splitting with the house.

I also thought I heard Redfin ‘handles the paperwork’ for the mortgage. Are they also a mortgage broker or banking agent? If so, they are getting other fees. (Did I hear wrong?)

Well, we are only getting into the high-tech vs. high-touch debate. If the price of oil ever comes down, we may find out more.

Scott Cheffer, Ombudsman
Title Company of America (TM)
Oakbrook Terrace, IL
http://www.ticoam.com and http://www.smsChicago.com

Instead of spending a lot of energy arguing to be right, traditional realtors need to understand the new consumer expectation and meet it head on. Don’t spend your time trashing WalMart. Start talking up Nordstrom. The right online listing tools (primarily a good, interactive IDX product) can make every agent and company website a redfin website. Start taking steps to lower your overhead, while continuing to extol and demonstrate good customer service.

At IDXdirect, we believe there is still a major sweet spot to be found where client prospecting is automated (and costs kept low), while traditional commissions can still be kept intact with great high-touch customer service on the other side of the prospecting continuum. Realtors should accept the fact that consumers and their shopping preferences are changing and take advantage of this sweet spot while it lasts.

If average commission rates remained constant over that time (which they have not – they have gone down), Realtor income per trade would have grown at no greater pace than the cost of living. Net result = no real value raise in pay over 35 years. Try to put that past any Union in the US, I dare you.

In 1970 real estate commission rates over 6% were the norm. Today’s average rate is slowly dropping and runs between 5% and 6% across Canada and the US. The net real value income Realtors earn per trade is dropping. Commission rates are not fixed and fluctuate based upon the demands of the consumer just like home prices do.

The cost of licensing for a Realtor was around $200 in 1970 and is closer to $5000 today. Brokers carried all liability in 1970 and agents paid little or no expenses. Today’s realtor is personally liable in a transaction, pays desk fees board fees, office fees, long distance fees, printing fees, insurance, ongoing educational expenses and more on into the thousands of dollars each year.

Add to that, internet fees, cell phone expenses, marketing expenses and on and on. There is no pension plan no medical plan or any company benefits built into the job. 80% of graduates leave the business of Real Estate in the first two years mainly due to the high cost involved.

I wonder how Leslie is making out compared to 1970 and who she might call when she needs to trade her seven figure NYC digs?