Month: September 2015

There are many real estate companies out there that charge what they call a Transaction Fee. In most cases this fee will be hundreds of dollars charged directly to you. You want to ask very early in your conversation with your Realtor if they charge such a fee. If they say yes and you like them I would give them the option for them to pay that fee for you. If they tell you they can’t or won’t I would find another Realtor that will or better yet doesn’t charge the fee in the first place.

A Transaction Fee goes to one of two people and it’s not you. This fee is sometimes used by the Broker as his or her only compensation on the transaction and they then pay their Realtors 100% of the commission. In other cases they may tell you it is a administrative fee for the paper work and storage of the transaction documents as required by law. Some companies will charge a lessor rate of commission on the transaction to get the deal and then sneak in this fee to make up the money they gave away in the commission. There are even Brokers that share this fee with their agents. No matter how you look at it, it is simply additional profit for your agent and the Broker.

I am personally strongly against the usage of these fees .I feel that Realtors are paid for their services through the commission on the deal. When I am consulting I always tell my people to watch for this fee and it is right in my contract that Realtors on my team are not allowed to charge these fees. If your Realtors company charges this fee, get it in writing that the fee will be waved or paid by others. Others could be your agent, the Broker or the people on the other side of the transaction.

There are many things Buyers from outside the area don’t know about this market. I would like to share a little about the current market conditions as it affects buyers and give you a few helpful tips that can help you purchase your home here in the area.

First of all many Buyers come here after selling a home elsewhere. The first thing they say is “I’m paying Cash”. This in their mind gives them buying power just like back home. Here is your first bit of important information, everybody else here is also paying cash. Truth of the matter is around 48% of all transactions in this area are cash deals. Here is a helpful tip that can get you the home you want.

The first thing you must ask yourself is do I like this home or do I love this home. If you love it you must bring your A game. First thing you want to know two things, how long has the property been on the market and how much activity has there been on the property.

If the property has been on the market for a week or less and there have been a number of showings full price cash probably wouldn’t get you the property. If you love the property and you want to be in the game you should offer a couple thousand dollars over full list cash. At the very least it will keep you in the game.

On the other hand, if the property has been on the market for six months or longer you can offer under full list and let them counter. But I must warn you, homes that are in good condition and priced right are selling fast. If the property has been on the market for six months you should check this out a little closer there may be some problem you’re not seeing or it simple may be over priced.

There is other important information a good Realtor will check into for you
before you make an offer on the property that has been setting on the market. If you are in the middle of a transaction and you don’t know what to do next or if you have lost out and didn’t get a couple homes that you loved, contact me at www.thehinelineteam.com or www.fwhprogroup.com and I will give you some additional pointers.