the Cost of Seller's Real Estate Agents

The listing agent had one month exclusive listing (for which they would take 4% of the sale price), after which the house would be put on a multilist (the agents' fee would then go up to 5%). Prior to signing the contract, the two agents came through the house and gave us a list of problems that needed to be corrected. A "for sale" sign would be put on the front lawn in a prominent place. The junior agent would hold an open house (or several if necessary). After the house was repaired and cleaned, the junior agent came through again and told us what furniture to keep in the house and what furniture to take out. She also suggested re-arranging some of the furniture, using air fresheners so that the house would not smell stale, as it was empty. There was to be a lock box on the house once it went on multilist (our agents had keys). The listing was for one year + 90 day, that is the real estate agents had the listing for a year, and if we sold the house privately within 90 days of the house selling, the agents still got their fee. This appears to be fairly standard, although I have heard of some agencies that only require 60 days after the listing expires.

The senior agent was an incredible salesman. As it turned out, he sold the house the night before it was to hit the exclusive listing. The initial offer was very low (but in keeping with the depressed market), he however knew exactly how much he could squeeze the potential buyer for and guided us on a counteroffer, which was quickly accepted. When the initial buyer hesitated on signing the contract, the senior agent had another buyer within 24 hrs. so that the house was "sold" within a week of the signing with the real agent. The second buyer signed the contract quickly as the senior agent told him that there was another serious offer in the works. Through his superior salesmanship, the senior agent ultimately got us $65,000 more on the price of the house than he initially thought he could get. The junior agent did not have that kind of "juice."

More and more, and especially in hot markets, real estate agents work with junior agents. While the senior agent may be the "rainmaker", bringing in the clients, you will be dealing with the junior agent more than the senior agent, so make sure you can get along with both. If we would have had time, I would have liked to go to open houses before we signed with any agent and watched that agent in sales mode. That way you have a good idea of how they are going to represent you and your house. There are also a lot of forms that need to be signed when you are hiring the real estate agent. Our junior agent was not very good at explaining the forms and what they meant. You need to do your homework beforehand. There are no lawyers at that table and you want to be very certain what you are signing (lead paint disclosures, listing fees, listing duration, your rights, their rights) because you will be locked into that agency for a long time.