Also sounds like you had a crappy realtor. If you’re using a realtor, get them to work for you, that’s what they’re for. Give them the specs of the house you’re looking for, sure, but they should be calling you with listings, vetting the homes before they show them to you, handling negotiation relays and inspection setups, etc.
Just general advice, yes you pay them, but if they aren’t working for you, pay someone else.
I, personally, used a flat fee realtor and pocketed commission (2.5%) that seller provided (minus flat fee), technically, saving ~2.1% of the home price. I’m just sick of realtors who are taking in total ~15 BILLION per year in Canada alone - ah how great it is to take % on market where average price is $650,000. It’s fucked up. They are not that helpful to pay so much.
There’s certainly something to be said about the inflated price of homes. It used to be that when houses were $200-250, that 3% was a fairly reasonable fee for all the leg work a realtor should be doing (there’s a lot of backend paperwork done in the office). But I’ll agree now that houses are stupid expensive, it’s excessive. It’s also important to remember that the entire real estate industry is purely commission, no one gets paid unless houses sell (everyone from agents, transaction coordinators, title reps, escrow people, etc). My wife is an agent, and when houses aren’t selling, she isn’t making anything, and she works her ass off.
15b without talking about the number of transactions is meaningless and prices wouldn’t be lower without agents as the person buying is still paying that price, they don’t care who the money goes to.
In an imaginary scenario, if I go to sell my house, and know that I’ve got a 400k loan to pay off and the house is worth around 400k, I’m going to factor in what I have to pay the agents and set it for 420k (assuming 2.5% for both selling and buying agents to split). I’m not going to be walking away from that still owing money to the bank.
The prices always factor in how much will be going to the agent(s). You will not accept a price that is below what you need.
but if they aren’t working for you, pay someone else
My realtor was never on time to a single showing. He never knew the answer to any question without taking time to look it up himself. He couldn’t remember my specifications and his reading comprehension was non-existent as I had to repeat myself many, many times to get any kind of point across.
If I hadn’t gotten my house when I did, I would have dropped him. If I were any other kind of business owner and one of my employees acted like that people would think I was a fucking moron for keeping them on.
Your realtor is your employee. Don’t be afraid to fire them for shitty performance.
