Comission Rebate trend

[NotCranky]

You still don’t mention how much work you expect the agent to do. What if you need to see dozens of houses and fall out of escrow a couple of times at no fault of the agent? Risk is not balanced for the independent agent with what you have proposed so far. Not in my opinion anyway.

I think 50% or more is a good rebate if you hand the agent a deal on a silver platter. If they know you well enough to be fairly certain you will perform, it might be a reasonable risk to offer you 50% including a more lengthy service as an agent fully engaged in helping you find a deal/place. I’d be thinking sliding scale beyond that. Of course then you could just dump them and reset the rebate potential with a new one.

[urbanrealtor]

[quote=infoseeker]Thanks a lot for the nomeclature clarification. One of our shortlisted buyer agents is offering what I belive is a reasonable commission rebate percentage in addition to having good recos from recent homebuyers. I am planning to see if he is open for a fixed dollar amount commission and give remaining buyer (coop) commission as rebate to us. The fixed commission I plan to negotiate will be based on our home price range and his quoted effective commission percentage. I believe fixed dollar amount commision will be the least conflict of interest scenario. Are there any downsides with this approach? [/quote]

The only problem here is that if the awarded cbb is less than your fixed number, then you are liable for the difference (at least that is how these generally work). Also, since the seller is the one awarding the commission (including your rebate) they have the right to veto the entire arrangement. If your agent does not disclose your arrangement, he could be in violation of respa(the federal statute governing transactions (though that is not super-clear)). This info is based on several conversations I have had with CAR attorneys and independent RE attorneys here in town.

[urbanrealtor]

[quote=infoseeker]Thanks a lot for the nomeclature clarification. One of our shortlisted buyer agents is offering what I belive is a reasonable commission rebate percentage in addition to having good recos from recent homebuyers. I am planning to see if he is open for a fixed dollar amount commission and give remaining buyer (coop) commission as rebate to us. The fixed commission I plan to negotiate will be based on our home price range and his quoted effective commission percentage. I believe fixed dollar amount commision will be the least conflict of interest scenario. Are there any downsides with this approach? [/quote]

The only problem here is that if the awarded cbb is less than your fixed number, then you are liable for the difference (at least that is how these generally work). Also, since the seller is the one awarding the commission (including your rebate) they have the right to veto the entire arrangement. If your agent does not disclose your arrangement, he could be in violation of respa(the federal statute governing transactions (though that is not super-clear)). This info is based on several conversations I have had with CAR attorneys and independent RE attorneys here in town.

[urbanrealtor]

[quote=infoseeker]Thanks a lot for the nomeclature clarification. One of our shortlisted buyer agents is offering what I belive is a reasonable commission rebate percentage in addition to having good recos from recent homebuyers. I am planning to see if he is open for a fixed dollar amount commission and give remaining buyer (coop) commission as rebate to us. The fixed commission I plan to negotiate will be based on our home price range and his quoted effective commission percentage. I believe fixed dollar amount commision will be the least conflict of interest scenario. Are there any downsides with this approach? [/quote]

The only problem here is that if the awarded cbb is less than your fixed number, then you are liable for the difference (at least that is how these generally work). Also, since the seller is the one awarding the commission (including your rebate) they have the right to veto the entire arrangement. If your agent does not disclose your arrangement, he could be in violation of respa(the federal statute governing transactions (though that is not super-clear)). This info is based on several conversations I have had with CAR attorneys and independent RE attorneys here in town.

[urbanrealtor]

[quote=infoseeker]Thanks a lot for the nomeclature clarification. One of our shortlisted buyer agents is offering what I belive is a reasonable commission rebate percentage in addition to having good recos from recent homebuyers. I am planning to see if he is open for a fixed dollar amount commission and give remaining buyer (coop) commission as rebate to us. The fixed commission I plan to negotiate will be based on our home price range and his quoted effective commission percentage. I believe fixed dollar amount commision will be the least conflict of interest scenario. Are there any downsides with this approach? [/quote]

The only problem here is that if the awarded cbb is less than your fixed number, then you are liable for the difference (at least that is how these generally work). Also, since the seller is the one awarding the commission (including your rebate) they have the right to veto the entire arrangement. If your agent does not disclose your arrangement, he could be in violation of respa(the federal statute governing transactions (though that is not super-clear)). This info is based on several conversations I have had with CAR attorneys and independent RE attorneys here in town.

[urbanrealtor]

[quote=infoseeker]Thanks a lot for the nomeclature clarification. One of our shortlisted buyer agents is offering what I belive is a reasonable commission rebate percentage in addition to having good recos from recent homebuyers. I am planning to see if he is open for a fixed dollar amount commission and give remaining buyer (coop) commission as rebate to us. The fixed commission I plan to negotiate will be based on our home price range and his quoted effective commission percentage. I believe fixed dollar amount commision will be the least conflict of interest scenario. Are there any downsides with this approach? [/quote]

The only problem here is that if the awarded cbb is less than your fixed number, then you are liable for the difference (at least that is how these generally work). Also, since the seller is the one awarding the commission (including your rebate) they have the right to veto the entire arrangement. If your agent does not disclose your arrangement, he could be in violation of respa(the federal statute governing transactions (though that is not super-clear)). This info is based on several conversations I have had with CAR attorneys and independent RE attorneys here in town.

[SD Realtor]

I agree with the post from Rus. The only fair basis for the commission rebate is a clearly defined statement of work. The rebate should not be based on any other factor. That is how all my rebates are done. I also would advise you to make sure that the rebate is spelled out in writing prior to any offer for any home being submitted. While the rebate agreement is only between you and your broker and has nothing to do with the offer you still want it to be very specific.

[SD Realtor]

I agree with the post from Rus. The only fair basis for the commission rebate is a clearly defined statement of work. The rebate should not be based on any other factor. That is how all my rebates are done. I also would advise you to make sure that the rebate is spelled out in writing prior to any offer for any home being submitted. While the rebate agreement is only between you and your broker and has nothing to do with the offer you still want it to be very specific.

[SD Realtor]

I agree with the post from Rus. The only fair basis for the commission rebate is a clearly defined statement of work. The rebate should not be based on any other factor. That is how all my rebates are done. I also would advise you to make sure that the rebate is spelled out in writing prior to any offer for any home being submitted. While the rebate agreement is only between you and your broker and has nothing to do with the offer you still want it to be very specific.

[SD Realtor]

I agree with the post from Rus. The only fair basis for the commission rebate is a clearly defined statement of work. The rebate should not be based on any other factor. That is how all my rebates are done. I also would advise you to make sure that the rebate is spelled out in writing prior to any offer for any home being submitted. While the rebate agreement is only between you and your broker and has nothing to do with the offer you still want it to be very specific.

[SD Realtor]

I agree with the post from Rus. The only fair basis for the commission rebate is a clearly defined statement of work. The rebate should not be based on any other factor. That is how all my rebates are done. I also would advise you to make sure that the rebate is spelled out in writing prior to any offer for any home being submitted. While the rebate agreement is only between you and your broker and has nothing to do with the offer you still want it to be very specific.

[infoseeker]

Actually, I dont know how much work I expect the agent to do. I might need to see a dozen houses but am pretty certain that I wont fall out of escrow a couple of times 🙂 But given the other post mentioning about we compensating in case coop commission doesnt come up to my fixed amount; I will most likely settle for the percentage rebate structure the agent has proposed.

[infoseeker]

Actually, I dont know how much work I expect the agent to do. I might need to see a dozen houses but am pretty certain that I wont fall out of escrow a couple of times 🙂 But given the other post mentioning about we compensating in case coop commission doesnt come up to my fixed amount; I will most likely settle for the percentage rebate structure the agent has proposed.

[infoseeker]

Actually, I dont know how much work I expect the agent to do. I might need to see a dozen houses but am pretty certain that I wont fall out of escrow a couple of times 🙂 But given the other post mentioning about we compensating in case coop commission doesnt come up to my fixed amount; I will most likely settle for the percentage rebate structure the agent has proposed.

[infoseeker]

Actually, I dont know how much work I expect the agent to do. I might need to see a dozen houses but am pretty certain that I wont fall out of escrow a couple of times 🙂 But given the other post mentioning about we compensating in case coop commission doesnt come up to my fixed amount; I will most likely settle for the percentage rebate structure the agent has proposed.

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