J-rap Posted May 24, 2019 Share Posted May 24, 2019 That's our situation. We contracted with a realtor, and one day later, had an offer from someone who is using the same agent. (We live in a small town so this isn't too unusual.) It's my understanding that only the seller pays the realtor commission, but at least in our state, the agent traditionally "shares" it with the buyer's agent. Since our realtor won't need to share it with anyone, can we ask her to take a lesser commission amount in order to make our target price? She hasn't had to work hard for this sale at all, and will still come out ahead because we wouldn't be asking her to decrease her commission by 50%. Anything else I should know when the realtor represents both the buyer and seller? Nothing is finalized yet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted May 24, 2019 Share Posted May 24, 2019 It’s a conflict of interest, their primary interest is you, so hold them to that. It’s fair and valid to ask for a discount in these circumstances. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mlktwins Posted May 24, 2019 Share Posted May 24, 2019 We didn’t allow our agent for my dad’s house to also represent the buyer because of conflict of interest. But...we probably would have noted in the listing agreement a discounted commission if we had. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted May 24, 2019 Share Posted May 24, 2019 you can always ask. and I would never feel comfortable having an agent represent both buyer and seller. that can easily morph into a conflict of interest. My dd had to fire an agent who was friends with the seller/agent. (she was doing things not in their interest - but friendly to the seller/agent. I encouraged them to report her to her broker.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gstharr Posted May 24, 2019 Share Posted May 24, 2019 34 minutes ago, J-rap said: She hasn't had to work hard for this sale at all, and will still come out ahead because we wouldn't be asking her to decrease her commission by 50%. Anything else I should know when the realtor represents both the buyer and seller? Nothing is finalized yet. Not working hard is the conflict issue. Is she taking advantage of seller (loser price) or the buyer (higher price) than competition would set. . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted May 25, 2019 Share Posted May 25, 2019 If the offer is under your target price definitely ask. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted May 25, 2019 Share Posted May 25, 2019 Oh.heck.no. She should have someone else in the office represent the buyer (or you). She can not fairly negotiate price, repairs, or other things that will pop up. Her commission price should be the least of your worries, IMO. The ONLY way I would be ok with this would be if I had done a market analysis with comparative pricing through a couple of agents before listing AND and I got a full cash offer, no repairs requested. This could happen in some markets, but it’s not likely. One of the first things I always cover when hiring a realtor (I have bought and sold 3 hours in the last four years) is what will happen if one of her clients wants our house. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 25, 2019 Author Share Posted May 25, 2019 Well, it's kind of too late for some of this... Unfortunately, this is our first home sold, and given that we have a lot of major events going on in our lives, we just jumped in with a well-reputed realtor and signed on. She was clear, before we signed, that there was a chance of her representing the buyer too since we are a small community with limited agents. We were aware of that. But I was not yet well versed enough to understand that seller is the only one who pays the commission and that part of it is then passed on to buyer's agent. So now it's figuring out how to handle it given where we're at. The asking price is close, $5,000 under. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted May 25, 2019 Share Posted May 25, 2019 I would be leery of this situation as well. She may have been working with these buyers before you even listed. She's playing both sides. Since she is under contract with you, and not with the buyer, you should be able to ask that someone else represent the buyer, even if it is someone else in the same office. Does she work under a broker, or is she the broker? If it truly is unavoidable, you should definitely pay less commission. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted May 25, 2019 Share Posted May 25, 2019 5 hours ago, prairiewindmomma said: Oh.heck.no. She should have someone else in the office represent the buyer (or you). She can not fairly negotiate price, repairs, or other things that will pop up. Her commission price should be the least of your worries, IMO. The ONLY way I would be ok with this would be if I had done a market analysis with comparative pricing through a couple of agents before listing AND and I got a full cash offer, no repairs requested. This could happen in some markets, but it’s not likely. One of the first things I always cover when hiring a realtor (I have bought and sold 3 hours in the last four years) is what will happen if one of her clients wants our house. This is what our broker / realtor said would happen in the event we wanted to make an offer on a house where he was representing the seller. You mentioned "small town" but is there another real estate agent who could work just for you? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted May 25, 2019 Share Posted May 25, 2019 The same agent cannot represent both parties and protect the interests of both parties. There is a conflict and someone is going to lose. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 25, 2019 Author Share Posted May 25, 2019 4 hours ago, Liz CA said: This is what our broker / realtor said would happen in the event we wanted to make an offer on a house where he was representing the seller. You mentioned "small town" but is there another real estate agent who could work just for you? I believe there is at the same agency, although we're already contracted with this particular agent. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted May 25, 2019 Share Posted May 25, 2019 OP do the Real Estate regulations in your state specify whether or not this can be done? I understand that you are in a small town and that limits who is available to you. I do not see how one party can represent both parties to the best of their ability. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 25, 2019 Author Share Posted May 25, 2019 11 minutes ago, Lanny said: The same agent cannot represent both parties and protect the interests of both parties. There is a conflict and someone is going to lose. It isn't ideal, for sure. But, it's a pretty straightforward sale, with the exception of not quite meeting our price. We were thinking if we counter with an offer plus ask the agent to decrease the commission, we'd get our original price. Everyone would win because the buyer still gets a slight decrease and the agent still gets what she'd otherwise be getting if the buyer had their own agent. The agent wasn't representing the buyer when we contracted with her. As typical in a small town, someone asked our neighbor, "Who's selling Susie's house? I know someone interested." So when the someone finds out, they just call that same agent the same day. Toured it the next afternoon with an offer by evening. In the end I wish the agent had had the other agent work with them, but... I don't know. Maybe this is common here. I will say that the agent is remaining neutral while still making good suggestions. Maybe working more like a mediator? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 25, 2019 Author Share Posted May 25, 2019 3 minutes ago, Lanny said: OP do the Real Estate regulations in your state specify whether or not this can be done? I understand that you are in a small town and that limits who is available to you. I do not see how one party can represent both parties to the best of their ability. I'll check and see, but I assume so. This is a long-time agent who seems very professional in her dealings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 25, 2019 Author Share Posted May 25, 2019 Looks like dual agency is allowed in our state, which I had no reason to doubt. (And she did get our permission for this up front, before we signed, knowing that this happens here.) However, had I understood more how this works, I wouldn't have done it this way. Too late now, really. But again, so far it's moving along smoothly enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashfern Posted May 26, 2019 Share Posted May 26, 2019 Yep dual agency is okay if you agree ahead of time. There is also designated agency where the same brokerage represents both but with different agents. You can ask the agent to discount the commission but she may not. Here's the thing with real estate, since the seller pays the commission both agents are ultimately working for the seller. That's part of the big lawsuit. In my state, they are called the listing agent and the selling agent. We had a dual agency when we sold our first house and it went great. Most brokers don't want to deal with it because of potential lawsuits if there are any complaints. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bootsie Posted May 26, 2019 Share Posted May 26, 2019 When we listed our house, the contract we signed with the listing agent specifically stated what the commission would be if the listing agent brought in a buyer (which was, I think, 1% lower than if there were two agents involved). We lived in an area where this happened quite often. Is there anything in your contract that covers this situation? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted May 27, 2019 Author Share Posted May 27, 2019 Well it has gone along pretty well I think. The buyer has agreed to meet our price, after all. We didn't push for a reduction in commission (were going to do that if the buyer wasn't going to meet the price). But, the home updates we were planning to do were not required by the buyer, so we saved money with that. We'll leave well enough alone regarding the commission. Now just hoping the loan is approved! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted May 27, 2019 Share Posted May 27, 2019 Is it possible that only you have a contract with the agent and that they are just bringing in a buyer for you as things are traditionally done? In which case you would pay the full commision of 6%. In this case there really wouldn't be any benefit for the agent to sign a contract with the buyer as well because they will still make the same amount of money (6%- 3% from the buyer and 3% from the seller) and the potential for a conflict of interest is way to high. If there were two different agents the commision would still be 6% but it would be divided between the two agents. It certainly wasn't ethical for the agent to sign a contract with the buyer after the fact (and once again I do not see the what the benefit would have been). The new buyer should have been passed to a new agent even in the same office if necessary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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