True Story! I Got Confronted About My Commission recently. Then This Review Landed.

Recently I had an agent directly confront me about what I charge. It was after the typical back and forth during negotiations, this is typical with an offer written, and he was peeved that the seller was offering less than what he asked for his buyer’s agent compensation. My seller asked me to disclose to him what I was being paid, so I told him in an email. The friendly guy suddenly got very confrontational. How long have you been doing that? Why?  He didn’t need to go into the whole speech about how nobody can do real work at that number, and how I must be cutting corners somewhere, and most importantly – how  I am hurting the industry. The industry has done it to themselves, btw. 

I stood my ground, and explained- that I have always done this, and it wasn’t personal,or meant to make his life hard- it was just my model.  I figured it out for me and my clients. I didn’t explain capitalism totally to him but I think he got it.  He works in a different model, we are just very different, how he works and how I work- totally different. I don’t have a transaction coordinator, I don’t have a team, I don’t have a franchise fee, attorneys, receptionists, and fancy offices with expensive rent.  I never have been pushed to work with buyers. I skipped that part. I have always only wanted and only worked with sellers because that’s basically who I identify with the most in a transaction.  I have a system to make sure they are a good fit, and I have the skills it takes to know how to sell the property. A listing doesn’t make me anxious. It’s preferred.  

There are lots of agents that charge more than I do and they are great and I like working with them too. Their clients like them, and they tend to go after a different set of people. These agents farm neighborhoods, work their sphere and if they are smart target expired listings.  Because I work with FSBOS, divorce, probate, short sale, and expired listings by default I take on sometimes tougher transactions.  I know I can handle them and truthfully I like them more, because they are more fulfilling for me mentally and emotionally. My ideal client is not a luxury listing, although that’s fun, but number one criteria- do they need help and can I partner with them. I need someone who needs my help and can listen to my advice.   But I honestly think that the reason some agents don’t try to replicate what I do, is simply because they truly don’t want to. And that’s okay,  I do.  There is more than enough to go around people.

This morning a five star review came in from a seller I just closed. They had been through one expired listing before they found me. Their words, not mine: incredible from start to finish, above and beyond every step, honest, reliable, responsive, dedicated, knowledge and professionalism unmatched. They said I made the process easier and far less stressful, and that they always felt their best interests came first. Does that sound like someone limiting my service in any way?  

That is the part I want to talk about for a minute.

There is an assumption in this business that price equals effort. That if you pay six percent you get a six percent agent. That if you pay less than the going rate, you must be a less than going rate agent. It is a tidy story. It also is not true.

What you are paying for in a listing fee is supposed to be a few specific things. Pricing the home correctly off current data. Marketing to the right buyer pool. Negotiating offers that protect your equity. Managing the inspection and appraisal so the deal does not fall apart in the last two weeks. Showing up. None of that is tied to the percentage on the contract. It is tied to the agent. Any agent who actually does the work will run circles around a 6 percent agent who slaps it on the MLS, sticks a sign in the yard, and waits for the phone to ring.

The sellers who left that review came to me after their first listing expired. That’s a big deal, their listing failed. Another agent already had a chance, and was hoping it worked because if it did they would get a bigger fee structure, and the home did not sell.That is the part nobody in this industry wants to talk about. The most expensive commission is the one you pay on a listing that never closes, because it costs you time, momentum, and usually a price reduction by the time the home finally moves.

Here is what I actually do for the fee I charge. I price off the most recent solds in the immediate area, not zip code averages, because three streets in Pensacola can move in three different directions. I write the listing copy myself. I figure out which buyer the home appeals to, whether that is a family in a school zone, a vacation rental investor near the coast, or a retiree relocating from the Northeast, and I market into that pool. I answer the phone. I push back on lowball offers with data instead of feelings. I keep track of every showing and try to get something cooking. I coach and coax agents to write better offers, and I stay in the deal until the keys change hands.  My favorite part of the job is when I get to negotiate.  It’s also the most stressful but I looooove it. I also calm down people and let them vent and freak out and I find a solution.

That is not cutting corners. That is the job. 

I am not anti commission. Agents who deliver real value should be paid for it! Absolutely. Agents who are able to net their clients a lot irrespective of what they charge should be paid. I have seen agents clearing out homes, helping stage, pay for repairs, and fix toilets.  They should be paid what they ask.  What I am against is the idea that you have to charge a certain number to be effective. I respect anyone who is good at their job. What they get paid is between them and their seller. Who I care about most is the seller who had already lost months on an expired listing before we sat down and talked and who then entrusted me to try again.  

If you are a Pensacola or a Gulf Coast homeowner thinking about selling, here is the only test that matters. Ask any agent you interview to walk you through their last five closings. Ask how many sold above list. Ask how many fell out of contract and why. Ask what they actually do during the listing period beyond posting on social media. The answers will tell you more about the agent than the commission line on the contract ever will.

Cutting corners has nothing to do with what you charge. It has everything to do with whether you do the work. The market figures it out either way.