YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR
And That is Especially True in Real Estate
By Sean Dinsmore
C
Top Producing Team
Gilroy Intero, 2015-2018
Sean Dinsmore, Realtor
Intero Real Estate Services
www.TheDinsmoreTeam.com
408.710.2855
DRE #01966405
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ommissions are a relatively hot
topic in real estate these days.
Perhaps they’ve always been. But
with escalating home prices in the Bay
Area, the dollar amounts of commissions
have risen, even though the percentages
have stayed the same. Combined with
the rise of “discount brokers” such as
Redfi n, and even companies that will let
you sell your house yourself and charge
you a fl at fee to make sure the paperwork
is completed legally, this topic has been
coming up more and more, with both
client
clients and industry professionals alike.
While commissions have always
been negotiable on the selling side, it
is a new trend for some buyers to ask
their agent to give them a portion of the
future commission ($5,000 - $10,000) in
exchange for the opportunity to represent
them. I don’t understand this request,
nor the reason a good agent would accept
this proposition. A good analogy would
be: let’s assume you, the reader, are good
at your job and provide value to your
company. What if your company said
“hey Mr./Mrs. X, we would be happy
to continue employing you, but for the
privilege of doing so, we’re going to need
you to give 1/3 of your salary back to us.”
How would you feel about that? Anyone
who excels at what they do is worth their
weight in gold — whether it be a child
sitter, a fi nancial advisor, a handyman, or
a real estate agent. Is it possible to fi nd
somebody who is a little cheaper (but
provides excellent service) if, perhaps
they are not established yet? Of course,
but this is rare. The question is: do you
want to trust what is likely your big-
gest asset to somebody you aren’t SURE
is the best? I can only speak for myself,
but heck no!
Let’s say you have $100,000 to invest,
and you have two fi nancial advisors
from which to choose. You’ve heard/
read great things about Advisor A, but
he charges you 3% for his services.
Advisor B seems ok, but not exceptional,
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
august/september 2019
but only charges you 2%. You obviously
can’t see the future, but if Advisor A
makes you $10,000 and charges you
$1,500, and Advisor B loses you $10,000
but only charges you $1,000, how much
money would you save by using Advisor
B and saving 1% on the fee? The answer
is nothing—you’re actually net negative
$20,000 in the end. Factoring in that said
fi nancial advisor may also be responsible
for your sanity, keeping your privacy
intact, your relationship from falling apart,
being available to you 24/7, amongst a
plethora of other things, wouldn’t you
prefer to have the best person for the job
handling these things? Again, I can only
comment for myself, but yes, absolutely.
I genuinely feel that the people who
are the BEST in their fi eld should be
paid whatever is considered “the best
wage” for that position. When an agent
happily discounts their commissions (or
is willing to give a portion back to you),
this should be an immediate red fl ag.
Why? If you’re hiring somebody whose
primary responsibility is to net you the
most money in the end (or save you the
most in the end), and they can’t even net
themselves the most money, what do you
think they’re going to do with your money
on the line? If you out-negotiated them
to take a lower commission, and you are
hiring this person to negotiate on your be-
half, why are you even hiring them at all??
Do yourself a favor when it comes to
real estate, or any area in life; hire the
best person for the job, especially when
that person’s primary responsibility is to
make you money. The right agent should
not only take exceptional care of you but
should have the ability to give you the
information and coordinate the tasks to
get you the most profi t in the end. It’s
my goal to make my clients more than I
cost them while providing a service that
very few agents can match. I can prove
that I do this through the numbers. I
hope that the person you are hiring to
sell your house can do the same.
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