Commissions that are negotiated with the Sellers of real property, when a property is listed, unless otherwise written in the initial commission agreement, is not a negotiation chip for Buyers.
The Sellers’ agent can split the commission with a Buyers’ agent, if the Buyers’ agent is licensed, has the sellers written permission, brought a ready, willing and able Buyer, and there is a successful close of escrow. The Sellers’ agent is willing to do this because the Buyers’ agent is doing half the work through the entire process to close of escrow, in addition the Buyers’ agent is taking on half of the liability as well.
That being said, just because the Sellers’ agent is willing to split the commission with the Buyers’ agent does not mean that he is discounting the commission for an unrepresented Buyer. When there is an unrepresented Buyer, the Sellers’ agent is now doing all of the work and is taking on all of the liability, and unless it is written in the initial commission agreement, the Seller has already agreed to pay the Sellers’ agent the full agreed upon commission amount at close of escrow. Therefore, the Buyer should not expect that he has an entitlement to a commission discount if he is unrepresented by a licensed agent.
So, remember, shopping for real estate by yourself, unrepresented, is your choice, however, if you are doing so thinking that you are entitled to only pay half of the seller’s agents agreed upon commission YOU NEED TO RE-THINK YOUR REASONS FOR BUYING REAL ESTATE WITHOUT PROPER REPRESENTATION.
Keep in Mind that appraisals of real property do not included commissions. So when a property sells at somewhere around the appraised value, the agent represented Seller, is paying the commission typically from their proceeds at the close of escrow. The point being, most of the time, the commission is not added to the property value when a listing is taken, and for good reason, one being that if a loan is involved, at the time of purchase, the price might inhibit the Buyers ability to get the loan. Therefore, you are not saving money by not being represented by a licensed Buyer agent.
I hope this information helps you make good decisions.
