The Low Set Fee is the heart of our identity. It is the engine that produces the result we are known for: consumer savings. There are several reasons why we charge a Set Fee instead of a percentage based commission.
- It is logical. If you know how your market behaves at any given time, if you know how long it will take to sell a properly priced property, if you know what you’ll be spending each month on marketing — you are able to know what it will cost to sell the typical home. That, plus a ‘fudge factor,’ is your carrying cost. Add a reasonable profit for your company and you have a Set Fee that makes sense to you and to the consumer.
- Percentage Commissions, on the other hand, make no sense at all. Think about it: if your company charges, say, 6%, the guy with a $200,000 house is going to pay $12,000. His friend, two blocks away with a bigger house, worth $300,000, is going to pay $18,000. What did the friend get for the extra $6,000 he paid? $6,000 more advertising? I don’t think so. Is his agent going to work $6,000 harder? Doubtful. Truth is: they’re paying hugely different prices for the same thing. It’s nuts and the consumer knows it.
- It is a differentiator. Differentiation in the real estate business is a good thing. The California Association of REALTORS has been asking consumers for years if they’d use the same agent again in a real estate transaction. In 2004, 79% said ‘yes.’ In 2009, only 22% said ‘yes.’ If that’s not a confidence crisis, I don’t know what is! Seems to me, the smart thing is to look as little like the rest of the pack as you can. Charging a Set Fee instead of a Commission says you’re different.
- It drives more business to your door. The Low Set Fee that produces savings over what ordinary brokers charge has great appeal to Sellers, resulting in large numbers of listings which create a strong flow of buyer leads through the office. More Sellers = More Buyers = More Business.
Maurine Grisso, on the Broker Roundtable Call today, presented the Set Fee as well as I’ve ever heard it presented. She talks in term of 3 ways your home might sell: You Sell – We Sell – They Sell. No matter how it sells, you always pay the Low Set Fee. If you find your own buyer (You Sell), that’s all you pay. If our Help-U-Sell office finds the buyer (We Sell), you pay your Set Fee plus our Selling Fee. If you elect to go into the MLS and another Broker brings the buyer (They Sell), you’ll pay your Set Fee plus whatever % Commission you offer to the selling broker. In all cases, the Seller saves over what they’d pay a traditional broker.
The Set Fee is who we are. It’s what sets us apart from the crowd. It’s what motivates consumers to call us and ask, ‘How’s that work?’ Set it wisely and re-evaluate it regularly, and wear it like a badge of honor.