Seller Advice: Raise The Commission

Those of you who read this blog regularly will remember that I have written several times that in a slow market, it is a good strategy to increase the real estate commission for buyer's agents by an extra one percent. If you normally offer a total commission of 6%, increase the commission to 7% and offer the buyer's agent 4%. Frankly, I advise doing this before reducing the price of the house.

This extra 1% of commission may set your house apart from others and give the buyer's agent an extra incentive to show your house instead of others. Showings are the life blood of a real estate transaction, and this added commission may be just what you need to get your house sold.

I'm not alone in believing that increasing the commission will help sell a house. So does syndicated real estate columnist Robert J. Bruss.

Writing in the September 3oth issue of the St. Petersburg Times, Bruss has once again given this same piece of sage advice. Like me, Bruss has advised increasing the commission in several of his articles. This time Bruss writes, "Increasing the commission going to the buyer's agent is just a variation on incentives that have been used for years in a slow market." He continues by writing, "That is a great incentive to get buyer's agents, through the local multiple listing service, to show and sell your property to their prospects."

If you're trying to sell your house and you are not getting enough people through, or if you're a real estate agent having trouble getting showings, I advise you to give this approach a try. It just might be the ticket.

For additional information on selling and buying real estate, visit my website at www.thestpeterealestatesite.com.

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