Jennifer, Will You Reduce the Commission if You Double-End the Sale of My Home? Nope.
(Real estate commissions are negotiable and not set by law. Any commission percentages quoted below are illustrative only).
Double-End the Sale: To handle both the buying and listing side of a transaction - that is, to sell your own listing.
Savvy sellers almost always ask if I will reduce my commission if this happens. I always say no. They always seem surprised. But here's why I won't do it.
I sell real estate to make a living. In today's market, motivated, qualified buyers don't grow on trees, so when I have one of those, I'm pretty excited. Because, guess what... if that motivated qualified buyer buys a house, I get paid. In Denver, that's usually just under 3% of the sales price.
So, let's say I'm your listing agent and I agree to reduce my listing commission from 6% to 4% (illustrative only) if I find the buyer for your home. Sounds good, huh? After all, at 4% I'm still making more on the sale of your home than I would be if another agent brought the buyer, right?
Yes... and no.
That buyer I bring to the table is potentially worth close to 3% to me, if he purchases a home listed by someone else. However, if he purchases YOUR home and I have a variable commission structure in place, I only get around 1% for my effort.
Therefore, a variable commission arrangement is actually a disincentive for your agent to bring buyers to your home! I think that's unethical. Besides, if I handle both sides of the transaction, I'm doing the work of two agents and deserve to be paid for it.
Just my opinion.
