For the Love of Money

You probably work for a living. Most of us do. Let's cut to the chase; you work to get paid. I am not so jaded as to think that you can't like, or even love, your job. I love mine. But that's not the focus of today's message.

It's money. If you don't receive a paycheck it is unlikely that you will be able to continue to exist in whatever lifestyle you presently enjoy. Real estate brokers work on 100% commission, they receive no paycheck. Simply put, we do not get paid anything at all unless a transaction comes to fruition. The larger the amount of the transaction, or the greater the commission percentage, the more money we make on a deal.

I italicized the "or greater the commission percentage" because commission is the subject of this treatise.

People naturally strive to maximize their income. If I had two envelopes, one containing $500, and the other with $600, and I invited you take one of the envelopes home for yourself, you would choose the one with $600. This is not a manifestation of wanton greed; it is simply the intelligent thing to do.

But this isn't about the broker. It's about you -- the person paying the commission. It is in your best interest to keep as much money as you can. I understand that. After all if you had to give me one of your envelopes; one containing $500 and one with $600, which envelope would you give me?

If you want to sell your home at the highest price you should seriously consider giving your broker the envelope with $600 in it. Here's why.

Look through the brokers' eyes. Sales inventory is huge. There is a heck of a lot of property out there to choose from, and there are few buyers buying. Today, when I run a search for a buyer I may receive 50 perfect matches for that buyer, where last year at this time I would have been lucky to come up with 5 candidate properties!

(THE IMPORTANT PART)

Consider this hypothetical situation: You are a broker who has a buyer. You have the very real problem of having more properties to show the buyer than are even remotely practical to see. You are in a position where you have to choose which properties you will show the buyer. What criteria are you going to use to select 10 or so target properties to show your buyer from a list of 50 equally desirable candidates? The answer is obvious. When you look at the search results on your computer screen, the commission being paid at each property is displayed with a level of clarity and brilliance that is unmistakable from across the room. You will naturally take your buyer to the best properties for that buyer that also pay the highest commission to you first.

MORAL
Brokers are paid on a commission only basis and are always aware of what their bottom line is. In today's market with many, many properties competing for a small pool of buyers it is more important than ever to make your property attractive to the brokers who will bring in the buyers. You may have the loveliest avocado green refrigerator on the block, but if no one comes through the door to look at it, your listing will sit on the market and fester. And we all know what happens when a property sits on the market too long don't we? Not really, TELL ME MORE!

The great news is that a surpisingly pleasant byproduct of having your property appeal to brokers as much as it appeals to the buyers they bring is that there is a very strong chance you will actually make MORE money by paying an attractive commission. Stay tuned for that post!

Reach me at: michael.sussilleaux@gmail.com