Do agents collect commission when they buy a house?

[wildonion773]

Do real estate agents collect the buyer's agent commission when they buy a house for themselves?

[justalayman]

yes. why wouldn't they, after all, they did fulfill the contract, did they not?

This is a good bargaining point on the part of the seller though since in essence, they would be purchasing the house at a discount compared to any other buyer.

[seniorjudge]

Originally Posted by justalayman

yes. why wouldn't they, after all, they did fulfill the contract, did they not?

This is a good bargaining point on the part of the seller though since in essence, they would be purchasing the house at a discount compared to any other buyer.

Correct.

As long as it's on the settlement statement, then full disclosure has been made.

An agent should get the dough.

[nextwife]

Originally Posted by justalayman

yes. why wouldn't they, after all, they did fulfill the contract, did they not?

This is a good bargaining point on the part of the seller though since in essence, they would be purchasing the house at a discount compared to any other buyer.

No more so than a roofer buys a roof at a discount when he provides the labor, or a cabinetmaker gets his cabinets at a discount when he is not paying another for their services. If the RE broker secures a ready willing and able buyer who can complete closing, he's done his job. His commission is payment for services, and he is entitled to be paid if he's provided his professional services.

[HomeGuru]

Originally Posted by wildonion773

Do real estate agents collect the buyer's agent commission when they buy a house for themselves?

**A: oh brother, it's you again..

[Zigner]

Originally Posted by HomeGuru

**A: oh brother, it's you again..

That's the FIRST thing that crossed my mind too!

[HomeGuru]

Originally Posted by Zigner

That's the FIRST thing that crossed my mind too!

**A: yes, sometimes they jsut do not give up.

[wildonion773]

Thanks for the responses. I ask the question because it seems reasonable that an agent would be compensated for his time to research properties, set up appointments, research comparable sales, negotiate a price, and handle the paperwork.

What seems unreasonable is an unrepresented buyer performing the same work but not being compensated. In fact, an unrepresented buyer must pay the seller’s agent a bonus to the usual seller’s agent commission for the privilege of doing this work.

The real estate industry is going through a lot of changes lately. Much of it is due to the internet which provides a great deal of information previously available only through an agent. Hopefully reforming the commission system to protect home sellers and home buyers from bonus commissions will be one of the changes. Requiring each party to pay for their own agent would be a great start and avoid the ethical problems the current system creates.

[VeronicaLodge]

what is the specific situation you are involved in? not generalizations about the industry or hypotheticals.

[Zigner]

Originally Posted by VeronicaLodge

what is the specific situation you are involved in? not generalizations about the industry or hypotheticals.

Veronica -

This poster is fishing for different answers than he received in his first thread (at http://forum.freeadvice.com/showthread.php?t=390493). I guess he didn't like the first batch

[VeronicaLodge]

I know and i wanted to just say "what is your problem" but then I thought maybe if there was a real, specific situation, we could actually understand his problem better. basically he is just mad that RA get commissions and that the price of the property ends up being more for the buyer to cover it. thats the way it is, too bad.

[mwbarton]

Originally Posted by VeronicaLodge

I know and i wanted to just say "what is your problem" but then I thought maybe if there was a real, specific situation, we could actually understand his problem better. basically he is just mad that RA get commissions and that the price of the property ends up being more for the buyer to cover it. thats the way it is, too bad.

The OP seems to be under the impression that the buyer is paying for the agent when in fact the agents' commission comes directly out of the seller's pocket. He just can't get around the concept that the property is going to sell at market price whether agents are involved or not.

[VeronicaLodge]

exactly! you can either buy it or not, you can offer less and they seller can accept that or not, the bank isnt going to loan more than what its worth, and if no one is willing to buy it at a certain price it will go down. the money doesnt come from the buyer, it comes out of sellers profit, the only person who can be mad or annoyed at that is the seller and they have the ability to contract for that or not and to set the price and to accept or decline offers.

[wildonion773]

But the fact remains if a buyer's agent does the work, they are rewarded financially for it. If the buyer does the same work, they are penalized financially for it.

[seniorjudge]

Originally Posted by wildonion773

But the fact remains if a buyer's agent does the work, they are rewarded financially for it. If the buyer does the same work, they are penalized financially for it.

No, they are not.