Hi Jami, You received good info from the agent who answered your question first. Normally, the buyer commission and seller commission is paid out of closing from the proceeds of the home sale. I have a program where I also offer buyer rebates, where if you qualify, you can get cash back after closing for whatever you choose to spend it on. OR if allowed by the lender, could possibly go towards your closing costs. It's a great time to buy , congratulations on your upcoming purchase!

Jami - The seller almost always pays the agent commissions. Sellers agree to pay their list agent a percentage (usually 6%) of the sales price. The Listing agent then agrees to split that with the buyer agent. Most of the time the percentages are an even split between agents. The Buyers Representation Agreement gives the agent you choose the right to represent you as the buyer. Most buyer agents never ask the buyer to pay any fees or commissions. The Buyers Rep Agreement should state that buyer agent will be paid by seller. If your agent has asked you to pay anything, I would look for another agent. The Buyers Rep Agreement also states that agent represents you for a certain period of time in a certain geographical area. If you sign that, you should not use other agents to show you houses, etc.. Agents work very hard and rely on these agreements to make sure their buyers stick with them through the process. Remember buyer agents do not get paid until the deal is closed! You should not be out any $$ to pay your buyer agent. Best of luck. Call or email anytime.

Angie Reeder
Keller Williams Realty
angiereeder@kw.com http://www.angiereeder.com
903-952-8983

You will have to sign a Buyers Rep Agreement in order to give that agent permission to represent you, and you want to because it protects you also, however...I personally will never include anything there because its not applicable. There are some agents/companies that require that upfront before they will even consider working with you and they do include that. While I can't speak for the agent that your friends filled out the paperwork for...technically/legally speaking it could be above the sellers offering of 3%. If they find a home for you listed with another agent and that seller has agreed to pay them 3% and they have a buyers rep that states they will be paid 3% then sounds to me like its over and above. I would be leary of an agent that requested a commission on the buying side up front, just my personal opinion and I would never do my clients that way!

Now all that being said, there may be a situation that commission would need to be negotiated, for example...your agent finds a For Sale By Owner and the seller is willing to work with your agent however they only want to pay part of the commmission, you on the other hand fill its well worth it to pay your agent the additional...then you've renegotiated your commission status. That doesnt happen very often either, but my point would be that there are always some instances that throw you a new set of circumstances. Those should be dealt with though as presented, not upfront.

Hope I didn't confuse you more, sometimes in trying to educate it can overload. If I can do anything else or you need a little more indepth answers, don't hesitate to call or email. Promise no pressure, lol!

Angela
903-714-4365
angela@angelakhill.com

Jami,

I think what your friend is referring to in the Buyer's Representation Agreement is the part that states what their typical percentage is for commission. If they don't receive that particular percentage on a home sale from the seller they will ask you the buyer to pay them the balance. IE: I usually get paid 3% commission on a home sale from the seller's broker. However, if the seller has told the other agent that he can only afford to pay out 5% commission total, then the other agent's broker can split the commission. The listing agent gets 2.5% and the buyer's agent gets 2.5% or the listing agent gets 3 and the buyers agent gets 2%. You get the point. So in this case, then I would ask my buyer to pay me the extra 1/2% or 1% IF that is what I had in my Buyer's Representation Agreement. HOWEVER, I don't do that and don't ask my buyer to pay me anything. I don't find a home based on the commission I will get paid. I find homes based on what is in my client's best interest. However, that is in the Buyers Rep agreement and you do want to watch out for it. Every agent works differently and just because that's my business practice doesn't mean it is what is right for everyone else. Hope this helps!

Jackie

Jami,
The buyer representation agreement is a contract between you and your Realtor. The standard form states that you (the buyer) are responsible for your agents commission. This contract is your Realtors way of making sure that they get paid for their services at closing. In reality, the seller pays their agent the amount they negotiated and then the seller agent usually splits that with the buyers agent for bringing a qualified buyer to the table. If for some reason the seller or sellers agent refused to pay the buyers percentage of the commission, then the responsibility to pay would fall on the buyer or what really happens is the buyer moves on to another house. The additional fee that Angela is talking about is sometimes called a transaction fee that some offices charge their agents for office expenses and so on that gets passed on to the buyer or seller instead of the agent paying it out of their commission. For more answers to your questions, give me a call at 903-714-0112.

Charles

Wow, that opens up a whole new world of options. I can't tell you what it was like... looking at the 8 page contract I printed from the TREC site. I still want to have the knowledge and understanding, but it would be nice not to have to solely depend on it.

A friend told me that they'd decided not to use a particular realtor because they wanted them to sign something called a "Buyer's Agent Agreement", stating that they would pay the realtor 3% for locating the home.

Is this the fee you're talking about, Angela? And would that 3% have been in addition to the percentage paid by the seller?

Thank you!

Typically the seller pays both agents out of his net at closing. There is a page in the TREC contract that shows the percentage amount the seller will pay the buyers agent. If you are unsure, just make sure that you speak with your Realtor and advise them that any home you purchase must have the seller paying all of the buyers agent commission. It shouldn't be to difficult. Good luck!!


Jackie

First of all, let me say that EVERYTHING is negotiable!! Secondly, normally the seller is the only one who pays a commission. The seller offers the buyers agent a commission, therefore the buyer doesn't owe the agent representing them anything. That being said, I do think that there maybe a few that will try to charge a fee...if so, my advice is find a new agent! I have never charged my buyers a fee for representing them! Good luck!

Jami C.,

In Texas, the seller almost always pays buyer and seller commission. The seller wants to sell their home and usually expects to pay both sides. If you have any further questions, please give me a call at 903-714-0112 and I will be happy to answer them for you. If you need a Realtor, I would be happy to represent you.

Charles

GREAT QUESTION: however listing agreement determines % of both agents and paid by seller at closing our their proceeds.

You have no concerns.