I agree with John ... contact the legal hot line. As a note the bank CAN NOT dictate the commission being paid! The agent is in contract with the seller, not the bank (unless it is a REO). That is where you need a good listing agent negoiating with the bank. In Nevada a recent ruling by our Board has stated that if a % or fixed dollar value is placed in the MLS for the Commission to Buyers Broker, that is the least they will receice. No more can it state "to be determined by third party." This ruling just came down in the last couple of weeks. If listing agents here aren't careful, they will be working for a lot less than they expected!

Since short sales are so prevalent across the country, it would not surprise me to see more boards adopting this position.

Contact the NYSAR legal hotline

greedy banks. anyways, give em fifty bucks, a pat on the back, and a thank you.
something is better than nothing
and most agents really love their jobs, its not the pay that really matters.

Good morning,
I have been on the selling side of a short sale and know that the banks will allow a commission to the agent who wrote the offer for the buyer, the listing agent cannot guarantee this and that's why prudent realtors are disclosing that the commission amt is not in their control.

If you are representing a savvy buyer looking for under market pricing by buying a short sale, that buyer can guarantee you a commission. You could have them agree in writing that you expect to be paid "x" and if less is paid at closing then the buyer agrees to make up the difference. Understanding that you are doing the research, the legwork, and negotiating in an effort to get them a SUPER DEAL, most buyers would readily agree.

Its been my experience that successful negotiations in short sales have been at LEAST 15% below PRESENT DAY market value. In central FLorida we have seen approx 25-30 percent drop in price from the highpoint in 2006. Getting an additional 15% (or more in some cases!) is attractive and considering the extra work involved in putting a short sale together, you are entitled to and should not fear asking for this guarantee from a worthy buyer.

Hope this helps.

Just a small sample: In Elk Grove, CA there are 58 pending short sale listings, about 300 unsold active listings, 58 short sales closed escrow in the past year. About 800 short sales listings failed to sell as short sales.
quick math tells me that only about 1 in 20 listings sold last year, but that this could soon improve drastically to 1 in 5.

Agents should not completely avoid short sales, but be very very cautious and disclose that they are extremely iffy, - Only get involved if you don't need to move any time soon.

Often then selling agent knows or better yet they should know as it is disclosed on the listing sheet (the full detail sheets just the agent has access too) that there is a chance the full commission may not be paid. A good buyers agent (selling agent in this case) will have an agreement with their buyer to handle such things like this where you would have to make up the difference on what the commission would have been. If you have no buyers agreement with your agent then your agent can't do anything as you have not signed anything. Do agents steer clear of these listings you ask? hard to tell as there is no way to know or police it and many agents do have a signed buyers agreement which makes sure they are paid the full amount so those agents would never avoid those listings but you really never know.

I applaud you for considering some compensation for your agent.