wow. . .I think anyone who reads trulia now knows the type of person that you are. Very informative post.

Amazing! That's all I can say. I will bite my tongue. Good answer Hank!! Ditto.

Hey Falcyon,
Typically speaking, builders/new construction sites will keep a registry of all buyer & agents that come in the door. This registry usually has an expiration, sometimes it's 6 weeks, sometimes it's 6 months. The first agent that showed you into this builder is entitled to their commission for bringing you to the site. They have a copy of the registy and it's fully enforceable. Now, will they evr know if you use agent #2? Maybe, maybe not. Will the builder/site rep refuse to work with you and agent #2, probably not. But this is pretty bad business practice. Agent #1 could come back to you and the builder for damages if they do keep tabs and find out about this after the fact. I've read all the comments and posts below, and while I agree that it is probably not illegal for agent #2 to offer you part of their commission, it's really a shame that this agent feels the need to buy your business. You get what you pay for in this world, and my feeling is that agent #2 has no problem giving away this huge chunk of commission because that's all their service is really worth.

Mandy is right. If an agent showed you the property, whether you have a buyer brokerage agreement or not, they likely have procuring cause, which means they could be due a commission. Tax records will prove ownership of the property so the agent will have access to see who purchased the home. I would get some legal advice on that one. It is also a matter of ethics. The agent spent her time with you, showed you around and took you to view the community. The onsite agent at that community should be aware of the procuring cause rulings. Also in regard to the "rebates", the Georgia Real Estate Commission has been investigating teh legality of these and is not a fan at all. It may not be long before that ability is revoked. Agents are paid for their knowledge as well as time. I am a listiing agent but I don't agree with agents that give their commission to a buyer. They pay taxes on that money, a lot of taxes, as we are all self employed. I think in life, most of the time, you get what you pay for. I'd work with someone that knows how much they are worth. But of course, I don't look for the cheapest doctor either, I look for the best. I'd rather get one procedure right with an intelligent person/doctor, than two with an idiot. Same with buying a house. Not all agents are created equal either...

Hope that helps!

Good luck,

Sherry

It is illegal to share commission with a non licensed person. If you don't like your agent for other reasons and have a buyer agreement ask the broker owner of that realty to assign you with another agent.

Anna
917-576-5376
abrocco@laffey.com

Thanks Hank. I guess your answer more or less revolves around a buyers agent versus a sellers agent. All the agents I've been working for except one are seller's agent. All that I've seen it they open the door to the property and talk about "its the best bang for the buck" and then wait for me to give them a number to put in their pre formatted offer letter. And I haven't seen anyone do anything different. I won't be willing to give away 5 grands for just this.

My buyers agent is however different. They dont try to coerce me to buy just about anything. He provides me with all the relevant details, neighborhood details, school info, amount owed, no of owners etc etc to help me make a better price guesstimate. I dont have a grudge with him and I appreciate all his work and will definitely not ask a part of his commission for the above mentioned services.

Let me rephrase my question. Is it possible for the previous agent to know if I proceed to make an offer via another agent ?
As far as I know, the listing builder/agent will not disclose the buyers name to all the other agents.

Thanks
Atul

Thanks Mandy....Here's an article below that states that rebates and inducements aren't illegal in the state of GA and that states are fighting to have it as a law. If my new agent wants to share a part of her commission with me, I dont see anything wrong with it.....I get 4000 during closing and it sure worth some extra cash in hand....Its like any other service rendered like a doctors visit or groccery shopping where we find the one who'll cost me less for the same services rendered. I am trying to ensure that the previous agent dosen't come after me for being the first one to show me the property and trying to have her cut.

http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/public/real_estate/rebates.htm

Thanks
Atul

I don't share my commissions with buyers, you are not paying for my representation and I will more than earn my commission. If you are shopping an agent based on whether or not they will kick back a portion of their commission that I hope you get exactly what you want and deserve.

Your original agent first showed you this home and is due the full commission and if I were them I would pursue it. Your lack of loyalty and apparent greed is unfortunate.

Hank

Unfortunately you may be misinformed of how a buyer's agent works. An agent representing a buyer does not share any of their commission with the buyer whatsoever. In fact, I think that may be illegal. If your old agent was with you when you first viewed the new construction property then that agent is due their commission.