Sal

Jeff,
I think I understand what your saying. To recap Ourlawyer has to get an exact closing date to give our bank. Then our bank will be able to calculate our payoff amount. I gather that info will be sent signed to our lawyers and they will have it at the closing. Is this correct? All this said who will finally determine the closing date? Should our agent contact the Buyer's agent? Should the Buyer's be responsible to contact their bank? - Wed Nov 5 2008, 15:38

Scott & Gladys,
You did not understand our question! We are the SELLERS. We will be paying off the mortgage so I do not believe we need a loan officer here. We merely need our bank to agree to a closing date (The 14th) and send a representative.
Our original loan officer is no longer working for the bank anyway. - Wed Nov 5 2008, 14:12

Hello Donald,

There aren't many folks selling close by to this property that are similar in size quality or condition. We realize we are speaking as the sellers but we think after the 10th price reduction we are really pretty much right on with the price . it might even be 15 to 20 % lower. There are many raised ranches, split levels, and other homes that are not in as good a location or condition, also. Check out the examples of other homes nearby that are selling at this link--

http://homeseekers.cyberhomes.com/Scripts/detail.asp?_org_id…

http://homeseekers.cyberhomes.com/Scripts/detail.asp?_org_id… - Wed Aug 13 2008, 21:42

The biggest problem today with agents charging 6% is that the sellers are losing their hard earned equity already. Even if the market were better, however, the fact is that the seller as worked harder than the agent to purchase, improve and maintain their home. Some sellers have put a lot of TLC into the American dream. Why should 6 -10% of it's value be taken from them?
Yes, we realize that an agent has to advertise. But come on. How much really does that cost!? I have a home for sale that is listed with a Discount broker. We are working together to get our home sold! I have about 10 free ads listed on Real Estate sites at present. They are Owners.com, Homes by owner.com, Yahoo, Google, Craigslist, Kijiji, and all the other ones that Postlets branches out to. Our Realtor has posted the listing on the local MLS, Realtor.com, Harmon Homes and Homes .com along with the local Newspapers and sales booklets. I have made flyers on my computer, have networked with hundreds of Realtors and large Corporation's Relo Offices. I have developed a Slide show DVD on my own computer by way of MS Publisher which we give to any interested buyer to take home. We are also able to get all the recent transactions emailed to us to keep abreast of the market.
As far as the legal stuff goes all sellers have their lawyers. That's who does legal paper work. All you need to do is ask your lawyer what papers need to be ready and put them aside in a folder for you and a copy to your lawyer. So when Realtors say they do a lot of legal stuff for you it's not true. That's what the sellers pay their lawyers for.
Listing a home can be done and done inexpensively. I am not impressed by agents who are always claiming to be #1 in the field. How can everyone be # i!? Think how ludicrous that sounds. If you love what you do you will obviously do it well and do it within a limited budget if you are creative with the resources you have given to you. I know this for a fact as I was a teacher in a poor school district.
Sellers-- act like your the employer! It's easy . Listen to the agent's advice, do research on what they tell you. Check the homes that they are comparing yours to. They really might not be comps. Find out the selling prices of actual comps nearby. Make sure the locations are similar as far as quality of the neighborhood goes Make sure the condition is the same as your home.. Many Realtors just look at home size to get comps.After doing the homework tell your agent what you want them to do. You decide by using what you know and your agent's advice what would be a great marketing plan. Sellers should think about the fact that if a real estate agent is adamant about not lowering their commission then that perhaps is an indication of how long your home will be on the market. Top agents who sell homes quickly and at fair prices will usually agree to a lower commission. (even in this market an excellent sales person will get the job done!)
Agents- lower your commissions ,get the seller to help you. Listen to the sellers wishes. Try their plan first. If it works great. If not then have them listen to your plan again and tell them it has worked for you in the past. If the sellers plan doesn't work and they refuse to try use cancel the contract and move on to another client. Also, when the contract is canceled you should no longer be entitled to a fee if the seller sells on his own . After all, you were given the chance but you didn't sell the home. The seller did.
Another reason that lowering commissions would benefit an Agent would be more business--more listings! The money will be made by selling more homes. If you don't think you can do the job then maybe Real estate is not the job for you.
Please keep in mind that this is only one view of the Real Estate Industry. In my opinion lower commissions can and will benefit agents , sellers and buyers. - Sun Aug 10 2008, 09:11