James Hsu

@JR...
my bad. sorry about that - Wed Jul 8 2009, 09:30

@JR ...we get our buyer's pre-approved for a loan for a reason ..so we really know how much they can qualify for. Perhaps we don't directly ask them, but we indirectly can determine what they qualify for.

@Jack ...JR has always had a very strong and passionate opinion when it comes to questioning his commission. You've been warned. - Wed Jul 8 2009, 00:27

Some believe the commission the buyer's agent is paid is none of the buyer's business ...or so I've been told and heard. It's not shown on public sites because that particular data field is not a public field. The commission earmarked for the buyer's agent can vary from house to house ...it is set by the seller and the listing agent when the house goes on the market ... so whatever they set ..is whatever your agent gets.

This brings up a whole host of issues...some of which you've voiced. Simple way to find out is flat out ask your agent to disclose what their commission will be on whatever house you're looking at. Agents who can justify their worth should have little issue with disclosing that info. Agents, in my opinion, who refuse to disclose that info need to get with the times. The tough part is you don't know if he's pushing you toward homes with higher commissions and not showing you ones that aren't paying as high...it's a messed up system. You can ask to see the agent listing print-out. Agent commissions are under a field called SOC and is usually represented as a percentage number.

Basically, ...ask your agent to disclose the info, and if he refuses or is reluctant to, ... demand why. OR, .. search for homes on the real estate search sites yourself and tell him what you want to see. That way, ..regardless of what commission the listing is paying... you see what you want to see. If your agent can provide you with the info and service that will make you feel comfortable, great! ....If you don't feel comfortable for whatever reason, ...time to look for a new agent.

...just another reason why I think commissions should be split up. Buyers pay their own and sellers pay their own. Makes so much more sense... but the industry will fight this to no end. - Sun Jul 5 2009, 21:13

First, ... no one can predict what could happen in a year. Sure the last few months have brought positive signals, but anything can happen in a year. What if Boeing announces it's moving assembly to South Carolina? That will stunt any hopes of the market turning around in this region ... at least in my opinion.

Second ... financing .. I've heard the commercials for the last several years...oh wow interest rates are so low, get in on it before they go up ...well, ..they're still in the 5's and 6's ... so who knows where they'll be in the next year.

To answer your question, ..it really depends on your individual circumstances. Could you rent it out for more than 1 year if the market does not recover enough for you? If you sold now, ..could you meet your financial goals for the house? Are you selling in order to buy another place? Do you ..financially...have to sell to buy that other place? Have you ever rented a house out before or dealt with tenants in some capacity? etc. etc. In general, the best time to sell is when it satisfies your goals to sell. It's a crummy market to sell homes... I'm going to guess yours is a higher end home (based on the "custom" description) and higher end homes are moving sluggishly. What about putting it up for sale and rent simultaneously and see which one bites first?

So to answer your question ... the hated response ... well, ..it depends!
Please post back some more details about your situation and the community can all chime in. Or msg me directly if you don't want to share that much info with the public. - Tue Jul 7 2009, 16:13

If you're seeking recourse ... you need to seek an attorney. ...of which I am not.
Practically speaking though, ... 5 years ago puts you in 2004 .. right before the big real estate boom. Property values have appreciated quite a lot since then and retracted a bunch as well, but in all liklihood, it still has probably a net positive growth still. Plus, ... listed price is not sold price, ... they can list it for $300K ... doesn't mean they'll get it. What amount of money could they make on it for you to feel better?

Frankly, the house is theirs now and whatever they've done to it since they bought it really has nothing more to do with you. Whatever concessions you gave them was your decision and being bitter about it 5 years later isn't going to change anything. Turn the situation around. If you sold it to them in the peak market of 2006/2007 and now they can't afford their payments, ..would you feel bad for them or look to see how you might help? Probably not. So why get on their case now? Again.... who knows if they can get 179K for it. - Mon Jul 6 2009, 22:17

Might have better luck if you post your question in the Texas forum ...not Washington. - Sun Jul 5 2009, 12:14

no ... she's literally asking about the term "turn-key"

the property link in the question has a description that starts out saying ... "This is a turn key home..." - Fri Jul 3 2009, 00:37

that's just usually real estate lingo for read-to-move-in house ... it's of course ..the listing agent's and seller's opinion if it's really ready to move in ... ... ie... all you have to do is turn the key and move in .. - Thu Jul 2 2009, 21:49