Your house sold - more money in your pocket
Selling your home can be expensive.
We’re here to change that.
Start here with a free online appraisal
| 200 Square | Your Old Agent | |
|---|---|---|
| Total COMMISSION | $4,500 | $23,862 |
| IN YOUR POCKET!!! | $494,925 | $475,137 |
|
You’re better off by.....
$19,787!!!
$19,787, that's
a new car!
|
||
| House Price | $500,000 | $500,000 |
| Advice and Guidance every step of the way | ||
| Set up and sign agreements | Online in your time | In your lounge, eating your chocolate biscuits |
| Online Marketing - TradeMe, Real Estate.co.nz Listings | $199 | $220 plus |
| Street/Open Home signage | $125 | |
| Featured Online Marketing | $70-150 | $70-150 |
| Professional Photography | $300 | $300 |
| Agency Branded Magazine | No | $250-500 |
| Open Homes & Viewings | Host your own for free, or $50/time for a host | |
| Social Media Marketing | No | |
| Google optimisation for your property | No | |
| Marketing Focus | Your house | The agent (and your house) |
| Total Marketing Cost* * Recommended marketing spend - you can spend as much or as little as you’d like! |
$575 | $1,000 |
| Real time monitoring of progress | No | |
| Weekly Progress reports | Sometimes | |
| Feedback from viewings | ||
| All the negotiation handled (get the best price!) | ||
| Standard Legal Sale & Purchase Contracts | ||
| Commission | $4,500 | $20,000 |
| Admin Fee | Included | $750 |
| GST | Included | $3,112 |
Got questions? We have answers!
- Am I locked in?
- No. You can cancel your agreement with us at any time, all we ask for is 7 days’ notice from you.
- What do I owe if my house doesn’t sell?
- We’ll only ask for the commission once you have an unconditional sale. If your house doesn’t sell, we don’t get paid.
- How can I pay?
- You can pay via Credit Card, or using Internet Banking to transfer money directly.
- Do I have to pay for marketing?
- You don’t have to pay anything for marketing - how much or how little you pay is up to you. We do suggest you spend enough to get the best price for your property. Feel free to give us a ring for a free marketing consultation - whether you’re selling with us or not.
- Are there any upfront costs?
- You'll need to pay $199 so we can get you listed on TradeMe (your RealEstate.co.nz listing is free). You don’t pay any commission until your house is unconditionally sold. Our advice is that budgeting for promotion is worthwhile - you can sell faster, for more money. You’re always in control of what you choose to spend.
- When do I need to pay the commission?
- You don’t need to pay our commission until the sale of your house is unconditional - that means that not only has everyone signed on the dotted line, all the builders and inspectors have signed off, and you’re confirmed sold.
- Does it cost anything to get in touch if I need help?
- Nothing, zlich, nada. Call our 0800 number, email us, even txt us, 24/7 365 - we’re always around.
- Does your price include GST?
- It sure does!
$4,500 - A flat fee, not a fat fee.
We’ve reworked the process of selling a house to focus on the things that make you money, instead of expensive distractions.
WE DON’T sit in your living room - we won’t bore you with a 2 hour powerpoint presentation, and we can buy our own chocolate biscuits.
WE DO give you all the info you need at your fingertips on our website, and the advice and guidance whenever you want it - phone, email, online, we’re here to help you.
WE DON’T play at Taxi Driver or Courier - it’s expensive to get gas for the beamer, and actually quite slow.
WE DO use the best tools the internet has to offer in order to electronically sign contracts and deliver information to you wherever you are at the speed of light.
WE DON’T spend our Sundays staring at the wall at your open home - and we’ll be focusing on selling your house, rather than using your time to meet our next home seller.
WE DO let you open your own home for viewings - we find buyers really like talking to the person who actually knows the home. If you’re not around, we can provide hosts at a fraction of what you’re paying your old agent.
WE DON’T have an expensive main street shop - or naming rights on high-rises and triathlons.
WE DO have a website and a phone line you can reach anytime - whether that’s from your PC at work or your iPhone at your favourite cafe.
Why do agents charge $20,000+?
Because they can - you would too given the chance, lets be real.
But, why do they get away with it? Because its almost “funny money” - you see sellers don’t actually write out the cheque - the commission is most often paid out of the deposit before being sent by the agent to the sellers solicitor - the home owner never actually sees the money and never pays the bill. I imagine that if you actually had to write a cheque for $20,000 or more it might get more attention!
1Commission as a percentage of value:
↑ Auckland House Prices vs. CPI 1992 - 2013
Traditional agent commissions are based on a percentage of the value of the home sold. The actual dollar amount paid has increased over the years in line with house prices.
So, while prices generally have increased by 57% over the last 20 years real estate commissions have increased 226% because they match house price increases.
That's 4 times the rate of general inflation (CPI and QV Housing index - March 1992 to March 2012)
2The number of people involved:
A traditional agent operates as their own business within a local real estate office, which is often inside the framework of a national brand. For any particular sale there can be a number of people needing to be paid - the listing salesperson, the selling salesperson, the branch manager, the office owner, and the franchise owner. Obviously there needs to be enough money to go round!
The industry has a number of “middlemen” in the process, all taking their cut.
3Commission only income & contingency:
A real estate agent works on a contingency basis. If the property is not sold the agent does not get paid. The salesperson is taking the risk.
The owner is not paying by the hour and 100% of the fee is based on the unconditional contract. That needs to be reflected in the charges - not all homes the agent lists will sell, so the income earned on the successful sale also needs to cover the time, money and energy spent on the unsuccessful sales as well.
| House 1 | House 2 | House 3 | House 4 | House 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hours spent | 3 | 50 | 20 | 20 | 5 |
| $ earned | $0 | $0 | $20,000 | $0 | $0 |
| Hourly rate | $0 | $0 | $1,000 | $0 | $0 |
There is no certainty for the salesperson. No sales means no income. It is feast or famine - a little like the lion or the crocodile, who feed up large when it is available to make sure they get through the lean times when no prey is caught.
You are paying for the time spent on listing & selling other properties.
How a typical agent spends their time each month →
Prospecting for new listings 65%
Sales & internal meetings 10%
Open homes 10%
Admin 5%
Negotiating / closing 5%
Vendor feedback 5%
The most important task of a real estate agent from their perspective has nothing to do with selling your home. It is to obtain listings - that is homes to sell. Its called prospecting.
Think about a shop - if there are no products on the shelf to sell the shopkeeper earns no money. It is the same for the agent, if they do not have listings to sell they do not earn an income. The most important and time consuming task of a traditional agent is prospecting, that is, identifying and convincing homeowners to list their property for sale with the agent.
Because they are commission only, and agents do not win every listing they go after, the income they need from those they do win needs to cover the time, money and energy spent on winning your listing as well as those they didnt win, even though this has nothing to do with selling your home.
There’s a better way. Let us show you how →