The average commission in the Dallas Area for Real Estate is 6%.
Of course there is not set commission rate and any Realtor is allowed to charge as much or as little as they would like. When I began as a Realtor naturally my first few listings were friends and family. It was upsetting to learn that some brokers would not let me reduce my commission as needed to meet my business goals. Beyond that in my opinion because of the internet the amount of work that goes into the listing side of a home has drastically reduced. Pre-internet a Brick and Mortar office was a must as people had to come there to view the MLS book and meet Realtors to be taken to houses. Open Houses had to be held every week and much more print advertising was used and of course had an associated cost. Fast Forward to 2010 and the internet has drastically changed the way homes are bought and sold. All studies I have read show that 95% of people find their homes on the internet.
I personally have not worked with a client yet that did not use the internet as their main source of information and many clients already had homes in mind before we even talked. So in essence pre-internet the average commission was 6% and post internet is still remains around 6%. When listing a property I do my best to make sure that the home has the best pictures and internet presence as possible as that is what really matters. Potential buyers are going to see the home on the internet or in a search sent to them by their Realtor and they will schedule to view the home if it appeals to their taste and price range. The actual process of listing a home for me takes about 4 to 6 hours. Once the property is on the market it is a matter of answering phone calls and being proactive with any showings you have. Then of course helping you negotiate the sell and understand the process of inspections, appraisal, and closing. I have yet to find any magic wand out there that will make a house sell, especially in this market.
I offer a 4% full service MLS listing program. Taking 1% for listing the home and representing the home seller and offering the full 3% to the buyers Realtor, as in my opinion working with buyers is still a very time intensive purpose and the 3% is definitely a good number not to be cut. The internet and technology has also made working with home buyers a different experience. Buyers typically come more educated than they were before and many times as I said before have houses already picked out they want to see. Basically by not having the overhead of an actual office utilizing a home office, car, cell phone and laptop todays Tech Savvy Realtor can be much more efficient than even 5 years ago. As an incentive we offer all of our home buyers a 20% rebate of our commission. Basically after closing we will give you a gift card of your choice with 20% of what your Realtor made of off the transaction as a house warming present.
