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Just found out my agent's fee was way higher than normal
I was looking through my closing paperwork from last month and noticed my real estate agent's commission was 6%. I asked a buddy who just bought a house in Austin and he said his was only 4.5%. Started digging around on the FTC website and found out there's actually no set rate for commissions and you can negotiate them. I found a study from 2023 that said most buyers don't even realize they can ask for a lower fee until after they sign. Has anyone here successfully talked their agent down on the commission rate before?
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felix_hayes642mo ago
Hang on though, that study you mentioned from 2023 - most buyers actually don't realize they can negotiate at all, not just until after they sign. I've seen a few local agent contracts here in Denver that had the 6% rate printed right there and people just signed without a word. You're right about the FTC stuff though, there's no rule saying you have to pay it. I talked to a guy last month who got his realtor to drop from 6% to 5% just by saying he'd walk if they didn't match the other agent he was looking at.
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nora_walker571mo ago
Laughing at "just by saying he'd walk" like that's some kind of secret hack. I mean, yeah, that's literally how negotiation works, you say you'll leave and they suddenly find room. But let's be real, most people are too scared to even try that, they just sit there and sign whatever is in front of them like it's a test they can't fail. Maybe we need to start printing "this price is a suggestion, not a hostage situation" on the contract so folks get the hint.
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