Flat Fee MLS Listing - What is It?
Homeowners cringe when they learn that listing their home for sale with a real estate agent will cost them 6% of the home sale price.
On a $300,000 home, that's $18,000.
How long did it take them to earn this amount of money at their job? Better yet, how long did it take them to save this amount of money? More and more, homeowners are asking why they need to spend so much to simply sell their home? One of the major advantages that listing agents have over an individual selling their home on their own is the advertising exposure they are given with the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).
In today's buyer's market, it is essential a home is exposed and advertised to as many potential sellers as possible.
By listing your home for sale with a Flat Fee MLS Listing service, you get both advantages - You still sell your home by owner and you are able to advertise your home for sale on the MLS just as a listing agent would advertise.
Instead of a listing agent representing you in the sale of your home and charging you 3% for this service, you represent yourself and pay a flat listing fee.
The traditional 6% commission is a combination of the listing agent's commission and the buyer's agent's commission, both typically 3%, for a total cost of 6%.
With a flat fee listing you pay no commission to the listing agent.
Instead, you pay them a flat fee.
On the buyer's side you'll still have to pay the represented buyer's agent a commission, but this is typically at most half of the total commission you'd pay under the traditional model, or up to 3%.
This commission is set by you upfront.
For unrepresented buyers you'll pay no commission at all! Only a licensed real estate broker who is a member of the MLS and pays the MLS dues and fees is able to list a property on the MLS.
An individual can't simply post an "ad" in the MLS, like placing an ad in a newspaper.
There are thousands of MLS associations across the country.
When listing in the MLS, one generally chooses to list in the MLS that represents the area where their property is located.
However, properties in one area are sometimes listed in an MLS that represents a different area.
For example, someone trying to sell a weekend beach home in the Outer Banks of North Carolina may want to advertise their beach home in the Triad MLS which covers an 11 county area around the Greensboro, High Point, and Winston-Salem area to gain exposure to a metropolitan area whose residents are likely to use their vacation area.
Flat Fee MLS listings are also known as Limited Service (LS) listings because the home seller does not receive the same level of service as a full service listing would provide.
They are saving by purchasing only what they need.
For those willing and able to handle the ins and outs of their real property sale, Flat Fee MLS listings provide the exposure they need at very reasonable expense.
On a $300,000 home, that's $18,000.
How long did it take them to earn this amount of money at their job? Better yet, how long did it take them to save this amount of money? More and more, homeowners are asking why they need to spend so much to simply sell their home? One of the major advantages that listing agents have over an individual selling their home on their own is the advertising exposure they are given with the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).
In today's buyer's market, it is essential a home is exposed and advertised to as many potential sellers as possible.
By listing your home for sale with a Flat Fee MLS Listing service, you get both advantages - You still sell your home by owner and you are able to advertise your home for sale on the MLS just as a listing agent would advertise.
Instead of a listing agent representing you in the sale of your home and charging you 3% for this service, you represent yourself and pay a flat listing fee.
The traditional 6% commission is a combination of the listing agent's commission and the buyer's agent's commission, both typically 3%, for a total cost of 6%.
With a flat fee listing you pay no commission to the listing agent.
Instead, you pay them a flat fee.
On the buyer's side you'll still have to pay the represented buyer's agent a commission, but this is typically at most half of the total commission you'd pay under the traditional model, or up to 3%.
This commission is set by you upfront.
For unrepresented buyers you'll pay no commission at all! Only a licensed real estate broker who is a member of the MLS and pays the MLS dues and fees is able to list a property on the MLS.
An individual can't simply post an "ad" in the MLS, like placing an ad in a newspaper.
There are thousands of MLS associations across the country.
When listing in the MLS, one generally chooses to list in the MLS that represents the area where their property is located.
However, properties in one area are sometimes listed in an MLS that represents a different area.
For example, someone trying to sell a weekend beach home in the Outer Banks of North Carolina may want to advertise their beach home in the Triad MLS which covers an 11 county area around the Greensboro, High Point, and Winston-Salem area to gain exposure to a metropolitan area whose residents are likely to use their vacation area.
Flat Fee MLS listings are also known as Limited Service (LS) listings because the home seller does not receive the same level of service as a full service listing would provide.
They are saving by purchasing only what they need.
For those willing and able to handle the ins and outs of their real property sale, Flat Fee MLS listings provide the exposure they need at very reasonable expense.
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