Quote from ByLoSellHi:
Real estate agents are slimes who make way too much money for the value they add or function they provide on an average real estate transaction.
I predict that you will see real estate commissions for some of the (few) competent real estate brokers drops to 1% TO 2% TOTAL, as competition for obtaining the holy grail of slimehood byu real estate brokers ratchets up; the Listing Agreement.
Once you sign the Listing Agreement, you are trapped by the slime for 6 months or longer, typically, and there is even a relatively slimy 'tail' that will force you to pay the stated commission to anyone who buys/sells the subject real estate as long as they merely spoke with or had contact with the listing slime (agent/broker) during the time the Listing Agreement was in effect, even if the property is bought/sold after the Listing Agreement expires.
Whenever I've had to negotiate a Listing Agreement with a slime broker, I've always modified all of these terms - I typically will never give them more than a 2.5% commission, at most, I will require them to spend money on signage and advertising, I will never agree to anything more than a 45 day 'tail,' and when I have leverage, I will also try to give them a 'specific party' listing - that is, force them to tell me you it is they are going to bring to me, with specific detail as possible (sometimes by profession or even name), and agree to only pay a commission for that particular catch.
This way, I know that they aren't just doing their typically slimy tactic of just trying to get a 6 month 'Listing Agreement,' tying me up, even if they fail to perform, potentially forcing me to pay them a commission to someone that they barely spoke with or conversed with even after the Listing Agreement has expired, and I also am forcing them to spend money on promotion - which tests their seriousness.
You'll be seeing broker rate come crashing down and Listing Agreements become far more competitive during the ongoing dry market in real estate. The days of milk and honey where anyone merely meeting someone and unlocking a door or shooting off an email and earning a 6% to 10% (commercial) commission are going bye-bye.