Why A Duplex Realtor Is Free- 60 Percent Of The Time

A lot of people are afraid to speak with a Realtor when they’re thinking of buying or selling a Minneapolis duplex because they’ll “have to pay them”.

The irony is, a great deal of the time, agent representation is absolutely free.

When a seller and her Realtor decide to “list” a duplex for sale, what they’re referring to is putting it on the Multiple Listing Service or MLS.  In order for that to happen, the seller, the agent, and his or her broker (like Keller Williams) negotiate an agreement among them where the agent and broker agree to help the duplex owner sell the property by marketing it in exchange for a percentage of the sale.

As part of those  marketing efforts, the agent submits all of the details on the property to the MLS so it can be featured there. Access to the MLS is limited to its members, which are real estate brokers and Realtors who have their licenses with those brokers. (The MLS Online is NOT the MLS.)

To entice all of these agents to show the duplex, the broker agrees to offer any agent who brings a buyer to the property a split of the commission the company and the agent would earn on the sale. This is usually just under half of the total commission.

So, when the sale of the property is completed, the buyers agent, through his or her broker, is paid by the selling agent and broker, costing the buyer nothing.

What if you’re a duplex owner who’s upside down and facing a short sale on your investment? How are you going to find the money to pay both the listing agent and the buyer’s agent?

Relax. Even though the bank is losing money, they understand that Realtors are an important part of the transaction and willingly pay commissions out of the proceeds of the sale.

Realtors can be a valuable resource for market knowledge, negotiation expertise and advice.  If you don’t have to pay us, why fear us?