Referral Fee Etiquette

[Jim Sharp]

I've a sense for what people expect as far as referral fees go. I'm just wondering what other people's thoughts are.

Lease Option - I pay 20% of down payment up to $1,000 for a tenant buyer

If I have a lead I send on that doesn't fit my plan... I like to get at least $1,000 if they can make something out of it.

If someone brings me a retail buyer... I'll pay $1000 min to $5,000 depending on my profit.

A rental lead, I'll usually pay up to $500 for a tenant.

Just curious

[Timothy W.]

Did you mean "etiquette"?

Well first of all, at least in my state it's not legal for someone to charge you a percentage of the deal for their services unless they are a licensed realtor. That's unlicensed brokering. Ironically I've been to areas where property management is an unlicensed profession so your percentage on the lease option down may actually be perfectly legal.

Your other pricing sounds about right though I pay $200 for tenant leads (though in my area rent runs around $600 a month).