How Much To Pay Out of State Realtor - BRRRR?

[Seth Wilcock]

Hi BP Fam,

Context: I'm working on my out of state portfolio and am primarily focused on BRRRR. Since I'm out of state, I'm working with a Realtor as my boots on the ground to help me physically look at properties and analyze deals. The Realtor I'm working with is great, and on our most recent BRRRR, I feel like I underpaid him for the amount of work he did (particularly for the extra effort and work he did after the acquisition - communication with the contractor, photos, status/progress updates, market analysis). My Realtor connected me with the contractor as well, who has been great so far.

I'm looking at doing another BRRRR soon, but we're looking at $7,500 - $10,000 properties to allow for room with a larger rehab budget ($50K - $60K). The realtor knows I'm good for repeat business, and I pull the trigger when a deal makes sense.

That being said, the Realtor doesn't make much money if he's paid 2.8% on a $10,000 property.  I really like the Realtor, and I don't want him to fire me as a client for not making money on transactions.  I have 3 kids under 5 and a very demanding job.  I'm not interested in becoming a licensed Realtor in another state, mainly because I don't have the time.  I also don't have much time to travel to another state to physically look at a property before making a decision on whether or not to buy it.  I'm currently doing 2 deals/year, with goals of doing more in the future.

Here's My Question: What would be a fair price to pay my Realtor on homes in lower price points?  Should I go to a flat fee?