All Forum Posts by: Kay March

Very helpful. Thank you, all!

I'm selling a rental house FSBO. An agent calls and says she has a buyer willing to pay the asking price. She and the buyer each want 3%. The agent wants a 3% commission (fine with me), and the buyer wants a 3% concession to "cover closing costs." Do you see any red flags with the 3% concession to the buyer?

Thanks, Russell. The selling price is $165,500, and I paid 3%, or $4965 (we closed yesterday).

 Yes, and if someone has been living in your home, even if they are a relative and there is no "landlord-tenant" relationship, then you have to involve the courts. You have to follow the laws regarding eviction if you want to have the legal right to keep that person out of your home. In most areas, the police will not come and help you kick someone out of your home or keep someone out of your home if that person has been residing there unless you have obtained a lawful eviction order.

This is a real estate issue, because it is about eviction. Eviction in most cases must be done according to the requirements of state law, even if the person evicted is a relative living in your house. You cannot just lock someone out, and if you try to get the police to help you lock someone out, the police will not do that. You should use a lawyer to make sure that you follow the law precisely, otherwise the eviction will be invalid.

That is not to say that the answer is simple. Your bother might become more of a threat if you do successfully evict him. I agree with those who say that you should sell the house and move away.

I use Geico. I seem to remember that they required me to have my auto insurance with them in order to get the umbrella policy. Their price is good, and so's their service, in my experience.

I'm selling one of my rental homes as a FSBO, and we close on Tuesday. I learned from the settlement statement that not only will I. the seller, pay the buyer's agent 3%, as we agreed, but the buyer will also pay their agent $3,000 (this is apparently a flat fee). Please understand -- I know that all commissions are negotiable. My question is about common practice, or the usual way of doing things. How often does this happen, and why would the buyer agree to do this?

Thanks, Maria. The agent first contacted me after he saw my FSBO ad because he wanted to persuade me to list the property with him. I told him then that I would pay 3% if a he brought me a buyer. After he brought me a potential buyer he proposed the 4% transaction agent idea. I told him that I would consider 4% depending upon the details of the buyer's offer.

I see, John. You've been so generous with your information. Thank you so much!

Yes, John. I'm sorry. I corrected myself in a subsequent post. I think I've got it straight now! Thanks for your patience. My main point in the prior post was about the reduction in the agent's liability after the transition to transaction agent status.