Seller advice: What to ask before you hire a discount agency

When choosing an estate agent to market your home, you may be tempted to give a mandate to a "low commission" or "flat-fee" agency.

But before you do, you should know that you could lose far more on the sale of your home than the saving on commission you are being offered, says Berry Everitt, CEO of the Chas Everitt International property group.

"Discount agencies will usually tell you that they work on the volume principle, offsetting their lower commission rates/ flat fees with large numbers of transactions. However, the truth is that in order to keep their costs down, they will often also exclude certain of the services provided by a full-service agency - without necessarily making it clear to you what the differences are."

So as a homeowner that wants to sell for the best price in the shortest possible time, he says, you should at least pose the following questions before deciding if a discount agency is your best choice: 

* Will you give me a detailed, written plan for marketing my home?

* Will a registered, experienced agent be personally responsible for putting this plan into action?

* Will the retention of your mandate be subject to your carrying out this plan?

* How, where and when will my home be advertised and what systems do you have for responding to and making personal contact with prospective buyers who express interest? 

* Does your company have an effective national and international referral service to assist you in getting my property sold? 

* Will you guarantee to give me feedback - at regular intervals - on your progress in marketing my home?

* Will you financially pre-qualify anyone you bring to view my home?

* Will your agent personally handle all negotiations with potential buyers, and all the necessary documentation? 

* Do you work with a reputable mortgage originator and are you set up to assist a potential buyer to obtain a home loan? 

* Are you able to monitor the transaction all the way through to transfer, assist in resolving any problems or delays and make sure it is completed as quickly as possible?

Writing in the Property Signposts newsletter, Everitt says that at first glance, the omission of some of these services may not seem significant. "Sellers may feel, for example, that they are quite capable of advertising their property themselves, or of conducting their own viewings.

"But there is actually great potential for harm in not having the full range of services available if you should need them. Beside the security risk of having unscreened people arriving to view your home, most sellers are not really prepared to handle tough negotiations with potential buyers, and even fewer have the means to pre-qualify buyers or assist them to obtain finance."

Without the assistance of an experienced property professional, he says, you could thus quite easily be overwhelmed in mid-stream, unable to navigate to a successful sale and transfer of the property.

"And the longer your home remains unsold, of course, the more likely it is to become 'shop soiled' in the eyes of prospective buyers, and the more your holding costs such as municipal rates, insurance, security, maintenance, levies and home loan instalments will continue to mount up.

"Indeed, just a few weeks' delay in achieving a successful sale could result in these costs far exceeding the amount you were trying to save on commission, so you do need to be very sure that you are comparing apples with apples before deciding whether to use a discount or a full-service agency."

Issued by Chas Everitt International

For more information

Call Berry Everitt on

082-441-3601

Or visit www.chaseveritt.co.za