Kudos to Ardell DellaLogia for her condemnation of Buyer Agent Bonuses!
The mere concept that a Buyer Agent will be enticed to lead a buyer to one house over another, because of the amount of money that Buyer Agent will make when it sells, shoud be offensive to every single agent in this country
In her response to a flame that appeared anonymously as comment to my article, In the 21st century world of real estate, nothing says ‘roadkill’ like a dead dinosaur… (ahem, Ardell), she courageously explains why she has chosen to eschew membership in the NAR:
Does anyone really think it matters if I go over and slap my $500 or so over at the Board of Realtors on Monday to “become a REALTOR”? Does taking five minutes out of my day and $500 out of my pocket really make any difference in who I am or how I do business with my clients? I think it is more honest and ethical to be true to myself, and stay out as long as I agree with the DOJ’s position. I think it is more honest and ethical for me to stand outside the fray until our basic thinking is more in line, than to be a member who dissents from within. I’m the one who has to look at myself in the mirror in that regard, and make a personal choice. At present, this is the one I can live with.
With this single article, Ardell has joined Curtis Hall, a 1980s pioneer of Buyer Agency, as one of my Real Estate Heroes! (Trust me… Curtis, from whom I took my ABR classes, is far more fascinating in person than his web presence expresses.)
Ardell DellaLoggia says:
Not necessarily “condemning buyer agent bonuses” and when I represent a seller, I clearly reserve the right to give it a try on my seller’s behalf. My point is that it is absolutely necessary for the buyer and buyer agent to agree on compensation from the get go, so that the buyer agent agrees in advance that these bonuses will go to the buyer, and not cloud the judgement of the buyer’s agent.
I would never tell a builder or a seller that they can’t go to the max in trying to sell their property, and in fact I may from time to time as a listing agent offer a bonus.
As a buyer’s agent, however, I would discuss the fact that there is a bonus commission offered and the buyer client and I would determine the disposition of the bonus. I’m not saying I wouldn’t take it if the buyer and I determined that was the fair thing to do. Maybe it took a lot longer than expected for the buyer to find a home. Maybe the property I found with the bonus was beyond their wildest dreams, and they would never have found it on their own for some reason, and the buyer wants me to keep it.
All I’m saying in all my articles on this topic is that no one should blindfold the buyer with regard to the fee, or pretend the buyer has no say in the matter…as has been done for way too long.
Hope that doesn’t disappoint you, Greg, but unlike Curtis…I never said I could walk on water…hell, I can’t even SWIM!
July 15, 2006 — 5:43 pm