I recently interviewed Coldwell Banker, all the bells and whistles were nice until they got to the 50/50 split and the 6% franchise fee

? are the benefits worth it, in terms of phone time and leads?

Key2Houston,

How is the contract structured?

Start at 50/50.

What do they pay and what do you pay? What marketing to you get? Any advertising subsidies?

How does the split change? In particular, what do you have to do for it to increase? Outline the full plan.

Also, which Coldwell Banker is it? Remember they have over 3,000 franchises.

That's what I've got with Pru; on top of that there's an E&O fee of $100/transaction, a $75 month technology fee, they don't pay for business cards, they don't pay for marketing...wait, they do twice a month IF you get your name on the list soon enough, and only for commissions 6% or higher.

I'll be interested to hear what other agencies around the country are doing.

How is the franchise fee paid?

TrueVisionary...

Debt, my Pru is different from yours. We pay about $350 for e and o total, once a year, and get a lot of free adv. We also get 1/2 the cost of the adv that isn't free. No technology fee. We have free use of color printers and bulk mail and phenomenal training. Not knowing the OP's story, if they are just starting out in RE I'd focus less on the split and more on the training, since 100% of nothing is nothing. One big benefit to any big name brokerage, at least where I am in NY, is the name itself and the amount of money they are able to spend in marketing.

When I was at a C21 the e & o was $35 per transaction.

I have joined forces with Re/Max and my office has several options one a 100% split and paying about 1000-1200 for rent etc, you get a private office with that. or you can do 70/30 split an pay about 120 a month which includes 2 mls dues free long distance free small ad in H&L free color copies free 1000 business cards. It is so much different its like you are your own person, my old company I felt I was in a telemarketing center agents everywhere all day long. Now your lucky to see 3 or 4 agents any given time, nice and quite and relaxed. Have a Merry Christmas To All Here.

I am with a regional company. I have to pay a $100 fee per month no franchise fee. Advertising is paid in the form of web and print. I am on a 75/25 split and I have a $30 E&O fee that is part of the $100 per month. When I say print there is a magazine put out by my company. They did pay for my first 1000 business cards.

I worked for a CB franchise for 6 years. That 50/50 split will be ok if you are new and need to get trained. As long as they don't charge much of a monthly expense bill. The place I worked had the 50/50 deal and we paid about $150 for 500 copies, our shared office, some advertising. They also featured training. I'm on my own in my own one man band and I like it much better. I don't share well with others (commissions with my company)

100% of nothing is the same as 50% of nothing, but when a check comes in @ 100% your check is 100% and 50% of your check is only half of what you could have made.

I would compare it with other brokerages. Who knows, another broker might be able to offer you the same thing with a higher split. Also since you are new, I would definitely care about training and mentoring. You can get leads all day but without the proper training, you won't close them.

Interview as many brokers as you can. Look in the phone book and literally go down the list. Have a set group of questions that you ask each one, and make sure split and all fees are part of that list.

Once you're finished interviewing all of them, go home, take your list and figure out how much you would net at 1Mil, 2Mil, and 5Mil in sales based on each commission model. That will give you some good food for thought...and you'll be able to ask yourself "I really like this broker...but does that mean I want to give them $15,000 more than this guy? Is it worth $15,000 for me to have free copies?" etc etc...

You'll have something objective to look at, and the question of "do the freebies/perks outweigh the split" will answer itself when you compare different companies.

could not have said it better myself.

free copies(i have a 400dollar printer that has a 40k page dutycycle. my cellphone gets free long distance and my 800number puts my faxes into pdf. i have my own marketing material and solicit my own business. unless a broker gives me a (realistic seller)listing appointment or 2 a week i would not pay a high split.

There were several plans. Most were 50/50 with an increase after production. One for instance 50/50 until $19K then 75/25, or 50/50 until $23K then 90/10 or 95/5.

What do they pay and what do you pay? What marketing to you get? Any advertising subsidies?

They pay 50% of marketing (mailouts,etc).

I've been in the business almost a year and I'm coming from Keller Williams.

Interview with a few brokers, I went with a Cendant/Relogy company first off, now that I look back , I feel it was a bit of a mistake.

In my case , I was on the 50/50 split, E&O was $150/year, and the company "Paid" for all forms of advertising.

After a while, i started getting burnt out on the stupid franchise fee. In my case ,it was 6% of the total comission, then i got my 50/50, it worked out to something like a 38/62 split in the company's favor. I paid for signs, advertising and the like.

I recently switched to a company that started me out at 60/40 , with a monthly fee of $80, they also pay for everything outside of lockboxes.

I'm VERY happy with my current company, as the level of technology is very much on-par than that of my last national franchise.

Are the fees negotiable, in terms of the split?

everything is negotiable...this is REAL ESTATE!

Currently I pay $69/month + $40 E&O per deal and $239 on the first transaction of every month...other than that I keep 100%. Company provides a website, free copies, free fax use, fax-pdf, training several times/month for new agents to help them get going.

I pay all my own advertising, MLS/REALTOR dues, etc...honestly...can't beat it. Franchise Companies just don't have anything to offer me that would make me want to switch.

Do your homework before you sign on the line...

True, but agents who are trained well make more deals. A switch can be made in the future.

I have been an agent with CB for many years. As a new agent comming into the office this is what you get.

50/50 split, 35 E&O per deal up to 600.00 per then you don't pay again until the following year. Franchise fee is 6% but you only pay 3% the office pays the other 3%. Office pays 50% of all marketing. Company book is free. No copy fees, technology fees, fax fees or phone fees. Signs are paid for, you buy open signs. 1st set of cards are free. Commission goes up based on yearly volume, does not go down if you sell less the following year. You pay all dues. Pay 99.00 per year for customizabe website. Tons of free materials on CB intranet site. Broker will personally go with you on listing appointments and not ask to be compensated, (huge for new agents). Lead Router is free. Floor time is available as much as you want. Agents will give you open houses and homes to advertise, you keep all of your side if you sell it.

You just can't beat it with a stick.

There should be plenty of small companies out there with a lot of training available. Small companies have small fees (most of them). You want to ask around, research their reputaion. How much can the manager / broker help you. Are they in the office all day? Will they give you undivided attention?

I started at RE/Max and paid just under 25k my first year before I hit 100%, and then there were still fees, and more fees.

No matter what, I have made it a point to brand myself, not my company. I've moved 4 times in 5 years and the only thing I ever changed was my business card. I pay 6k flat / yr. plus 100 per transaction. I always pay up front so am always getting 100%.

I never understand why people pay the big bucks, no matter how much you make, money is money and you don't need the big name to make it.

Is this a set for agents that are brand new to real estate or new to Coldwell altogether? Are they open to a higher split for an agent that is in their 2nd year.

Negotiate! Don't accept the 50/50 split. My second year I switched markets and brokerages, and all the ones that said they were 50/50 I pushed to 75/25 with little to no effort.

The market has completely changed in the last 12 month's. The inventory is high and sellers are more willing to negotitate. Some REALTORS are not ready to accept this market, my opinion is "get over it."
The face of real estate has changed dramatically and it is a buyers market, especially in Arizona, especially in the vacation market here in Sedona. You can view listings on my website and see firsthand the reductions in price and increase in inventory. http://www.sedonaarizonahomesforsale.com

Sedona, your response doesn't even apply to Houston's question. Thanks for the spam, though.