Hello!

I've got all my funding in line and am ready to buy a house!

I've spent the last year doing lots of leg work and lets just say i've got it all done. I know the house i want as well as the terms I want it at (price, who pays closing costs, appliances, etc.).

I was going to do all the negotiating myself but have recently been told that hiring a real estate agent can cost me nothing because they typically have a cut negotiated with the seller's real estate agent. I thought this was excellent! I know exactly what I want and and I can bring in a professional at the very end to get the best chance of getting it for no extra costs. But my question is since I've done all the work and am pretty much giving someone a sell can I ask an agent to pay me some of their commission? Is this allowed?

Through your prior investigation, you may already have destroyed their claim to be the "procuring cause" and their ability to get any Commission for being an Agent representing you. They'd typically have to be involved from the get-go.

The Rules and Regulations of Washington State, if it's like most other jurisdictions, probably has a strict prohibition against "kick-backs" or the sharing of any Real Estate Commissions with Non-Licensees. Check with your State's Real Estate Commission.

As you so helpfully pointed out, licensees cannot share commissions with a non-licensee; and that same umbrella is over a non-licensee being "procuring cause".

Procuring cause is between brokers, involving commissions payable. It doesn't involve what a buyer has done on his own because he doesn't have "procuring" capacity. He's not a licensee, and he's not a party to a listing agreement.

But more often than not; what a Buyer has done "on his own" is actually done via the Listing Broker . . . . or what I think here, is with the Builder himself . . . . so this whole discussion regarding "Commissions" may be entirely moot.

Thanks for the replies!

What i'm deciphering is, first - because i've been acting as a real estate agent it disqualifies any agent I hire from being eligible to any commision paid by the seller..? Does that mean i'd have to pay an agent if I want to use one?

Second - that it is illegal to tell an agent that i'd like some of their commission in return (a kick-back) for using them because i've done most of the work and simply want them to sit down and negotiate?

I'm not sure - I've called up and informed tenants that their landlord was selling the house and then I listed it. So maybe my broker, the property manager, should have been the procurer on the offer that their new agent submitted? But we took the offer anyways and sold the house.

under the law, you CANNOT act as a real estate agent, if you are not licensed as such.

nope, if you hire a licensed agent to submit an offer for you, that agent can receive a commission from the listing/seller's broker. of course, the commission split agreement must be in writing.

nope, seller pays the commission.

it's NOT illegal for you to tell your agent you want some of his/her commission...you can do that all day long...but it is illegal for your agent to agree to it, or actually give you a kick back. this is an agent responsibility.

the solution to your concerns is simply to procure the seller/property yourself, and hire a licensed agent/broker to submit your offer. your agent/broker will typically be paid one half of the commission offered by the seller. most agents will jump at the chance to do this.

It is amazing to me that on here everyone is giving advice like it is Universal and NOT state specific.

What can and cannot be done will depend on Federal and State laws.For your state you need to find out if buyer rebates are LEGAL.

They are LEGAL in some states and ILLEGAL in others.So that would be my first step before you go any further.

You cannot receive kickbacks after closing,outside of closing etc.,etc. or anywhere else.In most states the broker/agent could give you a gift card say American Express or a restaurant gift card or cards to say thank you and it would be legal.

Again you would need to make sure this is legal in your state.So check on buyer rebate and or a broker/agent giving a gift and in what form it can be after closing.Sometimes you can gift commission as part of closing costs as a credit or toward other things on the Hud-1 if allowed by the lender,federal law,and your states laws.

I am referring to the United States and if you are in an outside country then your rules might be totally different than what I am stating.

Now on to the other issue at hand.You the buyer CAN and WILL owe a commission to the buyers broker if an Exclusive Buyer Brokerage agreement is used in your state and it has writing that you will be responsible for whatever percent or flat amount is stated if the seller refuses to pay a commission to the broker/agent.

This can happen sometimes with new home sales with a builder or a for sale by owner situation.

The sellers broker can argue procuring cause but at least in my state the real estate commission does not handle commission disputes.It will also depend on if both broker/agents are REALTORS or one is and one isn't or if both are brokers/agents with a license but are not REALTORS.There are a bunch of factors that come into play.

Generally a broker/agent swooping in at the least second is know as "parachuting" in the business.The sellers broker and the builder will fight you on this.The builder might give in and agree to pay a reduced percentage etc.

If rebates are allowed in your state go ahead and Google "buyer rebate your area" and see what comes up.These broker/agents already do the rebate and know what to expect and how much they will give you.Be prepared to act fast and be serious.

Since a broker/agent is giving a rebate they WILL value their time.

Example look at up to 4 houses and write and close an offer broker rebates 1.5% of commission.

Up to 8 houses 1.0 rebate

Up to 12 houses .5

After 12 ZERO REBATE

If you just want someone helping with the offer after the fact pay areal estate attorney 500 bucks to negotiate the contract for you.

Hope it helps.

No legal advice.

Actually, you've not been acting as or like a real estate agent. You've been acting like a buyer. Poking around, gathering information best you can, and preparing to make a purchase. Got your eye on a house, got your ducks in a row. Nothing remarkable or out of the ordinary. Time to call an agent to do the heavy lifting, or, stroll on over to the development and work with the agent there.

If you decide you'd prefer to work with your own agent to represent you and present an offer to the listing broker and negotiate on your behalf, nothing you've done, and nothing you COULD do as a consumer bars your agent from receiving a commission from the listing broker.

And no, it's not illegal to tell an agent you'd like a "kick back". It is illegal for the agent to give you a "kick back".

This might help you out:

http://www.justice.gov/atr/public/real_estate/states-map.html

Oh. My. God. Some of the answers are so wrong they make my brain hurt.

There's a big difference between a KICKBACK and a REBATE. A KICKBACK is something that's given between third-party service providers in exchange for recommending them for services. That's a major no-no, and payment of a referral fee or kickback to an unlicensed party violates lord only knows how many various state and federal truth-in-lending and antitrust laws.

However, in most cases, there's a difference between paying a third-party and offering a rebate to someone who is a principal to a transaction. So, unless your state specifically prohibits it, it is perfectly legal for your agent to give you a commission rebate. In my state, and apparently in Washington as well, it's no problem. Go look at some of the major companies like Redfin, who've been using that business model ever since they started.

To make it easy, here are the ten states that prohibit rebates. And it seems pretty clear that the DOJ Antitrust Division does not look kindly on the practice of banning rebates.

Nonetheless, any rebate must be disclosed to all parties on the HUD-1 settlement statement. If you're financing, your lender will probably also have restrictions--for example, that you can't get cash out of the transaction.

If a buyer came to me already having done all the work and already knew exactly what they wanted to buy and how much, I'd be more than happy to negotiate on my commission, since a good chunk of my work will already have been done. However, if you've already been negotiating with the listing agent directly, both you and any potential agent representing you might find that it's already too late.

In NC I can give, rebate or kickback all or any part of my commission to my client as long as they are a party to the transaction.

Your biggest problem is the fact that you have already spoken to the builder's agent and now the builder is not going to want to pay your agent a commission.

Don't sign any buyer agency agreement which will force you to pay the agent if the builder doesn't pay.

Thank you, that was extremely helpful.