I'm starting to see bonus commissions being offered again by developers on some of their pre-sale projects. These come and go as the market does. When the markets hot you don't see them but when the market for condos starts to slow like we’re experiencing now...Out they come! These bonus commissions are cash incentives offered to agents on top of the regular commission if they bring a buyer to the developer. And yes you heard right I have seen a new Mercedes-Benz offered. Personally when I see a bonus offered I immediately think one of 2 things: 1) The unit is overpriced! or 2) there must be something wrong with the unit (ground floor overlooking the dumpster or into a brick wall, above the parking entrance etc). As a Realtor I have a fiduciary duty to always act in my clients’ best interest (NOT MINE!) and to disclose all compensation. Do these bonus commissions really entice an agent to bring buyers? I think it would be a lot better off for everyone involved to eliminate the bonus commissions and to simply take that bonus commission and reduce it from the asking price and oh... usually a bit more on top of it. If a unit is priced properly it will sell - end of story. In this age of transparency, bonus commissions should become a thing of the past.
This entry was posted on August 15th, 2012 by Owen Bigland | Posted in Video Blog