Real Estate Fee.?

Question

I have a contract with a real estate agent. She hasn't found any buyers for my home. An individual came up and asked me if I want to sell my house to him. Do I still have to pay a fee to the realtor being that the individual came directly to me and not the realtor. My contract to sell the house with the realtor ends at the end of this month.

Answer 1

Your contract with the Realtor is likely an "Exclusive right to Sell" and ANY sell that occurs during the time your contract is valid must be handled by, or the percentage paid to the agent/broker. Also, any contact made through the broker during the listing that grows into a sell after the listing contract has expired, is also subject to the fee being paid to the broker.

What you have described does not fall into either of these categories. A word of caution here. If your buyer is in the position to wait until the listing has expired (you say the end of the month) and does NOTHING towards the purchase of the subject property, you will be fine. But, READ YOUR LISTING CONTRACT. The are all different and you broker may have slipped something to the contract that covers any sell that occurs by owner after the listing agreement expires for a 30,60, or 90 day period.

However, if your buyer has spoken to the Realtor or if the Realtor can prove the buyer and seller meet through his/her actions, they are entitled to their commission. So, if your buyer drove past your house and saw the "For Sell" sign in the yard and approached you, technically, you owe the broker the commission.

Answer 2

by law yes, or i should say by contract, u have to pay the agent, but u can ask and get a finders fee.( 2%)......on the other side of the coin, u dont have to tell agent as long as the person buying the house has not contacted the agent or was shown the house by another agent while under contract! if so u must wait 3 months to sell to that person or pay agent fee......its a gray area!

just wait till it runs out, sign a contract to person and set closing for 45 days!