Relocation companies and referral fees are a bit of a mystery to me. I don't mind paying a referral fee when the company legitimately calls me and is the first point of contact for a St. Paul home seller or home buyer. What confuses me is when a prospective home seller finds me as a result of my website or blog and then I get a call from a relocation company saying they will be charging me a referral fee for working with Mr. and Mrs. I'm Outta Here. It was MY website or blog that drew the St. Paul seller to me. It was not the relocation company's referral. The relocation company referred a different agent to the St. Paul sellers, but they didn't choose her. Now the relocation company wants 35% of MY part of the commission?
This St. Paul seller wants to use the relocation company because the company will pay their closing costs. The irony is that those closing costs will be paid with the 35% of my commission that the relocation company claims as their "referral" fee! I don't even get a thanks for contributing to the sellers' closing costs and yet it's my money that will make the payment.
This is another one of those things that make me go "hmmmm".
On this particular "referral" I am already paying a legitimate referral fee from an agent who reads my blog and referred the client to me. I had no problem paying that referral fee. But now I will be losing an additional large chunk to a company that did not really make the referral. This is what annoys me.
Posted by: Bonnie Erickson | March 12, 2008 at 12:16 AM
These relocation company's make me say more than hmmmmm. I usually get charged 40% not 35%. People find me through my sites as well. It is really bothersome. Hopefully you found out before you spent a lot of time showing them properties. I have had that happen too.
Posted by: Miriam Bernstein | March 11, 2008 at 09:32 AM