In the real estate world innovative real estate agents and penny pinching sellers are always looking for ways to make a buck or save a buck. One of those ways is the fairly new buzz word “Flat Fee MLS”. MLS Flat Fee simply means paying a small lump sum of money to a licensed real estate agent whom you enlist to sell your home. The real estate agent takes the money and lists the home in the MLS. The agent’s services routinely end right there although some will include a few small or non-essential add-ons to help sweeten the deal.

Selling your home is a big deal. Any homeowner owes it to themselves to seriously consider the pros and cons of Flat Fee MLS and decide whether or not it is right for them. Below we list both sides of the coin from a buyer’s perspective and then from a real estate agent’s perspective with regard to a MLS Flat Fee program.

MLS Flat Fee “Pros and Cons” for a Buyer

Pros
1. Can save thousands of dollars
2. Statistics show that MLS exposure alone is what sells a home
3. Can be in charge of everything
4. Can sell my home myself, I don’t need much help
5. Can price my house high and see if it goes

Cons
1. This will consume my time
2. This may cost me a lot of money in advertising
3. Prospective buyers may not want to meet me initially
4. Don’t have good people or negotiation skills
5. Still need to offer 3% to the buying agent
6. If my house stays on the market too long, buyers will think something is wrong with it
7. If I get in over my head I will probably need to hire a real estate attorney

MLS Flat Fee “Pros and Cons” for a Real Estate Agent

Pros
1. Stand to get a lot of listings this way
2. May pick up a few extra buyers from sign calls
3. Can save time and money on advertising
4. Seller may opt for full service program instead after initial meeting
5. Seller may opt for full service program if their home doesn’t sell
6. This will give me lots of practice with listing presentations

Cons
1. Not going to make much money on the sale of the home
2. Sellers may still call me with many questions and advice
3. Sellers may price the house too high and get nowhere
4. If something goes wrong my name is on the listing

Initially as I sketched this out, I find more “Cons” for the seller and more “Pros” for the real estate agent. And, quite frankly, some of the “Pros” for the seller can be interpreted really as “Cons” or simply a big waste of time, depending on the level or experience or intelligence of the seller. Surely, most of the success in selling a home depends on the old tried and true basic three points: location, condition, and price. But once you get past that and are marching toward the closing table, many obstacles come into play that could wreck the deal. The current real estate market also factors in a level of complexity as well. For example, will a MLS Flat Fee program fair better for a seller in a seller’s market or a buyer’s market? That is a tough question to answer because in a seller’s market homes usually sell at or above their value and that dollar number changes quickly. A seller could be cheating himself unknowingly out of thousands of dollars. Or, in a buyer’s market there is usually a glut of inventory on the MLS. Will their home rise above or stand out in the endless sea of homes on the market?

As you can see there are a few important considerations in selling a home with an MLS Flat Fee program. Home selling is an important step in anyone’s life. Since each home seller’s situation is unique to their situation, I suggest they run their own pros and cons, ask questions about both the Flat Fee and Full Service plan, and then make the best decision based on their personal needs.


STILL HAVE QUESTIONS ... Speak with one of our in-house brokers about the pros and cons of flat fee MLS listing

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