Keep your eye on the games real estate agents play - Mary Holm

The fees are too high, and the perceived glamour and the possibility of huge earnings attract far too many people for the number of properties available for sale. A few do spectacularly well, but most don't.

A high percentage, struggling to survive on commissions alone and with minimal support from employers, simply drop out.

The other consequence of inflated commission rates is that too many salespersons, when such a large chunk of their income is at risk, put their own interests ahead of those of the vendor.

The most common shortcut by a listing agent is to keep the new listing away from office colleagues as long as possible, so that all the first viewings are by their own potential purchasers.

The vendor is then pressured into accepting the best offer from that limited range of viewers, without realising that better offers may be forthcoming from other parties blocked from viewing because the lister did not want to share the commission with another salesperson.

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