National Association of REALTORS®
METHODS USED TO MARKET THE HOME
AGENT’S PERFORMANCE AND COMPENSATION
• Exhibit 7-8
• Exhibits 7-9 through 7-11
The Internet and related marketing methods (including other web sites with real estate listings, social networking web sites, and web sites with video hosting services) saw gains in 2010, a year when other, more expensive marketing methods were less frequently used. Ninety-one percent of sellers using an agent reported that the agent listed their home on the Internet, up from 90 percent in 2009. Conventional marketing methods, while losing ground, have not disappeared. A yard sign remained the second most frequent marketing method used by 79 percent of sellers as opposed to 82 percent in 2009. The share of sellers who used an agent and held an open house remained third most common, slipping from 59 percent in 2009 to 56 percent in 2010. Other marketing methods were much less frequently used.
Little has changed in who compensates the agent, the structure of compensation, and negotiation of compensation from 2009. Most agents, 81 percent, are paid by the sellers in full. Smaller yet increasing shares of agents are paid by the buyers in part or in full, 9 and 5 percent respectively, up from 6 and 4 percent in 2009. As was the case in 2009, three-quarters of sellers pay the agent’s fee as a percent of the sales price; only 3 percent paid a flat fee to the agent.
While other web sites with real estate listings, social networking web sites, and web sites with video hosting services are not yet as frequently used as print newspaper advertisements, these marketing outlets saw gains. Social networking websites more than doubled their prevalence as a resource increasing the 2 percent share of 2009 to 5 percent in 2010. In the same period, print newspaper advertisement use among sellers using an agent declined from 37 percent to 28 percent.
Most negotiations of compensation are agent-initiated discussions. A majority of sellers are aware that the agent’s fees are negotiable. In more than one of every four clientinitiated conversations the agent was unwilling to negotiate. One in ten sellers was aware that the commission and fees were negotiable but did not bring up the issue, and a similar share reported being unaware that compensation was negotiable. With repeat business and referrals being the strongest sign of client satisfaction, most sellers, 84 percent, reported that they would recommend their agent or use the agent’s services in the future. This is an increase from 81 percent in 2009.
Good transaction experiences matter A referral from a friend, neighbor or relative is the most commonly cited method sellers used to find their real estate agent
National Association of REALTORS® | Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers 2010
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