Spanish Estate Agents
By virtue of their daily contacts, estate agents know who is buying and selling. Top agents keep files of buyers, sellers and properties. It is not unusual for a good agent, when they learn of a new listing, to sell it within 24 hours to a buyer they know will buy that type of property. An agent, given time and a detailed specification, will always find a property for a determined buyer. They may have to be chased occasionally, but that is part of the process of being determined.
The quality and integrity of estate agents has vastly improved in the last few years. Selling houses attracts some of the finest people. But the business still attracts some unscrupulous characters too, probably because it is possible to earn a handsome income without working too hard. Due to its financial structure the estate agency business opens doors to all types of people some of whom are not completely honest. However most agents aren't thieves and swindlers, if anything they're more honest than the average person because they have their reputations to protect.
Estate Agent Charges
Agents dealing in Spanish property often take high commissions. The lowest start at around 3% but the average is 10%. When selling a finca it can be 20%. How do they justify such exorbitant charges? Their answer is ambiguous, making reference to high advertising costs, commissions due in two countries and complex transactions involving different nationalities. In truth it is simply a seller's market with demand outstripping supply, causing many people to enter the lucrative business of house selling.
Very few agents in Spain operate on an exclusive basis and rarely expect to do so. It is quite common to find several agents selling the same property. Since their commissions may differ, so ironically may the house price.
Commission for selling a new house on behalf of a builder is usually around 10%. If a number of agents are selling the same properties they may compete with one another, discounting their commission by offering furniture packages and such like to prospective purchasers.
A different commission structure can operate for selling secondhand property, commonly termed a resale property. In some cases the agent operates on a fixed commission, but the following arrangement is very common:
- The agent asks the seller the price they wish for the property.
- They advertise and negotiate the sale of the property at another, higher price.
- The difference between the two prices is the agent's commission, which is rarely less than 10%.
This pricing structure can give rise to animosity. It is compounded when buyer and seller seldom meet, possibly creating an atmosphere of mistrust in relation to the commercial motives of the agent.
For the commission structure breeds a system where:
- the buyer pays a high price
- the seller gets a low price
- the agent gains a high commission.
