Recently, WAV Group conducted a national survey of homebuyers to determine attitudes towards buyer agent commissions. The Buyer Agent Commission Report is available on our website free for a limited time with promo code “Commissions” at checkout.
One encouraging finding from the study was the high percentage of overall buyer satisfaction with the value provided by their agent. 88% of respondents thought that their agent earned the commission that they received on the home purchase. This is good news for an industry that has seen many “industry disruptors” enter the marketplace over the last several decades.
In the open end responses, two things related to agent value emerged that can help you train your agents to provide maximum value to the home purchase process. The first insight comes from one respondent who was not completely certain that their agent earned the commission that they were paid. “I found the house and asked him to meet me there.”
While it is clear that online home search is not threatening to displace agents completely, it has devalued the home touring services provided by agents. What agents want to be careful to avoid is becoming a tour guide or, even worse, an Uber driver for homebuyers. Looking at homes is the fun part of the process and something that apps do very well. If buyers think agents are just there to open the door, then the perceived value will only be realized if the search takes a long time and they open a lot of doors. As another respondent pointed out, “They did organize some things for me, but I chose a home pretty quickly so I don’t think they deserved as much as they got.”
Secondly, the Buyer Agent Commission report confirmed over and over again that buyers really valued communication with their agent. “They answered all questions and followed through on all aspects of the purchase pre and post sale.” Buying a home is a large and emotional transaction, and more than anything else, buyers want agents to be available to listen, support, and provide wisdom from their years of experience over many transactions.
As various showing apps make home tours easier and easier, remember to encourage your agents to leverage that technology to smooth the process and free them up to provide the one-to-one communication and advice that buyers are happy to pay for.
For more insights, download the full Buyer Agent Commission report here. It’s FREE for a limited time when you use promo code “Commissions” at checkout.
