October 28, 2009

Broker Contract?

A friend who is about to list a very high-end townhouse for sale (5M+) asked me some questions this morning and I was unable to give her good answers. Perhaps some of you can...

What specifically should be required of a broker who is given an exclusive listing? For instance, stating that the broker will do "advertising" for the listing seems way too vague. On a multi-million dollar townhome, where should the broker be expected to advertise today (both print and online)? Are there any media outlets in Europe that are considered essential to attract foreign buyers? How much advertising is considered appropriate?

What about mailings? To whom and how big of a mailing list?

Commission. What percentage is customary on an exclusive listing for a townhouse?

What length of time?

Anything I haven't thought of? Many thanks...

October 23, 2009

Using a Buyers Agent?

Do you think using a buyers agent is a bad idea? Are sellers agents less willing to split commissions? Will it reduce the chances of getting a bid accepted? We're new to all this.

October 2, 2009

Broker Rented Us an Illegal Unit

We rented an apt through Corcoran's rental division. They charged us $5000 for their "services". After living in the apartment for less than a month we found out that it was an illegal unit with no Certificate of Occupancy. It wouldn't have been that bad if there was a working oven and working heat... but there wasn't. My question is this, does anyone know if Corcoran needs to uphold to any laws to protect renters from this kind of fraud? They do not want to give us our money back and could not find us a new apartment so we were forced to leave Brooklyn. We don't think they deserve a cent because they should of at least done their due diligence to find us a legal unit. What else are you paying them so much money for. Any help or advice you can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.