A flat-fee brokerage charges set dollar amounts for specific real estate services. Usually these services are for sellers. Posting a listing on the MLS is the most common flat-free brokerage service.
Many sellers want their home to be marketed to agents on the MLS. But they but don’t want to pay a full real estate commission. These sellers often elect to use flat-free brokerages. In other cases, a buyer or seller wants to handle most of the real estate process themselves. But a flat-free brokerage helps them pay for necessary support case-by-case.
Agents are involved in over 85% of real estate transactions but this statistic includes flat-free brokerage deals. This means that agents are sometimes less important in the transaction than they were. For example, a buyer or seller might be using a real estate portal to search for a home or generate a CMA. But they will then use an agent for a single service like posting on the MLS or supporting closings.
Flat-free brokerages charge for real estate services at set dollar amounts. They do not require buyers and sellers to use the brokerage for all parts of the transaction. Traditional brokerages provide end-to-end service and charge a percentage of the total home sales price.
Flat-fee brokerages employ agents both as independent contractors and full-time employees. But larger flat-fee brokerages often employ agents as full-time employees. This ensures service levels and pricing are consistent for all clients.
A few popular flat-free brokerages are Savvy Lane, Houzeo, Fizber, and Hauseit. Many of these services specifically focus on flat-fee listing packages for home sellers.