Getting Cash Back When Buying a Home

Did you know that if you purchase a home, you might have the chance to get cash back worth thousands of dollars?

Some real estate agents are currently operating on the basis that purchasing a house will probably be more interactive, with buyers researching and seeing homes for sale without the real estate agent being present. In return, the areal estate gent can rebate a substantial part of their sales commission, which is paid by the seller, back to the buyer at the time of closing.

Purchasing a home has traditionally entailed having a real estate agent show you house listings for sale based on the criteria that you are searching for, and if you discover the ideal house, your purchase offer is presented to the listing agent.

So as to receive a cash rebate, the approach is basically the same, except the real estate agent representing you as the buyer, typically doesn't go with you to look at the home listings. Instead, your agent can offer you the home listing information, or you can research homes for sale from sites like Realtor.com.

To look at a house, you could call the listing agent to make an appointment to see the property, and inform them you have an agent that you are working with, but they are not available to show the property. Listing agents are expected to demonstrate their customers property to potential buyers, and that's what they are getting paid to do.

Other than that, the remainder of the process of purchasing a house is largely standard process, such as, having your agent submit your deal, negotiate terms, handle the necessary disclosures, give you guidance and support.

If you don't have a real estate agent to work with, another option is to ask the listing agent if they will rebate a percentage of the selling commission if they were to also represent you as the buyer's agent. Most listing agents ought to be inclined to work with you, because they would be earning a sales commission, in addition to this listing commission that the home seller pays them.

How much of a rebate can you get? In a typical real estate transaction, the agent who represents the buyer receives a sales commission from the seller's proceeds at the close of escrow. The amount of the commission has traditionally been 3 percent of the sales price as the market standard. Some real estate agents are offering to provide their customers up to half, or more, of the commission. By way of example, if you were to get a $400,000 home, a 1.5% cash rebate will be $6,000, which might be applied to your closing costs, or deducted from the price of the house.

That's like getting paid several hundred dollars an hour, just for driving yourself around to look at homes for sale, and a bit less hand holding from the real estate agent.