Service Fee
The definition of a service fee or brokers fee in real estate is a flat fee paid to a real estate agent or broker in addition to the commission for the sale or purchase. This is to cover the cost of several auxiliary services that the real estate agent or broker provides after the transaction has been completed between all parties.
The services provided vary but can include the procurance of title insurance, verifying that the title for the property is taken care of in a suitable manner, and other such matters. The fee usually reflects the cost that goes into resolving these matters, and as such is usually a fair charge for the completion of your transaction.
Example of a service fee in real estate
Sal is the owner of a very successful pizza parlor in the downtown area of his city. With hundreds of customers visiting daily to try his famous pizza recipe, Sal has managed to save a decent sum of money that he hopes to use to open another pizza restaurant at another location. After finding a suitable location and realtor, Sal is ready to go ahead with the purchase.
Sal goes ahead with inspecting the property to make sure it is suitable for his purposes and then happily agrees to close the deal and make the property his own. After some haggling on the price, the two parties settle on a mutually agreeable arrangement and go forward with the purchase. Papers are signed, and Sal is about to become the new owner.
Once all the necessary paperwork has been completed, the gross and net sales prices are calculated. In addition to the 5% commission charged by his real estate agent, Sal is informed that he must also pay his realtor an additional $400 service fee in order to ensure that everything is in order for the purchase.
Popular Real Estate Terms
(1) Temporary and symbolic payment showing good faith and obligating two or more individuals until a final transaction takes place. The binder is typically returned if the final agreement ...
A cooperating broker or agent defines a real estate broker who helps another broker in a private property transaction. Typically, the cooperating broker represents the seller and is ...
A legally transferable debt instrument by which the issuer agrees to pay the payee within a certain time period. Note usually pay a specified rate of interest tied to the market rate of ...
(1) Type of loan where the final payment is substantially greater than the previous payments; also termed partially amortized loan. A debt agreement might stipulate a balloon payment when ...
Earthquake insurance is the type of insurance policy that specifically covers damages to your real estate caused by seismic activities. It can refer both to the rare coverage against ...
Latin: now for then. Descriptive of actions which are performed after a deadline has elapsed, but retroactively have the same effect as if they were carried out in a timely manner. For ...
(1) Methods that involve discounting the future cash flows generated by an income property. These techniques are used primarily for valuation. (2) Methods of selecting and ranking ...
Approach to appraise rental property based on anticipated future earnings to be derived from it plus the estimated selling price at the end of he period held. ...
Landowner's legal right to the water found on his property. For example, there might be a stream of water adjacent to the land. The water might be used for irrigation or other purposes. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.