Moving is Expensive.

[iamtoldtherewillbenomath]

After selling my home last week, now I am in purchase/moving mode.

Lawyer's fees: $1500 (for sale, then for purchase)
Land Transfer: $2100
Moving Truck: $1200 (estimated)
Deposit on new home: $2000
Misc fees/closing costs: $1000
Probably more.

I sold my home FSBO and saved a pile on real estate commissions - but the home I'm buying is listed with an agent. Thusfar I'm an unrepresented buyer and have made that clear to the listing agents of the two properties I'm looking at.

The bright side is once moved, I will save about $300 per month on gas and parking fees.

Any tips on cutting any moving costs, including ones I haven't mentioned above?

Also, if anyone is knowledgeable in real estate negotiations and would care to give advice on coming up with an opening offer number, please PM me (I am not looking for agent representation, just some wise words.)

[Grassgreen]

Why don't you get yourself an agent for the purchase? They don't charge you a fee, they only take part of the sales commision.

It will save you a lot of time and grief.

[iamtoldtherewillbenomath]

Buyer agents are not free. The buyer is the only one bringing money to the table - so they are effectively the ones who pay the agent.

When only one agent is involved, the commissions are much more flexible.

I also don't want the hassle of hiring a buyer agent at this very late stage of the game and then pay them 2.5% to finialize the paperwork. I feel very comfortable working on my own, in cooperation with the listing agent. And, I will expend a lot of time, and go through a lot of grief to save thousands on a commission rate. After selling FSBO, paying a commission is difficult for me to swallow - I very much wish these properties were not listed with an agent at all.

[Trooper8111]

Buyer agents are not free. The buyer is the only one bringing money to the table - so they are effectively the ones who pay the agent.

Yes, but it is taken as a commission from the price of the house. Effectively, the seller pays it out of the proceeds. It's not added like a tax.

[HammerRFDer]

Yes, but it is taken as a commission from the price of the house. Effectively, the seller pays it out of the proceeds. It's not added like a tax.

The seller should be willing to sell the property for less, since they'll get more money in the end. The seller _should_ be able to negotiate with their realtor to pay 1/2 of the regular commission, since they don't have to pay out half of that commission to the buyer's agent.

IE: if the seller only has to pay a 3% commission, instead of a 6% commission, they should be willing to sell the property for ~3% less. (Actually, a little bit more than 3%, but these figures are close enough for our purposes)

As I understand things, most of the actual paperwork is done by _lawyers_. The real estate agents are moreso market makers.

[Jucius Maximus]

If you are moving more than 65 km closer to a new job AND selling your home AND buying another home, you can probably write a lot of this off in your income taxes.

There are even more things you can write off for moving expenses. Do your research. I have heard of people writing off snow tires when moving from Toronto to Calgary in Winter.

Just be SURE to have all your paperwork ready because the CRA reviews this kind of stuff.

[BornRuff]

The seller should be willing to sell the property for less, since they'll get more money in the end. The seller _should_ be able to negotiate with their realtor to pay 1/2 of the regular commission, since they don't have to pay out half of that commission to the buyer's agent.

IE: if the seller only has to pay a 3% commission, instead of a 6% commission, they should be willing to sell the property for ~3% less. (Actually, a little bit more than 3%, but these figures are close enough for our purposes)

As I understand things, most of the actual paperwork is done by _lawyers_. The real estate agents are moreso market makers.

Your lack of experience in buying homes could very well cost you more than 3 percent. The realestate agent is probably more experienced at negotiating, and they would have a better idea of important things to watch out for that could cost you a lot of money down the line.

[iamtoldtherewillbenomath]

Hammer, that's exactly my idea.

Your lack of experience in buying homes could very well cost you more than 3 percent. The realestate agent is probably more experienced at negotiating, and they would have a better idea of important things to watch out for that could cost you a lot of money down the line.

Yes, you could very easily get taken for a ride if you don't understand the system, don't have the right personality (i.e. poor negotiator) and haven't done proper research beforehand. The trick is to be confident in your negotiating skills, and be *educated* - study the market for a period of time prior to going into a situation like this. I have done a lot of research on this purchase.

As far as realtors being superior negotiators, I'm sure some are, but most are used to dealing with other agents who have a common interest in getting a high price aka higher commission - it isn't much of a negotiation.

As far as things that could cost you down the line, home inspectors and lawyers are generally speaking more qualified than agents to discuss these sorts of issues, and one or both would be involved in any real estate deal.

[rb]

Buyer agents are not free. The buyer is the only one bringing money to the table - so they are effectively the ones who pay the agent.

When only one agent is involved, the commissions are much more flexible.

I also don't want the hassle of hiring a buyer agent at this very late stage of the game and then pay them 2.5% to finialize the paperwork. I feel very comfortable working on my own, in cooperation with the listing agent. And, I will expend a lot of time, and go through a lot of grief to save thousands on a commission rate. After selling FSBO, paying a commission is difficult for me to swallow - I very much wish these properties were not listed with an agent at all.


How did you save commissions as a seller if as you state the buyer is the only one bringing money to the table?

[HammerRFDer]

How did you save commissions as a seller if as you state the buyer is the only one bringing money to the table?



Ooops, it would be expected that any savings on commissions would be split by the buyer and seller. Who gets the majority of the savings is for the market to figure out :)

-----You can ignore what I said below here-----------
Technically, the seller is the one invoiced for the realtor's commissions. The seller pays that bill.

Where does the seller get the money to pay this bill? From the money that the buyer gives them.

So, although the seller pays the bill, they're doing it with the buyer's money, so ultimately, the buyer pays whatever commissions exist.