Traditionally, a real estate commission has been as high as 6-7%, but for the past 10-15 years, these commissions have been closer to 5 or 5.5%. While somewhat lower, these commissions are still inflated based on the time and technology involved with today’s real estate companies. At TRELORA, we find that it takes, on average, 37 hours of work with a buyer or seller to complete a home sale. Given the average home price in Denver, that works out to just over $400/hour. In Seattle, it’s more than $600/hour. Even after they pay out broker fees, these commission fees are undoubtedly out of whack.
For years, we’ve heard real estate experts predict how real estate commissions would drop under 5%. Yet, it hasn’t happened. In fact, the industry flirted with sub-5% commissions back in 2005. Over the past two decades, commissions have stayed flat or even gone up a little even as experts continue to suggest the industry is ready for change. TRELORA represents this change. Our flat-fee real estate commissions are $3,000 in Colorado and $4,000 in Washington, which translates to more than $10,000 in savings on a $500,000 home.