BiggerPockets

Does anyone have experience and/or success with increasing the selling agent's commission to 4% and keeping the 'standard' listing commission at 3%? Assume the house is priced in line with recent, similar comps. Thanks for any input.

The thing you need to realize is the buyer is the one buying the house. At the end of the day it is their decision not the agent's. So even with the agent saying OMG this house is awesome you should buy it so they get the Bonus it doesn't matter.

Completely agree with this ... as long as your BAC (buyer's agent commission) is enough to get agents showing your house you're ok. Price seems to be the biggest determining factor for buyers in today's market .... in addition, appraisals are a genuine concern so a well-priced home for a buyer who feels like they are getting good value goes a looooong way in today's market!

Back in 2007, when I considered selling my house, I offered my agent an additional 1% for every $100K above the minimum I would agree to let the house go. (My asking price was $950,000 and I was willing to let it go for $900K) so that would have translated to additional $15,000 in commission to the listing agent alone. The one and only offer I received was $850,000. Needless to say, I didn't take it and decided to keep the house. Which I'm happy I did.
So the bottom line is no, It doesn't work. In the end of the day, it's the market, not the effort of the agent.

Make the commission the same on your property as all the recently sold comps. Instead of paying more commission, just price the property lower.

I've never seen it work well, either. And I'm a Real Estate Broker. Of course I'd always like to get more commission, but it rarely works, if ever. Price is the biggest determining factor in getting it sold.

Think about all the HUD houses - they all have 5% commission to the buyer's agent. Plus, in MI, if it's an owner occupied buyer there's a $500 bonus. Yet, they still sit on the market forever.