Equity Realty vs. Realtypath (in Utah)

[Clint Roberts]

I recently finished the exam and obtained my license in Utah as an agent.  I have a full-time career elsewhere at the moment - only plan on doing a small number of personal deals on the side.  (Likely in high price markets - e.g. Park City).  Maybe sometime down the road for family, but not within the next year.  Trying to keep my assets somewhat diversified given fundamental valuation uncertainty, so will likely keep it to 2-3 deals in the next 12 months.

It looks like these two low-cost / flat-rate brokers are likely the best fit given my needs (Equity Realty and Realtypath).  Zero interest in lead gen, marketing, office resources, or a team.  Wouldn't mind an active Utah / city specific private online forum (if either of these companies have one).  Not sure if either of them have:

• Online platforms that offer any sort of value vs. direct MLS access
• Visibility into MLS across the state of Utah (or outside of it)
• Document / contract assistance of any value
• Varying E&O (or other insurance) coverage
• Discounts on selected vendors

Or are there any other major differentiators that might be useful from a small deal / investor standpoint...?  Perhaps also importantly - are there are any other hidden fees that might hit me?

On the surface, it looks like Equity Realty is cheaper for a small-volume / high-$-value investor - $499/deal vs. $699/deal at Realtypath.  Realtypath also looks like they tack on an additional 1% on commissions over $12k and a 90/10 split on commissions over $50k.  I don't plan to hit that second one in my first year, but will hit the first (any buy-side deal over $400k gets hit).

Any additional considerations / recommendations here?  (If you happen to work in the Park City market, would also be interested to talk directly if you message me...)

[Tim Mellor]

@Clint Roberts - I interviewed several brokers when I first got my license.  Very few flat fee brokers existed at that point, and I chose to go with AllPro, until about a year before they went out of business (I spotted some signs that made me nervous to stay with them).  At that point I looked again at a few including Exit Real Estate and chose Equity.  It is absolutely the best fit for me as I usually average less than 7 deals per year.  

There are two different brokers in Park City: Eric Lee (a principal broker) as well as Claudia Klawe.  See here for their contact information: http://equity-usa.com/offices.aspx.  I definitely recommend you meet with one or both of these brokers before making your choice.

Best of luck!  Feel free to private message me as well if you have questions.