Real Estate Agent(s) and Commission

[Nancy Shen]

I was in the process of talking to a realtor about listing my out of state rental property for sale (no agreement signed yet). Then, I found out a neighbor, represented by an agent already, is interested in buying the property. I found out because the neighbor's agent sent direct mail advertisement. If I go with the neighbor's agent, commission is 4%- all of which goes to that 1 agent (although I may be able to negotiate this down to 3% as only 1 agent would be involved). If I sign with "my" realtor, these are the terms:

1) If the property is NOT listed for sale / advertised, and there are two agents involved in the transaction, the commission can be adjusted to 4.5% split equally between both agents

2) If the property is listed for sale / advertised, the commission is 6%

If I sign with "my" realtor, in a sense, the neighbor's agent gets shafted. Any recommendations for this situation?

[Charlie MacPherson]

@Nancy Shen The risks in going with the other agent are:

1. That agent represents the buyer, unless it's a disclosed dual-agency.  In which case, the agent is supposed to be neutral, representing both parties and maintaining confidentiality between the parties.

If the agent is representing the buyer only, then you're probably going to be negotiating against a trained professional.  That might not be the best idea.

2. Without going on the market, you won't have any real assurance that you're getting the best price and terms that the market can generate.