IF you think these must be tough times for real estate agents, John Thyne has news for you."The current market is great for us," says the co-founder of Santa Barbara-based Goodwin & Thyne Properties, one of a growing number of discount brokers serving Southern California.
The depressed state of the housing market has renewed debate over commission charges, with some people arguing they're too high and should come down while others make the case for raising rates. In this uncertain environment, sellers are starting to pay more attention to discount brokerages and those that offer flat-fee services.
That doesn't surprise Thyne, who reckons that homeowners, squeezed between stagnant sales and static prices, and watching already skinny profit margins shrink even more, are looking for alternatives to traditional, more expensive brokers.
And that's just what Goodwin & Thyne has been offering since January 2004. The company, trumpeting "full service at a fair price," charges sellers only 1.5% commission, a far cry from an industry average hovering just above 5%, of which half typically would go to the seller's agent.