Palm Springs Desert Area Real Estate
Rebates for Buyers

Buyers Rebate Advantage

In a Nutshell: The rebate is an incentive to buyers who partner with us in their home search and purchase. Working within the traditional fee structure offered by the seller, we are able to offer a significant commission rebate to our buyer, in recognition of the time and effort our buyer contributes to the purchase process.

Thanks to the Internet, the resources available on this site, your participation in your home purchase process is not only a snap, it's fun! And we are always here to help.

Service, Savings, & Being a Better Buyer

Most Realtors® either work for the Seller under a Listing Agreement or they work casually without an agreement with the Buyer. However, when you as the Buyer enter into a Buyer Broker Agreement with a Realtor® to represent you in the purchase of your new home, you transform the role of the Realtor® from that of casual salesperson into one who is contractually bound to serve you in a fiduciary capacity with the "utmost care, integrity, honesty, and loyalty." (Rules of Agency Disclosure California Civil Code §2079 et seq.)

When you choose us to serve as your Buyer's Agent under a California Association of Realtors® Buyer Broker Agreement, you obtain this level of commitment and service.

This does not cost you anything, since the Seller pays the real estate commission. What's more,  we will even reward you for doing some of the work by rebating to you a substantial part of the commission we earn on your transaction. 

And don't forget: - It is really your money in the first place! The cash you pay for your new home is the same cash that pays everyone's full priced real estate agent's commission.  So, when you work with us, you are putting money back in your own pocket.

Check out our Buyer's Roadmap and take our mini-quizzes to assess your readiness to be an active, hands-on Buyer. Use it to determine your level of comfort in the purchase process.

Of course, we are not suggesting that you go it alone, but this exercise will give you a solid understanding of what is involved in the purchase of a home and the areas in which you can take an active part to earn a commission rebate. 

In our mutual commitment you will get comprehensive service, save money, and become a truly effective home buyer.  

Service

Our program is not just about savings - it's about service. Here is a summary of what we do for our buyers:

Be accessible seven days per week
Provide complete support from start to finish
Counsel you on all real estate matters
Offer extensive area knowledge
Provide MLS search capability for you from this site
Provide "Hot Listing" automated update email service
Answer your questions on homes that interest you
Accompany you on your viewing of homes you have selected
Perform a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) on homes that interest you to help you determine the price you want to pay
Advise you on the pros and cons of the home you have picked out
Introduce you to the best and most knowledgeable local mortgage brokers
Represent your interests in negotiating the best price and terms possible for your transaction
Make recommendations for service providers
Coordinate all the details of the transaction through to a successful close
Appraisal review
Assistance with loan origination and coordination with your mortgage broker / lender
Purchase offer formulation
Contract negotiations
Counter offer submissions
Disclosure review
Contingencies review
Closing time frames review
Title review
Title and Escrow coordination
Termite Inspection review
Property Inspection review
Post transaction service - helping you locate vendors to do all the things you want for your new home

Here's the best part. You don't pay us for any of these valuable services - instead, we reward you with a great rebate for choosing us to help you find and close on your perfect home.

In exchange for your commitment to us on a Buyer Broker Agreement plus your doing the initial neighborhood and property research, we will rebate you a substantial part of the commission we earn on the transaction.

Don't forget that, although technically it is the seller that is paying the commission, it is your money that is funding the transaction. So the rebate is in effect money coming back to you as a credit for services that in fact you (not we) performed.

Savings

The amount of your rebate will depend upon the commission offered and the purchase price of the home. Typically commissions offered to the Buyer's Agent range from 2% to 4%. The so-called "standard" 6% real estate commission is made up of two parts: 3% to the Seller's Agent, and 3% to the Buyer's Agent. Commissions are almost always paid by the Seller. 

If Select represents you as Buyer's Agent in the purchase of a home that is listed at a 6% commission, we would generally receive a 3% commission for representing you, the buyer.  

When we represent you, you will receive a rebate on any property listed in the MLS and also on new construction, where the builder offers a commission to buyers brokers. This is in the form of a credit to your closing costs or cash at the close.

We will rebate to you half of our commission (after a minimum transaction fee). See Buyers FAQ for an explanation of how the rebate is calculated.

In times past, the Buyer was forced to get information on available homes from a real estate agent.  This meant that the information given to the Buyer was filtered by the agent. In other words, the agent would steer the Buyer in the direction the agent wanted the Buyer to go - maybe to his/her own listings, or to listings offering a higher commission to the agent. In fact the agent would literally capture you in his/her vehicle and drive you there - perhaps to homes you would have no interest in seeing.

All this has changed. The Internet and the search tools on this site bring you, the Buyer, all of the information that used to be hidden from you. In fact, once you are our client, we will set it up so that you automatically receive by email details of new listings that meet your criteria within minutes of them appearing on the MLS.

So now you have access to almost every home on the market. Now you are in control. You do the searching using your criteria and in the neighborhoods of your choosing. You do the drive-bys at your own speed and in your own direction. You decide on the homes you want to inspect and make offers on. In other words, the buying process and the buying decision now belong to you.

Of course, we are always ready to assist in this process. Once you have arrived at a short list of homes you want to view in depth, we will arrange any necessary appointments and help you in the evaluation.

Not only do you have control. By doing the initial house-hunting, you save us time and therefore save yourself money! You do the fun part - house hunting - and we take care of the consulting and technical facilitation/transaction work. When it comes down to it, that's really what we are for. 

So this is how you earn your rebate! You do the initial leg work (MLS searches, neighborhood research and property drive-bys) to keep our costs down, and we pass the savings to you!  We earn our fees in the technical details of the transaction.

Special Note on Gated Communities

To drive-by properties in a gated community, do what we realtors do. Wait for someone with access to drive up and then follow him/her through the gate. If you are challenged, tell them you are thinking of buying in this community and that you may be a new neighbor.

It is very different if there is a guard at the gate. In this case, you will need us to help you gain access. This is the one instance where it is probably necessary for us to accompany you on your house-hunting expedition.   

Special Note on Working with Other Realtors®

Be very careful not to give another agent grounds to claim that s/he is the Procuring Cause of a transaction. You could lose your rebate. See  Important Do's & Don'ts
for Buyers for details.

Getting Started

Check yourself out with the quizzes at the Buyer's Roadmap.  We will meet. With your input, we will prepare a Consumer Needs Assessment.  After that, we will commit to each other in a Buyer Agency Agreement.

The only precondition is that you bring to our meeting a letter of prequalification from a lender or mortgage broker. If you need help with this, we will be glad to refer you to highly qualified lending professionals. 

Then, to get you going towards making your home ownership dreams come true, we will get you set up with an Automated Home Search on the MLS. This will keep you informed, by email and almost by the minute, of homes coming onto the market that meet your criteria.

At closing, we will pay you thousands of dollars in the commission rebate you have earned by your participation in the purchase process and congratulate you for making the smart decision to get involved and not to pay a full price commission.

You can start your home search right now. Click on Search the Desert Area MLS. 

And remember - Protect your rebate by observing these Important Do's and Don'ts .

Call us. It can save you serious money.

  Palm Springs Desert Area Homes & Condos - Choices for Sellers & Rebates for Buyers