Omaha Real Estate: Full Service - What does that Mean?

Full Service - What does that Mean?

If you ask the average person what "Full Service" means when it comes to real estate most won't be able to give you a solid answer.  Truth is the term was created by the real estate industry to justify charging higher commissions, also called full commissions.

Another term created by the industry is "Discounted Service" (or "Discount Brokerage"). This is a term is used to describe Realtors that do not charge full commissions and is used to insinuate that agents that charge less also provide less. 

On the surface the argument seems to make sense. If an agent charges less, then he has less to spend on marketing and services. However to get a more accurate view you need to look at the bigger picture. Last year in Omaha the average real estate agent sold less than 7 homes. Even with charging 7% this leaves the agent with little to nothing to spend on marketing after paying the fixed costs of being in business. However an agent that charges a little less and sells a ton of homes (I sell over 50 a year) has plenty of money to spend on marketing, services and unique promotions (such as my $10,000 Agent Incentive Program).

I know plenty of so-called full service agents that charge 6 or 7% commissions and higher but their service only includes a yard sign and an entry in the MLS (Multiple Listing Service). In reality full service means nothing without knowing what marketing and services will be performed and what commission rate is being charged.