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About Essential Real Estate and Tom

Essential Real Estate's forward-thinking business model should be the standard for the industry now and in the future.

The Essential Real Estate Story

Real estate services can include hundreds of activities, but only a few affect the outcome. Patrick Meyer and I launched Essential Real Estate in January 2020 to give our clients better ideas for protecting their home equity and negotiating safer, more profitable home purchases and sales.
Real estate commissions are paid from home equity. Like home values, broker fees could move with supply and demand, yet they don't. We think that's a problem worth solving, so we solved it by decoupling commissions. I've been asked why I charge a lower commission than other brokers. That's easy; when homes sell in hours, not weeks or months, it's the right thing to do for my clients.

Values

Choices
In a fair market, consumers are offered tranparency and choices. You can get what you pay for when you know what you're paying for.
Knowledge
Real estate is a contract negotiating business. We invest in learning. What we learn gives our clients a negotiating edge.
Insight
Good judgment is critical for a guide. Successful outcomes are dependent on our ability to straighten curves and flatten hurdles.
Analysis
We develop our opinions based on relevant facts. Our clients get alternative strategies to match their intentions.
Trust
A successful transaction is built on a foundation of trust. We set out to understand the people we take on as clients and develop a two-way street of trust.
Independence
Consumers don't agree that what's best for REALTORS is always best for them. Independence gives us the flexibility to make the system work for our clients.

FAQ

Why do you charge 33% less than the 6% brokers?
Realtors don't set the six percent commission, but it is expected to be the going rate, and it's been so since at least 1989. Home prices and building costs rise and fall with the economy. Somehow, real estate sales commissions are immune to market pressures. When homes sell in hours, commissions should not be the same as in the Great Recession. Our commission is significantly lower than that of other full-service brokers because, with us, you don't pay for what you don't need, and we make sure you keep more of your equity. Because it's the right thing to do.
What do you charge to sell my house?
We're paid on commission. For simplicity, we prefer to divide the commission into two sides. The LISTING side is what you pay to us to represent you. We give you options to cap the commission at 4% of the sale price, and possibly limit your cost to even less. The BUYER side is what you commit to pay if a buyer agent represents the buyer. You are not required to promise to pay a buyer agent more than $0 or 0%. We help you decide a strategy that gives you the best opportunity to decide what you're willing to pay when you know all of the facts.
Are there any other costs I should know about?
Some of our clients want an ala carte menu of services. We can do that. We own our Firm. Independence allows us to structure services and fees to suit our clients.
What about this real estate commission class-action lawsuit?
There are more than a dozen suits filed in the United States. We believe consumers should have the choices the plaintiffs contend have been denied. We created Essential Real Estate to lead the industry in giving people freedom to choose when and if they promise to pay commissions to buyer agents. No Firm is better prepared to guide you to make the changing MLS system work for you.
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