When Dartmouth couple Diane and Joseph were ready to sell their home, they turned to Assist-2-Sell after seeing their signage all over the neighbourhood. They were intrigued about Assist-2-Sell’s low flat-fee option. Could they really receive the full services of a professional real estate brokerage for one low flat fee, paid at closing?
Dianne says it “almost sounded too good to be true,” but they were amazed the experience “far exceeded” their expectations.
“This was by far the best service we’ve ever received from a Realtor,” says Joseph. “Our house sold within weeks, and we saved thousands of dollars. We highly recommend Assist-2-Sell and cannot say enough about their flat-fee program.”
Real estate agents Michael and Lisa Doyle are the co-owners of the local Assist-2-Sell franchise located in Dartmouth. Their team at Assist-2-Sell, HomeWorks Realty Ltd. has sold more than 4,000 homes in HRM and saved home-sellers more than $19M in commissions since opening in 2001. The $19M savings is calculated based on a comparison of the total commission paid by Assist-2-Sell sellers with what the amount would be if they paid six per cent. Most people realize that by law, commissions are negotiable and each brokerage sets their commission rates.
““Our agents show your home to prospective buyers, negotiate the purchase agreement, help buyers arrange financing, handle scheduling inspections and the appraisal, oversee the closing process — everything you need and expect from a real estate professional.””
Historically, people selling their home on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) might expect to pay as much as 5 – 6 per cent in commission. Assist-2-Sell’s unique program offers both the listing and selling services for their low flat fee — just $2,995 for a house priced under $200,000. (The flat fee goes up just $1,000 for every $100,000.)
“Most people are surprised to learn about all the services we provide for our low flat fee. They hear ‘assist’ and think we’ll be helping them do the work themselves, but we still do all the same work you expect from your real estate professional,” explains Michael. “Our agents show your home to prospective buyers, negotiate the purchase agreement, help buyers arrange financing, handle scheduling inspections and the appraisal, oversee the closing process — everything you need and expect from a real estate professional.”
“The home selling process seems intimidating and confusing — and the industry likes to keep it that way — but in reality, it is very simple,” says Michael. “It comes down to finding the buyer, negotiating the purchase agreement, and closing the transaction. Once we find the buyer, the rest falls into place. These days, buyers are able to easily search to find available homes. They no longer rely on agents exclusively to learn about the inventory. Since Assist-2-Sell doesn’t get paid unless the home sells, Michael says they’ve invested substantially in putting together a very comprehensive and powerful marketing program for every home listed with them. “We don’t just put the home in the MLS and hope some other agent sells it.”
Assist-2-Sell’s full-service concept includes using home photography, virtual tours, YouTube videos, single-property websites, beautiful brochures and feature sheets for every property. They use Search Engine Optimization (SEO) so buyers can easily find their listings, and QR codes on all marketing materials that direct people instantly to the single-property website. In addition to the home being placed on the MLS and REALTOR.CA, they use all the same popular HRM real estate websites that other brokerages use. Also, as an IDX broker, their listings show up on all the other IDX REALTOR websites, including VIEWPOINT.CA, a very popular search site buyers use. Michael says “No other real estate company offers this amount of marketing along with real savings.”
“While our fee is much less than our competitors, in addition to the savings we offer, we pride ourselves on providing a level of service and results that exceeds industry standards,” says Michael. “We call it Full Service with $avings!®”
That’s what James Lander discovered when he and his sister went through the emotional process of selling their parents’ former home in Dartmouth.
“We experienced courteous and professional service throughout, and in a short period of time Assist-2-Sell sold our home,” says James. “An added bonus, of course, is the fact that the real estate commission was their low flat rate. It was much less than would have been the case had we gone the traditional real estate route. We saved over $17,000.”