Discounted Real Estate Services—Bargain or Bust?

There are certain economies of scale in which true discounts are possible, but that is the unusual situation—not…

There are certain economies of scale in which true discounts are possible, but that is the unusual situation—not the norm. Most real estate companies are not like WalMart—a true product discounter. But why should you care one way or the other?

Most of us recognize that there are no “free lunches.” Although I think many of us want to believe it can be so. So we continue to delude ourselves. When offered discounted services, we perceive a free lunch. We should know better. But for those free-lunch faithful, I would suggest that you ask a lot of questions and read the fine print. Then I would suggest that you definitely get some references, preferably personal ones, and not only those suggested by the discounter itself.

A good question to ask is: How do you make a profit? What are your margins? Bottom line is that it does not come down to the bottom line. It comes down to service—the quality of service. Stated another way: What is the value of the service compared to what you are paying? Is it fair? If it isn’t, then discount or not, it would be a bad deal for you. But if it’s really cheap, what are you giving up for the benefit of the cost savings? And then ask yourself, after allowing for those concessions for discounted services, is the discounted service really a value? What are the hidden costs? What are the costs of lost opportunity? What latent problem might come back and get you months or years down the road?

I’m not saying don’t go discount. I’m just suggesting that you need to do your full due diligence. Let the buyer beware!

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