The Desert Buyer

The Desert Buyer I work with buyers and sellers of residential properties in the Coachella Valley.

In both situations I do everything I can to help my clients achieve their goals.

01/08/2025

Alternative Realty Solutions, Inc. is offering a new program for sellers of resale homes called 1% Plus. Our fee for listing most homes is only 1%.
Buyers are facing serious challenges in 2025. The income needed to buy the median priced home nation-wide is now approximately $100,000 due to high interest rates, list prices 30% higher than before the pandemic, and insecurity about the economy in general. These factors combine to make affordability the key issue for most buyers.
Lawsuits in 2024 resulted in changes that affect sellers. The most important is that sellers no longer have to pay the agent for the buyer. This means that rather than pay a 5% or 6% commission which the listing agent customarily split with the buyer’s agent, sellers can list their properties at 2.5% to 3% of the sale price at closing.
Builders are offering significant buy-downs of interest rates, aggressive pricing and cash concessions. Sellers of resale homes would be wise to consider using similar techniques to make their homes more affordable.
Rules imposed by the courts allow buyers’ agents a way to get paid at the level of 2.5% or more by asking sellers to pay a ‘concession’ to the buyer. ‘Concessions’ are allowed but must be paid from sellers to buyers, not to the buyers’ agents. The 1% Plus program assists our sellers with a saving of 2.5% to 3% toward the ‘concession’ right away.
The best way to market a listing is through the MLS which shares information with on line platforms like Zillow. Most buyers these days begin searching on line to begin to familiarize themselves with homes before they contact an agent. Once a buyer finds your home on line and asks their agent to show it to them, the ‘concession’ you are able to offer could make the difference between a sale and more time sitting on the market.

To find out if you qualify for 1% Plus please contact:

Al Hackman, CCIM, ABR
DRE #01307808
DRE #01244007
Alternative Realty Solutions, Inc.
760-797-5580
[email protected]

Disclaimer: None of the above is intended to be legal advice. All commissions are negotiable. You are encouraged to contact a real estate lawyer.

01/08/2025

The Desert Buyer is a program created by Alternative Realty Solutions, Inc. We will represent qualified buyers of resale homes for a 1 percent fee.

2024 brought important changes to residential real estate as a result of major lawsuits. One such change is that buyers who want to see houses must now have a written agreement with an agent. Formerly, a phone call to an agent was enough for a buyer to get an agent to show them property.
The largest lawsuit also alleged that sellers were being forced to pay commissions to buyers’ agents as well as listing agents. For example, let’s say a seller lists their house at a 5% commission. It was usually the case that the seller’s agent would offer 2.5% commission to the buyer’s agent. The new rules change that. Now the agent for the buyer can tell their buyer that it is permissible to request a ‘concession’ from the seller with which the buyer may pay their agent. This is really a ‘work-around,’ a way for the buyer’s agent to get the 2.5% commission. There are better uses for the ‘concession’ that would help the buyer more than simply paying 2.5% to their agent, such as paying the buyer’s closing costs or buying down the interest rate on the buyer’s loan.
The courts imply they want buyers and sellers to have their own agents. The simple work-around in which the seller pays a 2.5% “concession” to the buyer and the buyer agrees to use that money to pay their agent may not really be in the buyer’s best interest.
The Desert Buyer program asks qualified resale buyers to pay a 1 percent fee, potentially freeing up some ‘concession money’ for the buyer to use in any way they choose.
Offering a house on the MLS is still the best way to expose that house to the greatest number of buyers, and through various internet sites like Zillow, increase that house’s exposure exponentially. However, a buyer in 2025 needs to understand the market better than the seller and the seller’s agent do. We can explain the most important data points to our buyers in a market that is shifting their way in 2025.

To find out if you qualify for The Desert Buyer program please call:

Al Hackman, CCIM, ABR
DRE #01244007
Alternative Realty Solutions, Inc.
DRE #01307808
760-797-5580
[email protected]

Disclaimer: None of the above is intended to be legal advice. All commissions are negotiable. You are encouraged to contact a real estate lawyer.

07/25/2024

As listings are being added at a faster pace than the past several years, the market has become more balanced between buyers and sellers. New practices have been imposed on Realtors by the DOJ to encourage more transparency between agents and their clients, both buyers and sellers.

There are new challenges and new opportunities that agents and their clients can face together. I'd like the chance to discuss what I see coming with you. I offer my 50 years of experience to help you in any way I can.

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70115 Highway 111
Rancho Mirage, CA
92270

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