I have approached FSBO's and negotiated my commission with them prior to showing their property. Some are willing to do that, others are not. If I have a Buyer who wants to buy a FSBO who refuses to pay me, then either my Buyer agrees to sign a Buyer's Agency Agreement, or they can purchase on their own. I can't justify working for free, especially with the legal liability that I take on if I write the offer.

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Starting from scratch...

Absolutely!

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Harry: "I expected the Rocky Mountains to be a little rockier than this."
Loyd: "I was thinking the same thing. That John Denver's full of shit, man."

I still keep an associate real estate broker's license in a holding company ("escrow"). Written hundreds of articles on every aspect of real estate.

The seller pays the commission, and the seller's agent splits the commission with the buyer's agent, That's called the "commission split" in the business. The split is almost always clearly listed in the property's Multi-List Service (MLS) entry. Sometimes, seller's agents will list a flat commission amount to buyer agents (say,$6,000 or whatever).

This thing where real estate salespeople and their brokers ("Realtor" is a term for people who are members of the National Association of Realtors) are trying to lock in guaranteed commissions, payable by whomever, is dumb and it's not the way things have worked in real estate for decades.

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"Politics is just show business for ugly people."

You want an agent on your side when the market is hot. Often, they will have the inside scoop to new listings before they hit the MLS or before you would know they were on the market.

At the end of the day, realize realtors get paid when a house sells. So, both agents kinda work for the seller. They want the sale to happen. Although, a good realtor won’t let their buyer buy a crap house.

I’m a little different than the average buyer since I have a construction skill set and background. I could care less if a house needs a furnace or water heater. I adjust my offer price and pass on the home inspection. I do my own thorough inspection. A seller would rather sell a house without an inspection contingency and I adjust my offer knowing I may have to fix something.

Fact is, you could live somewhere for a year and a half and something can break and it’s on you anyway. What’s the difference.

An agent has to write your offer, it might as well be someone your working with who you like ... and trust.