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Why root for the downfall of Redfin and the like? They were finally a lower cost alternative to the stranglehold that RE agents have had on sellers for decades.

by dymk 4y ago

Why root for the downfall of Redfin and the like? They were finally a lower cost alternative to the stranglehold that RE agents have had on sellers for decades. Why should it cost 6% to sell a house?

LandR 4y ago
Do you have to pay tax to the Government where you live to buy a house ? I'm wondering if Stamp Duty is just a UK thing. Here we pay a tax to the government when you buy that is based on the value of the house you are buying. Up to £250,000 Zero The next £675,000 (the portion from £250,001 to £925,000) -5% The next £575,000 (the portion from £925,001 to £1.5 million) -10% The remaining amount (the portion above £1.5 million) - 12% The tax goes up even higher if you are buying a second home.
- notinfuriated 4y ago
  Depends on the locality, but as far as I know, most cities in the US have a "transfer tax" that is some percentage of the home sale price. It varies quite a bit in different cities and can also be 'progressive' in some cities, where more expensive properties have a higher tax rate.
- evancox100 4y ago
  A few states/regions have this, for instance Pennsylvania I believe has a 2% transfer tax. Overall it is not common. Edit: Based on [0] more common than I thought, though there is a really wide range in values with some of the rates quite small, e.g. 0.1%, even 0.01% in CO. This reference is 25 years old though. [0] https://www.landcan.org/pdfs/StateTransferTaxChart.pdf https://www.landcan.org/pdfs/StateTransferTaxChart.pdf
- pridkett 4y ago
  As with most things in the US, it depends on where you live. I’ve paid anywhere from a flat rate of a couple hundred bucks to 2%. It’s generally called a real estate transfer tax. Note: this is different than points, general property tax, agent fees, etc. Ref: https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/transfer-taxes/ https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/transfer-taxes/
- xxpor 4y ago
  Like most things in the US, it varies wildly by location. In Seattle, there's a 0.50% real estate excise tax that the seller pays (theoretically it doesn't matter if the seller or buyer pays it, but practically speaking it's better for the seller to pay since they're the ones with cash in hand.) I'm fairly certain that WA can't have graduated rates because our state constitution prohibits anything but a flat rate for nearly all taxes. The list of all of the rates for WA: https://dor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/84%200013_July2022.pdf?uid=6333633bddefb https://dor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/84%200013_Jul...
- foobarian 4y ago
  Yes well, that's probably a lot better than paying a typical USA real estate tax, which must be paid quarterly and non-payment means the enclosing town takes your house away. What are RE taxes like in London? Do rich foreigners pay anything to park money into central London properties?
  - oblio 4y ago
    Stamp duty is on top of property tax. Stamp duty is paid when you buy something. After you bought it, yes, you have to pay a yearly property tax in many places in the world.
- seer-zig 4y ago
enumjorge 4y ago
I think what the parent commenter is referring to is Redfin’s (along with Zillow and others) practice of buying homes and flipping them. I thought they stopped that a while ago when they saw where the market was headed though.
- dymk 4y ago
  Is the problem with home flipping in general, or with Redfin in particular flipping homes?
- dmix 4y ago
  Redfin over paying for houses seems to be good for homeowners though. If they can't sell them then they'll have to reduce the prices eventually to match the market. The only loser here seems to be Redfin.

by dymk 4y ago

Why root for the downfall of Redfin and the like? They were finally a lower cost alternative to the stranglehold that RE agents have had on sellers for decades. Why should it cost 6% to sell a house?

LandR 4y ago

Do you have to pay tax to the Government where you live to buy a house ? I'm wondering if Stamp Duty is just a UK thing. Here we pay a tax to the government when you buy that is based on the value of the house you are buying. Up to £250,000 Zero The next £675,000 (the portion from £250,001 to £925,000) -5% The next £575,000 (the portion from £925,001 to £1.5 million) -10% The remaining amount (the portion above £1.5 million) - 12% The tax goes up even higher if you are buying a second home.

notinfuriated 4y ago
Depends on the locality, but as far as I know, most cities in the US have a "transfer tax" that is some percentage of the home sale price. It varies quite a bit in different cities and can also be 'progressive' in some cities, where more expensive properties have a higher tax rate.
evancox100 4y ago
A few states/regions have this, for instance Pennsylvania I believe has a 2% transfer tax. Overall it is not common. Edit: Based on [0] more common than I thought, though there is a really wide range in values with some of the rates quite small, e.g. 0.1%, even 0.01% in CO. This reference is 25 years old though. [0] https://www.landcan.org/pdfs/StateTransferTaxChart.pdf https://www.landcan.org/pdfs/StateTransferTaxChart.pdf
pridkett 4y ago
As with most things in the US, it depends on where you live. I’ve paid anywhere from a flat rate of a couple hundred bucks to 2%. It’s generally called a real estate transfer tax. Note: this is different than points, general property tax, agent fees, etc. Ref: https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/transfer-taxes/ https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/transfer-taxes/
xxpor 4y ago
Like most things in the US, it varies wildly by location. In Seattle, there's a 0.50% real estate excise tax that the seller pays (theoretically it doesn't matter if the seller or buyer pays it, but practically speaking it's better for the seller to pay since they're the ones with cash in hand.) I'm fairly certain that WA can't have graduated rates because our state constitution prohibits anything but a flat rate for nearly all taxes. The list of all of the rates for WA: https://dor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/84%200013_July2022.pdf?uid=6333633bddefb https://dor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/84%200013_Jul...
foobarian 4y ago
Yes well, that's probably a lot better than paying a typical USA real estate tax, which must be paid quarterly and non-payment means the enclosing town takes your house away. What are RE taxes like in London? Do rich foreigners pay anything to park money into central London properties?
- oblio 4y ago
  Stamp duty is on top of property tax. Stamp duty is paid when you buy something. After you bought it, yes, you have to pay a yearly property tax in many places in the world.
seer-zig 4y ago

enumjorge 4y ago

I think what the parent commenter is referring to is Redfin’s (along with Zillow and others) practice of buying homes and flipping them. I thought they stopped that a while ago when they saw where the market was headed though.

dymk 4y ago
Is the problem with home flipping in general, or with Redfin in particular flipping homes?
dmix 4y ago
Redfin over paying for houses seems to be good for homeowners though. If they can't sell them then they'll have to reduce the prices eventually to match the market. The only loser here seems to be Redfin.