How it Works
Just like it sounds, our fees are LOW and FLAT - regardless of how much your property sells for we NEVER charge additional Commission! We believe in HAGGLE-FREE TRANSPARENT FEES so you can get the best value possible!
*** Farmers are hard-working honest people and only list if they are fully prepared to sell /only bid if they are fully prepared to buy ***
Farmers Post works for YOU in order to ensure YOU get the best value on the farm assets! Think of Farmers Post as a dating site, we make the introduction of potential buyers to potential sellers and the rest is up to you to decide how to proceed. We collect a small fee upfront and that is all you will ever owe us. Farmers Post does NOT charge extra EVER. You just pay a small upfront listing fee for each item you list at your terms for a specified period. Bidders never pay anything.
No, and no, Farmers Post simply introduces buyers & sellers but at the end of the day all negotiations and final paperwork are to be handled directly amongst yourselves -- Farmers Post is NOT a real estate agency nor a law firm so please seek out specialized expertise when necessary. You are strongly encouraged to hire an experienced real estate lawyer to do closing paperwork (Farmers Post recommends you shop around as legal fees can drastically vary).
Often buyers are friends or neighbors and the 'price' discussion can be an uncomfortable situation. You are able to list your farm assets on Farmers Post, enter attractive details and a starting price on the assets, and then "invite" your friends & neighbors to submit bids on your listings. Farmers Post provides this "invitation" to bid email feature free of charge and is a great way to ensure you bring all interested parties to the table. All bids are private, aside from highest price, only the seller will see the bidder's information such as name & contact information - this makes it much easier for friends or neighbors to 'compete' against each other without hard feelings.
While each bidder's name and contact details are supplied directly to the Seller, none of this sensitive information is posted on the public site. The only bid information displayed for all buyers will see is the current highest bid and the time that bid was made. Again, this makes it much easier for friends or neighbors to 'compete' against each other without hard feelings.
No problem! Farmers Post allows you the freedom to advertise elsewhere, spending as much or as little as you decide is necessary. If you advertise in local newspapers it is beneficial to refer interested parties to your listing links on Farmers Post for more details. Farmers Post also encourages you to "invite" potential buyers to bid on your Farmers Post listing, as it’s often friends and neighbors that are most serious buyers of your property. If you really want to list on MLS you will have to hire a real estate agent; however Farmers Post encourages you to consider discount realtors and/or negotiate hard. Also be sure to let them know you're also listed with Farmers Post as they will probably make you remove your listing on Farmers Post and sign strict contracts, everything that Farmers Post is against! Farmers Post suggests putting in the contract that any potential buyers referred to you prior (such as through Farmers Post) are non-commissionable or only at a much lower fee. Remember negotiating is key, never settle for the typical fee structure (see our FAQ about typical agent commissions).
Typical real estate agent fees in Canada are an outrageous 7% of the first $100,000 and then 3.5% on the balance, so a $500,000 farm yard would cost you $21,000 in fees PLUS taxes! While the seller is the one who directly pays all the commissions, you can be sure the buyer is indirectly footing some of the bill! Does any agent or anyone for that matter deserve that much money simply to type an ad in the computer and place a sign up on your lawn?! Note some agents may be willing to charge less, but you have be prepared to negotiate hard - Farmers Post would rather you save your negotiation efforts for an actual buyer rather than on the middleman.
Typical auction fees run in the range of 4-8% and once you've listed there is no turning back, you have to accept whatever the highest bid is (unless you've paid an extra fee to have a 'Reserve Price'). So for your $500,000 home quarter you will be paying $25,000 or higher (PLUS taxes of course).