LONE WOLF

In the local market of Atlanta, we have several flat fee type brokerages. This post will talk specifically about one of the best "deals" of these type of broker houses. I'll cover Homewise, Zip and others in another post. However, none of them come close to the "deal" or the growth of this one franchise, Chapman Hall.

Chapman Hall has an insanely simple setup. I speak from experience because I held my license there for some time. At $125 or so a month, this fee is the only thing that CH takes from you. That's almost on par with what traditional brokerages take as a E&O, MLS fees ect. This 125 covers it all. They do take the FMLS fee, but ever broker does that as well. Just in case you didn't read it, that's 100% commission, for 125.

Chapman Hall Realtors is to Realtors as Flat Fee MLS listings are to FSBOs. You get a great deal, but unless you can do it all on your own then you might be in a bit over your head. No training, no marketing, no real staff or support even. John Hallman is more than accomodating and great broker, but managing several hundred agents at once can be a daunting task.

Basically, what it amounts to is a great way to run a business inside a business. It sounds really good in theory and there are several great agents at CH. However, if you look closely, many of them are plateauing as I did. There's simply no competition, no comraderie, no office, no listings... ect. The majority of all the agents end up as lone wolf agents that have little to no market presence (individually), despite the overall large market presence of Chapman Hall in certain areas.

In Summary

What you get with Chapman Hall

• The single best financial deal in town
• No Support
• No Training
• No Frills
• Insert a question here, Answer: No

What's In A Name?

What would be an article about the different brokers without covering the biggest one of all. Re/Max. Remax has been around forever and their business model has not changed much in all these years. The basic model is to acquire new agents into franchisee offices and give them the option of paying office/desk fees that amount to about $12,000 or so a year or a split on commissions that potentially could be much more than that. This is in addition to maintaining the regular monthly fees of E/O insurance, MLS membership ect.

With Remax you are getting a name, much like if you opened a resturaunt and signed up for McDonalds you would get instant name recognition. Remax isn't known for training their agents or having high standards. By default, the cost of joining Remax is what keeps younger and/or newbie agents from joining.

In my market area, Atlanta, Remax has a few major players, such as Kay Kim, Mark Spain and the Zac Team but their market share is giving way to agents with a more flexible business model.

Summary:

What You Get with Remax

• Instant Name Recognition
• High Desk Fees
• Not much effort in Teamwork
• Training is dependent on individual franchises