Real Estate Company Lowers Commissions for Florida Home Loan Seekers

It’s not exactly shocking news, but it’s still worth noting: those seeking a Florida home loan in the southern part of the state prefer discounts on broker commissions.

In Deerfield Beach, Expert Realty has successully put this fact into practice. It was launched as a full-service Florida real estate business in May of 2005, offering 2.5 percent commissions. Glenn Cohen, the company’s founder and CEO, says in its first year it has achieved substantial growth and market penetration in South Florida’s Broward and Palm Beach counties.

“We’ve made a large investment in advertising and marketing and it’s really paid off for us,” said Cohen, who also launched the low-commission real estate business model now known as Foxtons.

Expansion of Florida real estate companies

Many real estate companies have expanded their sales force, number of offices and market share in recent years to keep up with booming Florida home loan activity. In addition, the number of real estate licensees who are Realtors has skyrocketed to an unprecedented 1.2 million, according to the National Association of Realtors.

“I don’t think anyone can say they’ve taken that substantial of market share in that short of time,” said Cohen, referring to Expert Realty’s reports of grabbing 5 percent market share of single-family homes under $500,000 in Broward and Palm Beach counties during the first 10 months of operation.

Expert Realty reports that it listed 465 homes in its two South Florida home loan markets in March 2006.

“With these results in hand, we have begun planning an expansion into Dade County and expect to look at new markets around the country in 2007,” Cohen said.

Expert also reported that the company reached a 56 percent capture rate in its title business in March and a 28 percent capture rate in its mortgage business. The company is on track to beat its forecast of $15 million in annual revenue in its first full calendar year and to achieve profitability in the third quarter of 2006, officials said.

Florida housing market viewpoint

Asked about the local housing market conditions in South Florida, Cohen said: “Florida is mirroring the rest of the country and in transition … but the economy is good, interest rates are historically low and land is a limited resource here so Florida is always going to be a strong market.”

A prime location will always help maintain the popularity of Florida home loans. Even as mortgage rates rise, the property value of waterfront homes in the area remains high.