In the triad consisting of the home seller, the homebuyer and the real estate agent, officials at Stonebrook Real Estate Inc., 8757 S. Highland Drive, believe all will benefit under a new 100 percent-split policy.
The policy means that each real estate agent affiliated with Stonebrook receives the entire commission from the sale of a home (they also arrange commercial deals) rather than sharing the commission on the 50-50 or 60-40 basis that has been traditional for years.But how does Stonebrook make money?
Stonebrook charges each agent for using the Highland Drive facilities and also charges for the materials used in the sale, said Robert L. Spicer, principal broker and president of Stonebrook. That way, he said, an agent purchases only what he needs and waste is kept to a minimum.
Spicer believes the 100-percent policy is the wave of the 1990s because the agent has access to a computerized information center that has all available real data for the area, and agents can personalize their materials and use only those needed to make a sale.
Betty J. Harris, sales manager for Stonebrook, recruits and trains new agents. She said the policy is the best way for agents to reach their potential and further their careers. Stonebrook officials have determined which tools work and are concentrating on them, she said.
Harris said that for several years, Stonebrook was a standard real estate office, recruiting and training agents, most of whom dropped out after the first year, and supplying materials whether or not they were used. One national franchise and several local companies adopted the 100 percent-split policy, but the help to their agents was limited.
Adoption of the policy came after Stonebrook dropped its eight-year Realty World franchise, but Spicer said the experience during the franchise era is being used in the new operation. The office at Stonebrook is filled with awards from Realty World, and Spicer is continuing the agent recognition program.
Although he charges the agents a "desk fee," Spicer has kept the office tastefully but conservatively decorated, believing that the agent of the 1990s doesn't need a large office and fancy furnishings.
Spicer said many agents conduct business from their automobiles with cellular telephones and have personal computers, copiers and fax machines in their homes. So, they need only an office that is comfortable and stocked with posters, papers, brochures and personal cards they use in dealing with clients.
Harris said Stonebrook has an alternative plan for its agents if they aren't comfortable with the 100-percent split. The option allows the agent to pay a lower desk fee and a percentage to the company from a sale and gradually work into a 100 percent-split policy.
The items included in the "desk fee" are yard signs, voice mail system, a staff to complete paperwork, a library with motivational materials, recognition awards, fax machines, copiers and other technical office equipment and success manuals. Computer programs form the center of the business.
Agents can purchase personalized promotional material such as business cards with the agent's picture on the back, formal listing presentations, market plans, personalized buyer's plan, buyer's brochure, door hangers, a brochure containing questions and answers about Salt Lake City, property profile brochures, pictures of houses and a tracking and follow-up program.
Everything is designed to let the agent make money, have fun and keep buyers and sellers happy, Harris said.
Spicer is no stranger to the real estate business, having received his license in Los Angeles in 1964. A graduate of Purdue University with a master's degree in engineering, Spicer worked for several "think tank" companies, and people wanted him to purchase property for them for investment purposes because he had a real estate license.
He became involved in building houses and turning apartments into condominiums during the time the housing business was booming in southern California. He left Los Angeles in 1977, arrived in Salt Lake City to establish Spicer Realty and continued building houses and investing in property.
He built his last house in 1979, when interest rates skyrocketed, and concentrated on reselling houses. The drop in the housing market lasted longer than expected, but he waited it out and in 1982 opened Stonebrook Real Estate. He became affiliated with Realty World in 1984.
Spicer's wife, Wanda, provides support for the company by serving as vice president and treasurer for the corporation and is responsible for management of all residential income properties that Stonebrook handles.
Stonebrook also has an in-house mortgage company, Stonebrook Mortgage Services, that is run by Jane C. Newsome, loan origination officer.