Meet Stephen Maturo:
I have been providing premium, full service real estate services to clients in the Conejo, Simi, Malibu, Calabasas, Moorpark, West Hills and surrounding Southern California areas since 2001. I’ve lived here in Westlake Village since 1970. I make as little as 1.5% commission to sell your home and rebate up to 50% or more of my commissions to buyers I represent. I offer the same services as all the rest of the agents who charge 5% and 6%. My transactions have included $6.5+ million dollar single family homes in Malibu, sub $500k townhouses in Westlake Village and almost everything else in between - including 1031 Exchanges, multi-family investment properties, new construction, short sales and foreclosures.
Buyers and Sellers of real estate today are often very well educated, experienced and informed. Many have been involved in prior real estate transactions because of job transfers or through investment properties. And because of the proliferation of free real estate information on the Internet, including sales history, listings, school ratings, demographics, open house schedules and even walk-ability scores, many buyers and sellers do much of their own research. These buyers and sellers often feel that the real estate agent or Realtor® does not require an exorbitant commission to facilitate a transaction. My niche is servicing this clientele.
The National Association of Realtors commissioned a seminal report in 2015 entitled, D.A.N.G.E.R. Report. The title is an acronym for, "Definitive Analysis of Negative Game Changers Emerging in Real Estate." In the report they say there is a 100 percent probability of "Commissions Spiraling Downward," and a 100 percent probability of a "Decline in the Relevancy of Agents." They further say there is a greater than 60 percent probability that the agent will be removed entirely from the transaction. Real Estate commissions in the United States are among the highest in the world. In the UK and in Sweden real estate commissions are 1.5%. In China, Hong Kong and Australia they are 2.0%, and commissions are 3% in Canada.
One of the questions we get most frequently from prospective clients relates to why the industry's pricing structure is aligned so that real estate brokers are de facto equity partners with home owners and share in the appreciation of the property. (Realtors would net $50,000 on the sale of a $1,000,000 property at 5% commission, but their net would double to $100,000 if the property appreciated to $2 million. Many people think this is not logical.) According to Carl Weisman, author of the excellent e-book, The Intelligent Home Seller, a California Association of Realtor study in 2002 indicated that the average real estate agent spends 20 hours selling a home. If a 5% commission is split between the buyer's broker and seller's broker, and if it takes 30 hours instead of 20, then each broker would be getting revenue of $625 per hour on a $750,000 home, $833 per hour on a $1 million property, $1042 per hour on a $1.25 million property and $1250 per hour on a $1.5 million property. It generally does not require more labor to sell a $6.5 million property than a $500,000 property. Informed buyers and sellers often revolt when they see how much money the real estate agents get in a transaction. I try to stay a step ahead of these trends and try to price my services in a way we believe is fair and reasonable.
Buyers:
You will receive a rebate of up to 50% or more of our commission, subject to your lender's approval. A typical commission for a buyer's broker is between 2.0% and 2.5%, so a 50% rebate, equal to 1.0%-1.25% of the purchase price, can save you a decent amount of money.
Sellers:
If you choose me to list your property I charge you a 1.5% listing commission, yes, only 1.5%. You will also have to pay approximately 2.5% to the buyer's agent. That's a total of only 4%! A typical broker may charge you 5% or more to list your property, so my 4% commission will save you thousands. I provide all the documents, disclosures, negotiations, information and assistance you need to sell your home and close escrow. I will take photos, videos, list your home on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and provide For Sale signs plenty of open house signs and a Supra lock box that can only be accessed by agents. The local MLS syndicates data with 25 other Multiple Listing Services in Southern California and with approximately 70 real estate web portals. If you need less than a 4% commission to make this work, or if there are other considerations, ask me.
If you want a Flat Fee Realtor®or if you are a For Sale By Owner(FSBO) seller, let me know your budget and I will try to work with you. I can provide à la carte services. As an MLS Listing RealtorI can list your property on the MLS and can assist you with all the services you’ll need before you close escrow, such as filling out the disclosures and other forms, and providing a lock box and yard signs.
**On my website you can read what clients have said about me at the Testimonials tab; you can see my office listings, you can read about the broker's background at About Us. From the Industry Resources tab you can read about neighborhood demographics, school ratings and crime statistics.
Our home buyer commission rebate is also available if you buy a home listed on the MLS or if you buy online through companies like Auction.com, Homesearch.com, Hubzu, Williams & Williams, and others, as long as they allow "broker participation."
Thank you for visiting my website and considering me. I am a member of the California Association of Realtors, the National Association of Realtors and the Conejo/Simi boards of realtors CSMOAR. Kindly contact me anytime if I can help or if you have questions.
Serving the following communities:
Thousand Oaks
Newbury Park
Westlake Village
Lake Sherwood
Agoura Hills
Oak Park
Moorpark
Wood Ranch
Simi Valley
Camarillo
Oxnard
Port Hueneme
Ventura
Santa Paula
Fillmore
San Fernando Valley
Ojai
Woodland Hills
West Hills
Lake Manor
Box Canyon
Stephen (Steve) Maturo, REALTOR®, BRE # 01342593
RE / MAX Olson Assoc.
818-793-8124