'Selling Sunset': How much commission do the glamorous agents make by selling luxury California properties?
The Hollywood Hills and the Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles are one the most sought-after and glamorous neighborhoods in California. Properties in these localities sell like hotcakes. There is something for everyone, right from the perfect pad for the cash-rich bachelor to a luxurious abode for a couple who harbor a love for a house with a view. As seen on 'Selling Sunset', houses get listed and sold by the Oppenheim Group, the brokerage firm that is the focus of the show and this in turn generates millions and millions every month for the group. Bringing in listings and selling these houses are seven sexy and competitive bombshells and the way they live their lives always raises a question as to how much do these agents earn.
Mary Fitzgerald, Amanza Smith, Christine Quinn, Davina Potratz, Maya Vander, Heather Rae Young and Chrishell Stause make up the team of glamorous real-estate agents at the firm. Dressed in all their finery and red-bottom shoes almost all the time, the ladies match up to the snazzy houses that they're assigned to sell off and this further makes one, as an audience thinks as to how much money do they take home at the end of every month. However, it's not the case with these agents as there is no such thing as a monthly salary for them.
As seen on the show a couple of times, Jason and Brett Oppenheim, owners of the firm where these agents work, have brought up that they won't make any money if a house is not sold. That's right — no sale, no money. So where does their money come from? As is the norm with agents, they work under a broker who collects all the money from a sale as well as the commission on it and then pays their agents a certain percentage of it while keeping the rest to themselves.
To explain how this pay situation works for her, Mary Fitzgerald, in an interview with Express.co.uk said, "I think the hardest thing in real estate is working for commission only. However, that is not the only woe that they possibly face because it's a very unpredictable situation that they work with and people do change their minds all the time before making a big investment. Spending months sometimes with a client and then they change their minds."
"The best part can also be when a client finds something they love immediately and I make a huge commission with very little effort. This unfortunately is not normally the case, but I have double-ended deals represented the buyer as well on my own listing, so this is the best scenario for an agent," she said in conclusion.
'Selling Sunset' is now streaming on Netflix.
