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A six-month-old residential real estate brokerage hopes its below-average commission rate will give it an above-average chance of thriving amidst larger competitors.
Abana Realty is attempting to compete with local powerhouses such as RealtySouth and Lawrence-ArendallHumphries. Its weapon? A 4 percent commission rate, which is two to three percentage points lower than much of the competition.
"We brought in a group of consultants to look at the market to see if we could provide a low-cost service and still make money," says Dale Eads, founder and CEO of Abana Realty. "I always felt that the real estate industry was overpriced."
Although Eads has no formal real estate training, his business experience includes launching...