In short, RELO packages offer financial incentives to employees who must sell their current home and buy a new one in the city they are moving to. Asking your company for 1 to 3 months of rental assistance is perfectly reasonable and can help ease the stress of setting up your family in a new place. One final aspect of real estate tiers for homeowners is the home sale bonus incentive, which can be added to relocation packages at any level. This involves providing an additional bonus to employees when they sell their homes within a set period of time.
These bonds, also known as quick-sale bonds, motivate employees to sell their homes more quickly and make it more profitable to invest in repairs, improvements and services such as home staging. Homes that spend less time on the market and sell while occupied are also more likely to generate good prices. A work relocation package usually includes money for typical moving expenses and services. There is no standard for this type of package and it is not offered by all companies.
Nor is there a rule on how you will receive these expenses. The relocation management company (RMC) used by the employer, such as Lexicon, then buys the house on behalf of the company and sells it to the buyer. Buyers should have a ready source of guarantee money that they can quickly send to the relocation company, says Tonya Hamilton, vice president of relocation at Prudential Woodmont Realty in Brentwood, Tenn. Relocation management companies generally maintain a network of preferred brokers and mortgage lenders who have extensive experience in helping employees move successfully.
Having the sale of a home as part of your company's relocation program can be a major benefit that makes the move more enjoyable for the employee, and gives the company an employee who, as they say, “is on the ground and firmly planted in a new location. For the first few months the house is on the market, the house usually remains in the employee's name, and the relocation company provides pricing and marketing advice. After the employer buys the house, the relocation company becomes the main party of the sale negotiations. Referral fees paid to corporate relocation companies by participating real estate agents generally amount to 35 to 40 percent of the agent's commission on the transaction.
It is important to note that both the relocation company and the home offered for sale are often referred to as “relos”. Being a well-trained agent who understands the role of an agency and being familiar with the local market is a big part of what a relocation company wants. Although it has mostly decreased, in the past there have been cases of agents being charged referral fees, meaning that after the transferee put his house up for sale, the relocation company came and asked for a referral fee. Corporate relocation services often offer employee relocation assistance, including selling the employee's current residence, as well as buying a new home in the desired location.
Read all the details of your relocation package agreement and find out if unforeseen expenses can be charged to the company. Corporate human resources departments and relocation companies will tell you that this system has existed for many years and works to the mutual benefit of both the employer and the real estate agents. Relocation properties also tend to be in good condition because most relocation companies recommend necessary repairs or do them themselves. .
