Commissions - When we sold our place, our listing agent did 4% commission if it was sold in-house (by one of the realtors at her office or herself) and 5% if it was sold by an outside agent. I think with the MLS it pretty much is a 50-50 split. Sounds like the realtor you spoke with was giving you a load of bs to try to talk you out of putting the property on the MLS. That way, all interested parties come through them, and they get the full commission. That is NOT in your best interest, though, so don't let them bs you!

PS The agent we've used for a few buys/sales has been great. We had 4 other realtors come look at the house we were selling, and she told us to put it on the market for 100K higher than any of them did. It sold at asking price - and we even had an offer over asking price. PM me and I'll put you in touch with her if you'd like.

Marketwatch had an article today about getting an appraisal before you sell.
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Five things to know about home appraisals
Getting one before a home hits the market can save time and money
By Amy Hoak, MarketWatch
Last Update: 4:58 PM ET Jul 16, 2006

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Price your home incorrectly and it could mean a long stay on the market, a final selling price lower than what the house is worth or both.
That's why some homeowners are electing to pay $300 to $400 for an appraisal before putting their homes on the market, said Alan Hummel, past president of the Appraisal Institute and chief appraiser for St. Paul, Minn.-based Forsythe Appraisals LLC.

Five things to know about home appraisals

We're thinking of selling our place by Van Vorst Park (Webmaster - this is not a solicitation for offers, just a discussion)

Just a few questions. Does anyone have any ideas on what a two duplex Van Vorst Brownstone should fetch in today's market?

A house in my neighborhood sold pretty quickly for $975K. From what the neighbors said, it wasn't anything special. In pretty decent shape, but certainly not a complete renovation.

Also, what would be a reasonable commmision to pay to a realtor?

And finally, can someone explain how commisions are divided when a property is sold through Multiple Listing? A realtor we contacted tried to explain how complex the formula was. I figured it was just 50% to the listing agent and 50% to the selling agent.