Pay a Flat Fee.
Keep the Rest.
Traditional buyer agents earn 2%–3% of your home price — meaning they earn more when you spend more. Roman charges a single flat fee and returns every dollar above it to you as a closing cost credit at closing.
How It Works, Step by Step
From the first conversation to keys in hand — here is exactly what happens when you buy a home with Roman's flat fee model in Los Angeles or Orange County.
Sign the Flat-Fee BRBC Agreement
Before touring a single home, you and Roman sign a Buyer Representation and Broker Compensation Agreement (BRBC). This document states your flat fee tier — $7,250 or $9,250 — as the absolute maximum Roman will ever earn on your transaction.
There is no percentage language, no vague ranges, no ambiguity. Your fee is fixed and disclosed in writing before the relationship begins.
Tour Homes as Needed
Home tours are conducted by Roman's licensed showing agents across all of Los Angeles County and Orange County. Tours are scheduled as needed — you visit the homes that matter, as many times as necessary, until you are completely confident in your decision.
Roman's showing agents handle all scheduling with listing agents and coordinate access to every active listing across SoCal. Roman personally leads strategy, offers, and negotiation on every transaction.
Write Offers and Win With Strategy
When you find the right home, Roman prepares a comprehensive comparable market analysis, develops your offer strategy, and writes a complete Residential Purchase Agreement. In competitive SoCal markets, offer structure matters as much as price — Roman has 22 years of experience navigating multiple-offer situations.
Roman also conducts a full review of all seller disclosures including the Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS), Seller Property Questionnaire (SPQ), natural hazard disclosure, and HOA documents where applicable.
Close and Keep Your Closing Cost Credit
When your offer is accepted, Roman negotiates the excess commission into your Residential Purchase Agreement as a seller concession — a closing cost credit. This is documented in writing before any offer is submitted. At closing, the credit reduces your out-of-pocket costs dollar for dollar.
Roman coordinates the full escrow process including contingency management, inspection scheduling, appraisal follow-up, and final walkthrough through to close of escrow.
How the Credit Works in Real Numbers
The closing cost credit is not a rebate, not cash, and not a gimmick. It is a seller concession negotiated directly into your purchase contract — a legitimate, documented reduction in your closing costs.
What Exactly Is a Closing Cost Credit?
A closing cost credit is a seller concession — money the seller contributes toward your closing costs at the time of purchase. It is negotiated directly into your Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA) and reduces the cash you need to bring to closing.
Common closing costs it offsets include loan origination fees, title insurance, escrow fees, prepaid interest, and property tax impounds. Depending on your loan type and lender, it can also reduce your down payment requirements.
The credit is legal, standard in California real estate transactions, and fully disclosed to all parties including your lender. It is not a kickback, not a rebate, and not taxable income in most circumstances — consult your CPA for tax guidance.
Flat Fee vs. Traditional 2.5% Agent
Both models provide the same full buyer representation service. The only difference is how the agent is compensated — and what happens to the money left over.
| What You're Comparing | Roman — Flat Fee | Traditional 2.5% Agent |
|---|---|---|
| Compensation structure | ✓ Fixed flat fee — $7,250 or $9,250 | 2%–3% of purchase price |
| On a $1M home | ✓ $7,250 flat | $25,000 at 2.5% |
| On a $2M home | ✓ $9,250 flat | $50,000 at 2.5% |
| Excess commission | ✓ Returned to you as closing cost credit | ✕ Kept by agent |
| Agent earns more when you spend more | ✓ No — fee is fixed | ✕ Yes — creates conflict of interest |
| Home tours as needed | ✓ Yes — all of LA & OC | ✓ Typically yes |
| Offer writing & negotiation | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Full disclosure review (TDS, SPQ, HOA) | ✓ Included | ✓ Typically included |
| Escrow & closing coordination | ✓ Included | ✓ Included |
| Works directly with named agent | ✓ Licensed showing agents + Roman on strategy & offers | ✕ Often routed to team members |
| BRBC compliance (post-NAR settlement) | ✓ Fully compliant, flat fee stated | ✓ Compliant, percentage stated |
| Compensation transparency | ✓ Exact dollar amount known upfront | Percentage known, dollar amount varies |
* Service levels may vary by agent. The comparison above reflects Roman's model vs. a typical traditional buyer agent offering full buyer representation. Not all traditional agents provide the same service level.
Full Service. Nothing Removed.
The flat fee covers complete buyer representation from the first showing to the close of escrow. The fee structure changes. The service level does not.
Buyer Representation Agreement
A written BRBC stating your flat fee tier as the maximum compensation — required by law since August 2024 and protective of your interests as a buyer.
Touring Properties
Home tours are handled by Roman's licensed showing agents across Los Angeles County and Orange County. Roman personally manages strategy, offer writing, negotiation, and every other step of the transaction — his showing agents ensure you get into every property quickly with no scheduling delays.
Comparative Market Analysis
A full CMA for every property you make an offer on — sold comps, active competition, price-per-square-foot analysis, and negotiation strategy based on 22 years of SoCal data.
Offer Writing & Negotiation
Complete Residential Purchase Agreement preparation, counter-offer management, and negotiation strategy for every offer — including multiple-offer situations.
Full Disclosure Review
Review of all seller disclosures including Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS), Seller Property Questionnaire (SPQ), natural hazard disclosure, and HOA documents where applicable.
Escrow & Closing Coordination
Contingency management, inspection coordination, appraisal follow-up, loan condition tracking, and final walkthrough through to close of escrow — every step of the way.
Why Flat Fee Models Win in the Post-Settlement Market
The August 2024 NAR settlement changed how buyer agent compensation works in the United States. Buyers must now sign a written Buyer Representation and Broker Compensation Agreement (BRBC) before touring any home — and that agreement must specify exactly how the agent will be paid.
This made buyer agent compensation fully transparent and negotiable for the first time. Roman's flat-fee model was built for exactly this environment — a fixed dollar amount stated clearly in the BRBC, with every excess dollar returned to the buyer.
Roman's BRBC States the Flat Fee as Maximum Compensation
Unlike percentage-based agreements where the dollar amount varies with the purchase price, Roman's BRBC states a specific maximum: $7,250 for homes under $1.5M, or $9,250 for homes $1.5M and above. You know your exact cost before the first showing.
What Changed in August 2024
Written BRBC required before touring any home. Roman's flat-fee agreement satisfies this requirement with full transparency.
Buyer agent commission is no longer automatically offered by sellers in MLS listings. Roman negotiates it into every offer as a seller concession.
Compensation is now fully negotiable. Roman's flat fee eliminates percentage-based conflicts of interest entirely.
Seller concessions can now include buyer agent compensation. The excess becomes your closing cost credit.
Buyers benefit most from agents whose fee does not scale with the purchase price. That is exactly Roman's model.
22 Years of SoCal Buyer Representation
Roman Doktorovich has been representing buyers across Southern California since 2002 — through the 2008 market crash, the recovery, the pandemic surge, and now the post-NAR settlement transformation. That depth of market experience translates directly into sharper offer strategy, stronger negotiations, and fewer surprises in escrow.
After years at Redfin, Roman launched his independent flat-fee practice with one conviction: buyers deserve full professional representation without a commission structure that earns the agent more when the buyer spends more. The flat fee eliminates that conflict entirely — Roman earns the same amount whether you buy a $600K condo in Woodland Hills or a $4M estate in Beverly Hills.
You work directly with Roman throughout your entire transaction. Home tours are handled by his licensed showing agents so you get fast access to every property. Roman personally handles strategy, offer writing, negotiation, disclosures, and closing. One flat fee, every time.