— By Maggie Gordon

GUILDERLAND — Tim Mulchy and Dotty Merza have each been in the real-estate business for 20 years. In that time, they have seen house prices rise, along with the fees charged by real estate agents.

This is why they are opening their own business in Star Plaza: Select MLS 4 Less. The company is a Multi-Listing Service — a business which takes a seller’s information, and lists the house in a database for other real estate agents and companies to access.

However, this is a different kind of MLS.
Ordinarily, a seller would sign a contract which allots four, five, or six percent of the selling price to the real-estate company. "That fee is usually split between the Realtor who lists the property and the Realtor who sells it," Merza said.

Select MLS 4 Less charges a flat rate of $650 to list the property, and then encourages its customers to give about 2 percent of the selling price to the real estate agent that sells it.
"We are not charging those huge listing fees, and, in return for that, we are asking you to do some of the work that ordinarily a listing agent does, like showing the house," Merza said. "We’ll give you the name and number of the person interested instead of the agent bringing them."
Merza estimates that on a $200,000 home, this service would save a seller roughly $6,000. "This is certainly worth $6,000 to the seller," Merza said.
Merza and Mulchy decided to open their business because "the fees are astronomical... When the market goes up, so do everyone’s fees, but you’re not working 15 percent harder."
"We’re responding to what’s happening," Merza said. "Real estate companies are getting a higher and higher overhead, but in our opinion they’re not really charging a fair price."

Since Mulchy has lived in Guilderland for 24 years, he wants to provide fair and affordable service to his fellow townspeople, he said.
"Guilderland is really a vibrant community," Merza said. "There’s a lot happening here. It’s a great place to have a business."
The business will only include listings on the Internet. "The Internet has changed everything," said Merza.
Merza is hopeful that the on-line niche will help set their company apart from the competition. "If you’re not on the Internet, you really aren’t reaching the marketplace," she said.

Merza is from Niskayuna, and has a degree in English. Her partner, Mulchy, has a degree in hotel and restaurant management.

They have 40 years of combined experience in the real-estate field. Mulchy also owns Select Homes, a standard real-estate company that does charge a percentage for listing a house.
The new business differs not only from Mulchy’s existing company but also other businesses in the field because "it leaves equity in your pocket," Merza said. "It has the benefits of using a Realtor without a huge layout of money."