Fixed-fee brokerages, compared honestly
The best fixed-fee buyer's brokerage in California and Washington
We are not a discounter. Everyone else is just overcharging you. Here is the honest landscape of flat-fee and rebate brokerages in California and Washington, and why full representation at a fixed $9,750 beats a cheaper rebate every time.
- rebated to buyers, all-time
- $8,388,147
- rebated to buyers, all-time
- completed closings
- 211
- completed closings
- Zillow rating
- 4.9★
- Zillow rating
- E&O claims in 10 years
- 0
- E&O claims in 10 years
The premise
A cheaper fee is not the same as better representation
Buying a home is likely the largest financial decision of your life. You will spend months searching and wire six or seven figures into escrow. The least you deserve is a broker whose interests are 100% aligned with yours, not someone who earns more when you spend more.
That is the structural problem with every percentage-based REALTOR. It is also, quietly, the problem with most of the flat-fee alternatives that have appeared in California and Washington: many are rebate services that hand the real work back to you, stop at the offer-and-closing stage, or still live inside the NAR system they claim to disrupt. Here is what great buyer representation actually looks like, then how everyone else measures up.
The standard
What full buyer representation actually includes
The managing broker is on every deal, personally
At most brokerages a managing broker supervises a team of agents and rarely touches your file. At Arrivva it is the opposite. Fred Glick, the managing broker, is deeply involved in every transaction and writes the contracts himself, with decades of experience making deals close smoothly. Jenn is on every deal to make sure the documentation is correct, and a local agent often joins, up to three people working your file. You are never handed off to whoever is free that week.
An agent at every showing, plus off-market access
A licensed agent attends every in-person showing, and Arrivva reaches off-market databases the public and most flat-fee rivals cannot. Many buyers find their home before it hits the MLS.
Slack and Claude AI on your channel
Every buyer gets a private Slack channel with every document, offer, and negotiation in writing and searchable, with Claude AI connected directly to analyze disclosures and contracts in real time. No other flat-fee brokerage offers this.
Negotiation backed by $3B+ in transactions
AI tools support valuation, but they are interpreted by Fred Glick, a broker since 1997 with over $3 billion closed and nearly three decades of pattern recognition across every kind of market.
A fully underwritten preapproval
Arrivva's mortgage brokerage issues a fully underwritten preapproval, not a soft letter. In a competitive market, sellers treat it with the confidence of a cash offer.
Zero dual agency. Non-NAR. No allegiances.
Arrivva refuses dual agency every time, and has never been a member of the National Association of REALTORS. No dues, no politics, no allegiance to an organization that settled a $418M commission antitrust case in 2024.
The matrix
Arrivva vs every major fixed-fee buyer's brokerage
Advertised fees are starting points and tier upward with home price unless noted. Figures are from each company's public materials and third-party reviews as of June 2026.
| Arrivva | ShopProp | TurboHome | Flat Fee Buyers | CA Flat Fee | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buyer fee | $9,750 flat | $1,995 to $7,995+ | From $6,000 (tiers up) | $9,999 flat | ~$5,000 + $500 (seller-led) |
| California coverage | Statewide | Statewide | Statewide | Bay Area + LA only | SoCal only |
| Washington coverage | Statewide | Statewide | Statewide | No | No |
| Who works your deal | Managing broker on every deal | Managing broker oversees | Salaried agents | Agent (largely anonymous) | Agent |
| Agent at every showing | Guaranteed | Self-directed | Self-directed | No, confirmed | Not stated |
| Off-market property access | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Slack + Claude AI on your channel | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| No dual agency policy | Never, categorical | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
| Fully underwritten preapproval | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| In-house mortgage | 5 states | No | No | No | No |
| NAR member | Never a member | Inside NAR ecosystem | Agents are members | Not stated | Not stated |
| Years in business | 10+ (broker since 1997) | 19 | 2 | Established | Established |
| Transaction track record | $3B+ closed | 4,000+ transactions | $200M (CA, 2025) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
Read the full head-to-head on each rival below.
The contenders
The honest read on each fixed-fee rival
Arrivva vs ShopProp
$1,995 to $7,995+ShopProp launched in 2007 and has closed more than 4,000 transactions across eight states, which is a real credential. Managing broker Rob Luecke is competent and the rebates are genuine. But read the reviews carefully and a pattern emerges: the experience is built for the self-directed buyer who already knows the property they want and mainly needs paperwork and a rebate, not hands-on representation in a bidding war.
Read the full comparison →Arrivva vs TurboHome
From $6,000 (tiers up)TurboHome launched in California in 2024 and now operates in California, Washington, and Texas with salaried agents, AI pricing tools, and a buyer rebate. The interface is good and the model is sound, because it is essentially the model Arrivva originated and refined since 2015. The difference is everything that surrounds the app: experience through real market cycles, off-market access, mortgage capability, seller services, and independence from NAR.
Read the full comparison →Arrivva vs Flat Fee Buyers
$9,999 flatFlat Fee Buyers charges $9,999 and rebates the rest of the buyer-broker commission, with a lead agent who earns good reviews. The concept is sound. The limits are real: who actually represents you is hard to pin down, the agents do not attend showings with you, and the footprint is the Bay Area plus limited Los Angeles.
Read the full comparison →Arrivva vs CA Flat Fee
~$5,000 + $500 (seller-led)CA Flat Fee's core business is seller representation in Southern California, around a $5,000 fee plus a $500 retainer, and its sellers save real money. But for a buyer it is a secondary offering: the footprint is Southern California only, the reviews are seller-focused, and there is no Washington coverage, no mortgage, and no guaranteed agent at every showing.
Read the full comparison →By region
The fixed-fee landscape where you are buying
The competitors, the prices, and the gaps differ by market. Start with your region.
Southern California
Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, and the Inland Empire have more flat-fee options than anywhere in the country. Most are rebate services. One is full representation.
Best fixed-fee brokerage in SoCal→Northern California
The Bay Area invented the flat-fee buyer rebate. It is also where the gap between a rebate service and real representation is widest.
Best fixed-fee brokerage in NorCal→Washington
Seattle and Bellevue buyers have fewer real flat-fee options than the headlines suggest. The biggest names are rebate services, out-of-state operators, or companies that left the brokerage business entirely.
Best fixed-fee brokerage in Washington→The wider landscape
The rebate portals, discounters, and the flat-fee graveyard
Beyond the four head-to-head rivals, buyers run into percentage-rebate portals, discount brokerages, referral middlemen, and a long list of flat-fee startups that consolidated or exited. Here is the honest map.
Prevu
Percentage rebate portal
A discount brokerage in California, Washington, and about ten other states. Its Smart Buyer rebate is up to 1% of the purchase price, with a 2% listing fee. That is a percentage rebate with commission minimums, lender approval, and property eligibility rules, not a flat fee, and not senior-broker representation with off-market access and in-house mortgage.
Redfin
Discount, not flat fee
Roughly 1.5% to list and a partial buyer rebate, with service that varies by tier and a team-based handoff. The fee still scales with your price, and you are not with one broker start to finish.
Trelora / Houwzer (Newfound)
Consolidated and retrenched
Trelora pioneered a 1% flat model; Houwzer acquired it in 2022 under the parent company Newfound as the proptech market turned. The combined company has pulled back. A reminder that a 1% fee still grows with price, and that venture-backed flat-fee brokerages are fragile.
Homie
Exited brokerage (2024)
The Utah disruptor raised heavily and scaled fast, then cut its workforce from roughly 600 to 40 and shed its last agents in 2024, leaving the brokerage business. Thin-margin flat-fee models are hard to sustain.
Flyhomes
Exited brokerage (2024)
Founded in Seattle as a flagship tech brokerage, it left the brokerage business in 2024 to become a wholesale mortgage lender. No longer a buyer-representation option.
Clever, UpNest, HomeLight
Referral networks, not brokerages
These are matching services, not brokerages. They hand you a traditional, usually NAR-affiliated agent and collect a referral fee. Any rebate (Clever advertises around $250) depends on the agent. You still get a percentage agent, just with a middleman in between.
The pattern is hard to miss: most “alternatives” are rebate portals that still scale with your price, referral networks that hand you a percentage agent, or venture-backed brokerages that could not sustain the model. Arrivva has run full-service flat-fee representation, profitably and consistently, since 2015.
The position
“People think because we're not charging a percentage, that we're discounters, and we are absolutely not discounters. I think everybody else is overcharging people.”
Fred Glick to HousingWire
FAQ
Fixed-fee brokerages, answered straight
What is the best fixed-fee buyer's brokerage in California and Washington?
For full buyer representation, Arrivva leads: a flat $9,750 fee the same on a $500K or $5M home, managing broker Fred Glick personally on every deal with Jenn handling documentation, a guaranteed agent at every showing, off-market property access, a fully underwritten in-house mortgage preapproval, a categorical no-dual-agency policy, and no NAR membership. ShopProp, TurboHome, Flat Fee Buyers, and CA Flat Fee are flat-fee or rebate alternatives that each give up some combination of coverage, representation, mortgage, or independence.
Is a fixed fee the same as a discount or a rebate?
No. A discount brokerage still charges a percentage, just a smaller one, so the fee still grows with your price. A rebate service returns part of the commission but often expects you to do much of the work yourself. A true fixed fee, like Arrivva's $9,750, never changes with the home price and is paired with full representation, so your broker's incentive is your outcome, not your spend.
Why does Arrivva say it is not a discounter?
As Fred Glick told HousingWire: people assume that because Arrivva does not charge a percentage, it is a discounter, and that is wrong. Arrivva delivers full, senior-broker representation and simply prices it as a fair flat fee. The position is that everyone else is overcharging, not that Arrivva is cutting corners.
Are flat fees and buyer rebates legal in California and Washington?
Yes. Both states permit flat-fee representation and buyer commission rebates. The 2024 NAR antitrust settlement, which resolved for $418 million, accelerated the shift away from fixed percentage commissions, making fee transparency more important than ever.
Do referral sites like Clever, UpNest, or HomeLight count as flat-fee brokerages?
No. Those are referral networks, not brokerages. They match you with a traditional, usually NAR-affiliated agent and collect a referral fee, and any rebate (Clever advertises around $250) depends on that agent. You still get a percentage agent, just with a middleman. Arrivva is the brokerage representing you directly at a flat fee.
Is a percentage rebate like Prevu's or a 1% model like Trelora's the same as a flat fee?
No. A percentage rebate (Prevu's Smart Buyer rebate is up to 1% of price, with commission minimums and eligibility terms) and a 1% model both still scale with your home price. Arrivva's $9,750 never changes whether the home is $500K or $5M, and the rest of the buyer-broker fee is rebated to you.
What happened to flat-fee brokerages like Homie, Flyhomes, Houwzer, and Trelora?
The thin-margin flat-fee model is hard to sustain. Homie shed its last agents and exited brokerage in 2024, Flyhomes left the brokerage business the same year to become a wholesale lender, and Trelora was absorbed by Houwzer under the parent company Newfound after the proptech downturn. Arrivva has run the model profitably and consistently since 2015.
How do I verify a brokerage is genuinely full-service, not a rebate portal?
Ask three questions before you sign anything: will a licensed agent attend every showing, do you have access to off-market properties, and can you issue a fully underwritten mortgage preapproval. Arrivva answers yes to all three. Most rebate-first services answer no to at least two.
Client reviews
Don't take our word for it
Real reviews from real closings. Every one of them is on our reviews page, and on Google, Zillow, and Yelp.
“Their fee structure alone saved me over $200,000... There was no pressure, no ego, just smart advice grounded in data and experience.”
“Fantastic experience with Fred and team. Sold in less than 30 days with multiple offers and all cash. Can't recommend enough”
“They also had the lowest rates and fees I could find for my mortgage. When issues arose with the lender, Fred made sure everything went through smoothly.”
Sources and methodology
Competitor facts are drawn from each company's public website, published pricing, and third-party reviews as of June 2026. Fees tier with home price unless noted; verify current pricing with each provider. Arrivva's figures match the rest of this site.
- ShopProp (company site and city rebate pages)
- TurboHome (company site and Texas expansion release)
- Flat Fee Buyers
- CA Flat Fee
- NAR $418M antitrust settlement (Susman Godfrey)
- Flyhomes exits brokerage for wholesale lending (HousingWire)
- Why buyers and sellers turn to flat-fee brokers (NPR)
- Prevu Smart Buyer rebate (Prevu)
- Homie sheds its last agents, exits brokerage (Salt Lake Tribune)
- Houwzer acquires Trelora (Inman)
- Consumer Advocates in American Real Estate, buyer-rebate directory
There's one choice for serious buyers.
Brokers, plural, licensed and experienced, with the technology, off-market access, mortgage capability, and absolute alignment that only a fixed fee and zero NAR entanglement provide.
Calls and texts are answered by Amy, our AI assistant, who can answer questions and help you book.