A finder's fee is a fee paid to someone who acts as an intermediary for another party in a transaction. Finder's fees may be offered in a variety of situations. For example, an employer may pay a finder's fee to a recruitment agency upon hiring a new employee referred by that agency. A finder's fee may be paid regardless of whether a transaction is ultimately consummated.
In a real estate context, a finder's fee may be paid for locating property, obtaining mortgage financing or referring sellers or buyers. A finders fee is money paid to a person for finding someone interested in selling or buying property. To conduct any negotiations of sale terms, the finder may be required to be a licensed broker or he violates the law. However, state laws, which vary by state, may also provide an exemption for certain individuals, allowing them to be compensated without the necessity of licensure. For example, one state's law allows an exemption for either a property management firm or an owner of an apartment complex to playa finders fee or referral of up to $50 to a current tenant for referring a new tenant. The fee can be in the form of cash, a rental reduction or some other thing of value. The party claiming compensation under this exemption is not allowed to advertise for prospective tenants.
Because they aren't technically held by the state, real estate created overages aren't subject to those finder fee limits. In fact, they're usually not subject to any limits at all (within reason... charge 95%, and you may be asking for a lawsuit). 30-50% is standard for those who specialize in collecting those funds.
These are the funds that are created when more is bid at auction for tax foreclosure and mortgage foreclosure properties. Those overages are more often than not due back to the former owners. Unfortunately for them, most don't realize this, and walk away from their financial mess without realizing they may have a small windfall awaiting them. Then, if they don't figure it out in time, they lose it to the agency holding the funds.
