Trelora will list your house for 1%. That's the lowest rate of anyone we track, and on a $500,000 home, it works out to $5,000 instead of the roughly $13,800 an average agent would charge.[1]
Its reviews aren't the greatest among the discount brokers we cover, however. Its headline 4.9/5 rating comes from a Zillow profile that stopped collecting reviews in February 2025, and that profile holds 1,115 of them, about 60% of everything ever written about the company.[2] Over the past 12 months Trelora has drawn just 20 new reviews, and they average 2.6.
How much those reviews matter depends on two things: what 1% really costs you once you add a buyer's agent, and whether those recent reviews are a blip or a trend. Trelora's sister brokerage shares its owner and its playbook, and what's happening there points to an answer.
Trelora review highlights
- What it is: A full-service discount brokerage with salaried specialist teams, founded in Denver in 2011. It merged with competitor Houwzer in 2022, and the two founded a joint parent company, Newfound, in 2023.[3]
- What you'll pay: 1% to list, paid at closing, nothing if the home doesn't sell. Buyers pay 1% only when the seller won't cover it.[4]
- Best for: Sellers who want the lowest percentage rate available and will read this year's reviews before signing.
- Not ideal for: Anyone who wants a track record they can verify. The recent reviews aren't as good as its past reviews, and there aren't many of them.
- Availability: 19 states and Washington, D.C.
- The rating: 4.8/5 across 1,843 online reviews, compared with 4.9/5 across 5,106 for Clever Real Estate.
Trelora reviews: What real customers say
Aggregate reviews
Ratings and review counts from trusted review platforms across the web.
| Review source | Rating | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 1,843 | |
| BBB | 1 | |
| 708 | ||
| Yelp | 19 | |
| Zillow | 1,115 |
Trelora's lifetime rating is 4.8/5 across 1,843 reviews. Most of that was earned years ago.
Zillow accounts for 1,115 of the total at 4.94, and its most recent review is from February 2025. Google holds 708 at 4.66 and is still active, with reviews through July 2026. So the platform carrying the 4.9 that Trelora advertises is the one that went quiet, and the platform still collecting reviews rates the company lower.
Theme breakdown
Click on a theme to see what reviewers said.
Reviewers highlight responsive, helpful support throughout the sale.
Sample reviews
“We used Trelora for buying our first home. Aaron meisheid was our agent and his team and he was just awesome! We have been looking for our forever home for over 8 months. He has been patient all along the way and was very responsive, attentive, always accurate, and always helpful.” View on Google
“Wow. The whole experience was awesome. We had outstanding service. The realtors in colorado were great. We sold the house in 10 days in a crazy market. They helped us as the buyer did a va loan assumption. Something not for the faint of heart. Great customer service and communication.” View on Google
“Working with Trelora was a pleasure. They helped me sell a property, they were attentive and helpful at every step of the way. Looking forward to working with them on the buying side. I highly recommend their services. Update - used Trelora to purchase our new home in october 2019.” View on Google
Reviewers describe prompt responses and proactive updates at each stage.
Sample reviews
“We recently moved to az. From wa. And rod couldn't have been more helpful! We communicated via email for about a month prior to us taking a trip to az to actually look at houses.” View on Google
“Very pleased with the Trelora buy-side team. As first time home buyers, we had a good idea of the neighborhoods we liked and the kind of house we wanted. We knew we wanted to move fast on the right house and Trelora's digital and flexible approach worked perfect for our needs.” View on Google
“We had a wonderful experience using Trelora to sell our home. We worked with zach, laura, madison and karly and they were all attentive and knowledgeable. We got all our questions answered quickly.” View on Google
Reviewers describe their agent as skilled, professional, and a step above.
Sample reviews
“I had a wonderful experience working with Trelora! As a first-time home buyer, the process is very intimidating and the entire team helped me to stay calm, focused, and encouraged.” View on Google
“Grayson b. At Trelora real estate made it possible to purchase our first home. Grayson was absolutely amazing throughout the entire process and we couldn't thank him enough for all of the help he provided. He was knowledgeable and made it such a seamless process from start to finish.” View on Google
“Christopher, austin and team were excellent to work with. They were very knowledge and managed a very smooth process. We've bought and sold a number of houses and won't be going back to a traditional realtor service now that we've experienced Trelora. Thanks again!” View on Google
Reviewers felt they got full-service support, not a stripped-down experience.
Sample reviews
“Gave Trelora real estate a try after deciding we didn't want to pay the high commissions that other realtors wanted for their services.” View on Google
“Excellent experience from start to finish. Trelora's business model is that of the future. They use a specialist for each step of the selling process rather that one realtor trying to be an expert in everything.” View on Google
“Why pay full price if you don't need to? Trelora is what the real estate industry should be! Not how it was done 20 years ago! Trelora puts the customer first and provides exactly what the customer needs. Top notch customer service, response time, and follow thru with everything they promised.” View on Google
Reviewers describe an easy, low-stress experience from first contact to closing.
Sample reviews
“The realtors have been amazing! They are able to get our home to close in 3 weeks. We had a bid within 3 days. All was smooth and easy including us being on vacation at the same time. They are able to do the mobile notarization for the closing and everything. Peace of mind.” View on Google
“My husband and I have been working with Trelora for almost two years. We worked closely with brock and have total confidence in him and his team . We chose Trelora based upon a recommendation from our son in colorado who both sold and bought his current home with them .” View on Google
“We just recently closed on our home sale and are so glad we chose joanne from Trelora to be our realtor! She had the property on the market for only a week when we went under contract!” View on Google
Reviewers describe meaningful commission savings without giving up service.
Sample reviews
“Trelora is a newer business, but they are deeply concerned about their customer satisfaction level and they truly want your best interest. They have helped sell my brother's house, my parent's house, and now they are helping me as a buyer's agent for a new build. They will save you money.” View on Google
“Christopher and his team did a phenomenal job! Communication is key and someone was always there to answer any questions or to help me thru any issues. I took my house off the market for about a month while I had it painted and some landscaping done.” View on Google
“My experience with Trelora was hands down the best customer service experience I have ever had in any transaction I have ever made ever!! Ever!!! We bought a house and sold a house at the same time with Trelora. If you have ever done this you know how stressful it can be.” View on Google
Reviewers point to strong local market knowledge and pricing guidance.
Sample reviews
“I had a wonderful experience working with Trelora! As a first-time home buyer, the process is very intimidating and the entire team helped me to stay calm, focused, and encouraged.” View on Google
“We had a great experience selling our house in lynnwood, wa with alexis martz of Trelora realty. We were highly impressed during our first meeting when alexis came to look at our house, fully prepared with comparable sales data in the area and suggestions for getting the house ready for listing.” View on Google
“Rod ward was clearly the most competent agent out of the 4 that I spoke with. Along with offering a portion of his commission to cover closing my costs, I felt confident in moving forward with Trelora and rod.” View on Google
Reviewers felt the pricing and fees were clear and reasonable.
Sample reviews
“Gave Trelora real estate a try after deciding we didn't want to pay the high commissions that other realtors wanted for their services.” View on Google
“Trelora was great. Had we posted with a traditional realtor, we would have paid $24,000 just in realtor commission. Instead we paid $5000. That made our house about $20,000 more competitive. It sold in 1 weekend for $16,000 above asking. They work a little differently than other realtors.” View on Google
“Couldn't have been a better experience. We've never bought a home before but you can't beat getting back over $10k at closing! I thought there would be some catch but really there wasn't.” View on Google
Sentiment analysis summary
Sentiment is overwhelmingly positive across 1,843 reviews. Reviewers surfaced eight recurring positive themes and have no significant concerns. Praise is centered mainly on customer service, communication, and agent quality.
Across all of it, customer service is the most-mentioned theme at 68%, then communication at 59% and agent quality at 58%. Savings ranks sixth at 38%, the highest savings share among companies in this series. When Trelora worked, people noticed the savings.
The last 12 months tell a different story
Trelora has drawn 20 reviews in the past 12 months, and they average 2.6. Narrow it to six months, and it's 13 reviews averaging 1.62. Set that against a lifetime 4.8, and it shows that this isn't a small dip.
Two honest caveats: 20 reviews over a full year is a small sample, and unhappy customers write reviews more readily than happy ones, so a thin recent sample skews negative in general. Trelora also has an A+ letter grade from the BBB, though only one BBB review, which is a 1. But 13 people averaging 1.62 over the past six months is still worrisome, and it's the only current signal available.
What to do: Open Trelora's Google reviews and sort by most recent. Read the last 10 reviews yourself before you book a consultation. That's a five-minute check, and on this company, it's the only one worth doing.
Trelora-Houwzer relationship
In 2022, Houwzer acquired Trelora, another discount brokerage.[5] Confirm availability directly with Trelora before listing, as coverage can change.
That changes how to read the numbers above. Houwzer is sliding too, from a 4.9 lifetime rating to 4.43 over the past 12 months and 3.77 over the past three. Trelora's fall is far steeper, but it isn't happening on its own. Whatever is going wrong looks like a Newfound problem rather than a Trelora one, which is worth knowing if you were planning to compare the two.
Trelora fees: What you'll pay
Trelora charges 1% to list, paid at closing, and nothing at all if your home doesn't sell.[4]
| Home price | Trelora 1% | Avg. agent 2.76%Based on Clever Real Estate's annual survey of agents, updated in August 2026. | You save |
|---|---|---|---|
| $200,000 | $2,000 | $5,520 | +$3,520 |
| $300,000 | $3,000 | $8,280 | +$5,280 |
| $500,000 | $5,000 | $13,800 | +$8,800 |
| $750,000 | $7,500 | $20,700 | +$13,200 |
| $1,000,000 | $10,000 | $27,600 | +$17,600 |
The 1% covers your side of the transaction only. Trelora recommends offering a buyer's agent another 2% to 3%, so budget 3% to 4% in total. Average agent commission is from Clever Real Estate's annual survey of agents, updated in August 2026.
Its FAQ says twice that there are no hidden charges, and we found no minimum fee published anywhere on the site.[4] That matters, because a minimum is what usually undoes a low percentage on a cheaper home. 1 Percent Lists has one it doesn't publish, and Prevu says its savings are subject to one without naming it. Ask Trelora to confirm in writing anyway, but on paper, this is the cleanest fee structure in the category.
At 1%, the savings relative to an average agent increase with your price and never reverse. There's no crossover point at which a percentage-based service becomes the cheaper option, which is the structural advantage a percentage-based service has over the flat fees at Homie and Help-U-Sell.
If you're buying
Trelora gives buyers a straight answer that most of its competitors won't. When the seller covers your agent's commission, you pay nothing. When the seller doesn't, Trelora charges you 1%.[4]
Compare that with Prevu, which advertises a buyer rebate and won't say what it charges when the seller pays nothing. Trelora publishes the number. Its homepage also advertises up to $6,000 cash back for buyers, without saying how that's calculated.[2]
How Trelora works
You book a free listing consultation, a pricing agent visits your home, and from there, a team handles photography, the MLS listing, marketing, open houses, negotiation, and closing.[1]
Trelora doesn’t assign a single agent from start to finish. Specialists handle each phase: pricing, marketing and showings, negotiations, and closing. The company calls this "team-based specialization."[6]
The model splits your transaction among specialists rather than assigning you a single agent from start to finish. Trelora's pitch is that a pricing expert prices more effectively than a generalist, and a negotiation expert negotiates more effectively. The trade is that you deal with several people, and the handoffs between them are where the complaints in the recent reviews tend to land.
To be fair, Trelora's model is more hands-on than a bare-bones flat fee listing. You do get a team actively managing your sale, not just an MLS entry. But if your transaction hits a bump, ask up front how Trelora handles escalations in your market, who your main point of contact will be, and how quickly you can expect a response outside business hours.
3 questions to ask Trelora
- Can I see your 10 most recent reviews? Trelora's lifetime rating is built mostly on a Zillow profile that stopped collecting reviews in February 2025. The 20 reviews from the past 12 months average 2.6. Ask for recent ones, or sort Trelora's Google profile by newest and read them yourself.
- Who is on my team, and who manages my sale? Trelora splits your transaction across specialists rather than assigning one agent from start to finish. Get the names, and ask who is accountable when something goes wrong between stages. The handoffs are what recent reviewers complain about.
- Is there any minimum fee, and what do I owe if it doesn't sell? Trelora's FAQ says twice that there are no hidden charges, publishes no minimum, and says you pay nothing if the home doesn't sell. That's the cleanest fee structure in this category, so get all three points confirmed in your listing agreement.
Top Trelora alternatives
Trelora’s 1% fee matches SimpleShowing and undercuts Redfin and Clever on price. The key difference is service model: Unlike those options, Trelora doesn’t offer a dedicated point of contact throughout your transaction.
Trelora vs. Redfin
Trelora is cheaper than Redfin on listing fees (1% vs. Redfin’s 2%). But Redfin has a robust consumer-facing platform for searching listings, scheduling tours, and tracking your sale. If you’re comfortable using technology to stay on top of your transaction, Redfin’s tools may offset some of the agent continuity you’d get with a traditional brokerage.
Trelora doesn’t have a comparable consumer platform. Its value lies mainly in its fee structure and team-based specialist model. If you’d use Redfin’s app heavily, that’s worth factoring in. If you just want to sell and save, Trelora’s lower fee and broader coverage may make more sense.
Customer reviews also tell a different story. Redfin’s aggregate customer rating is significantly lower, with more complaints around agent responsiveness and inconsistent service quality at scale.
Trelora vs. Clever Real Estate
Clever Real Estate charges a 1.5% listing fee vs. Trelora’s 1%. On a $500,000 home, that’s a $2,500 difference in your pocket. If fee minimization is your primary goal, Trelora wins on price.
The service experience is meaningfully different, though. Clever matches you with a single, vetted full-service agent at a reduced commission. That agent handles your entire transaction (pricing, showings, negotiation, and closing), with one consistent point of contact. You get the economics of a discount brokerage with the feel of a traditional full-service relationship.
Trelora’s team model means you’ll work with multiple people at each stage. That works well when everything goes smoothly. When complications arise — a difficult inspection, a low appraisal, a buyer who goes cold — having one agent who knows your full situation matters.
The right choice depends on your priorities. If saving every dollar counts and your sale is likely to be straightforward, Trelora’s 1% is hard to beat. If you want a dedicated agent relationship and are willing to pay a small premium, Clever is worth considering.
Trelora vs. Ideal Agent
Trelora costs half as much as Ideal Agent. On a $500,000 sale, that's $5,000 against Ideal Agent's 2%, or $10,000. Ideal Agent also charges a flat $4,000 on homes under $200,000, so the gap closes at the bottom of the market.
They work differently, too. Trelora sells your house with its own salaried teams. Ideal Agent matches you with an agent from another brokerage, and it covers all 50 states, whereas Trelora covers 19 and D.C.
On reviews, they're more alike than the ratings suggest. Ideal Agent's 4.9 rests on Trustpilot, which holds 3,964 of its reviews and hasn't logged a new one since March 2024. Trelora's 4.8 rests on a Zillow profile that has been dormant since February 2025.
Bottom line: Is Trelora worth it?
Pros
- 1% is the lowest percentage rate we track. On a $500,000 home that's $5,000, against $7,500 for a 1.5% service and about $13,800 for an average agent.
- No published minimum and no upfront cost. The fee is paid at closing, and nothing is owed if the home doesn't sell. Its FAQ states twice that there are no hidden charges.
- When a seller won't cover your agent, Trelora charges 1% and says so. Competitors that advertise buyer rebates mostly won't put a number on that scenario.
Cons
- Recent reviews average 2.6 over 12 months and 1.62 over six. Against a lifetime 4.8, that's a big dip.
- Zillow is 60% of the review base and stopped receiving reviews in February 2025. Google, which is still active, rates Trelora 4.66.
- You get a team, not an agent. Specialists handle each stage, and the handoffs are what recent reviewers complain about.
Trelora has the best fee structure in this category and the worst recent reviews. You have to decide how much weight to put on 13 reviews, which is obviously a small sample size but the most recent and relevant reviews to analyze.
Trelora may be a good fit if you’re selling a desirable home in an active market, are comfortable working with a team rather than a single agent, and your situation is relatively straightforward.
You may want to look elsewhere if you prefer a single dedicated point of contact, are selling in a market with limited Trelora presence, need availability outside standard business hours, or are a buyer in a fast-moving situation.
Before committing, interview your local Trelora agent alongside at least two other options. The service model you're comfortable with matters as much as the fee.
Looking to save more? Clever Real Estate matches you with top-rated local agents from brokerages like Keller Williams and RE/MAX — and pre-negotiates a low 1.5% listing fee for you. You get full service, expert support, and thousands in savings. Get matched with an agent today.
FAQ
How much does Trelora charge?
A 1% listing fee, paid at closing, with nothing owed if your home doesn't sell.[4] Trelora recommends offering a buyer's agent 2% to 3% separately, so budget 3% to 4% in total.
Is Trelora legit?
Yes. Trelora is a licensed brokerage founded in Denver in 2011 and now owned by Newfound, the parent company it formed with Houwzer in 2023.[3] It holds an A+ letter grade from the BBB, and it has 1,843 online reviews averaging 4.8/5. The concern on this page isn't legitimacy, it's that reviews from the past year average far below that lifetime figure.
Where is Trelora available?
Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Washington, D.C.
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