Home buyers should always have their own agent. Buyer agents work to negotiate the best terms and price for the buyer. Best of all, the buyer agent’s services are free to the buyer.

Most people think they have to pay a sales commission. The truth is this: only the seller pays the commission.

Whether a buyer uses an agent or not, the seller still pays the commission. The only person that wins when buyers are not represented is the listing agent.

Most buyer agents will have their clients sign an agency agreement, an Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement. It outlines their services, how they are compensated, and how the two parties will work together.

To ensure you’re working with an agent who specializes in representing buyers, seek out an Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR).

Remember, you wouldn’t hire your spouse’s attorney to represent you in your divorce. The same goes for real estate. Why use the seller’s agent to negotiate your best interest? There is an inherent conflict of interest.

The home buying process is stressful enough without worrying about who you can and cannot trust. Your buyer’s agent is your trusted advocate.

Buyer Agents and the Agreements

According to most buyer agency agreements, the buyer’s agent must do these things:

Protect their client’s financial information
Negotiate the best possible price for the buyer
Must disclose to the buyer if they are working with another buyer interested in the same property
Show all properties the buyer is interested in that fits their criteria and budget
Connect you with the service providers—inspectors, lenders, home warranty companies—to best suit your needs

The buyer also has some responsibilities to their buyer’s agent:

Buyers must work with their buyers agent exclusively
Buyers should never give personal information to any other agent
Buyers should not call other agents to see properties, even if they think they are saving their agent some time and effort
Buyers should clearly define their must haves and deal breakers to help their agent streamline the showing process

Home buyers are at a premium in today’s housing market. Buyers should interview agents just as seller’s interview listing agents.

Make sure the buyer’s agent you select is familiar the type of property you want to purchase, the area you want to purchase in and the particulars of your situation. An agent is only as effective as the information they are given. Clients relocating from one city to another require a different set of skills from a client moving within the same area, for example.

Buying real estate is a big decision. The best advice is to find a REALTOR® who will guide you through the local market conditions. To find out more about Alicia Duffy to see if you would work well together click here for resume.

The Real Estate Commission: A Guide to Who Pays, How Much, and More

By Daniel Bortz | Apr 15, 2019

If you hire a real estate agent to help you buy, sell, or rent a house, this professional gets paid through a real estate commission. So how much do you pay, and what for? Is there any wiggle room to negotiate this fee?

As a real estate agent myself, allow me to tell you firsthand everything you need to know about real estate commissions, from who pays to how much to where that money goes.

How much is a real estate commission?

Rather than getting paid hourly or weekly fees, most real estate agents earn money only when a real estate deal goes through.

Granted, this may seem like a serious chunk of change, but keep in mind that no one makes off with the whole amount! Plus, real estate agents don't see a dime until a buyer finds a home she loves, the seller accepts the offer, and all parties meet at the closing table. That process can mean weeks or months of work and sometimes fall apart and taken as a loss.

Who pays the commission?

Generally, the home seller pays the full commission for the services of both their own listing agent and the buyer's agent (assuming the buyer has one).

Buyer's and seller's agents typically split the commission. So if a home sells for $200,000 at a 6% commission, the seller's agent and buyer's agent might split that $12,000, and each receive $6,000.

However, the commission split varies from one agent to another, with new agents sometimes earning a smaller percentage of the commission than experienced agents who sell more homes or more expensive properties.

What is dual agency?

So what happens if an agent represents the buyer and the seller? In that case, the agent becomes a “dual agent” and gets paid both commissions. (Talk about a big payday!)

However, because it puts them in a sticky position of having to work for both the seller and the buyer, many agents don’t practice dual agency—and some states don’t even allow it. I believe it creates a conflict of interest. After all, clients hire me to represent their best interests. How can I do that when I'm sitting on both sides of the table?

What does a real estate agent commission cover?

Though people certainly have the option of selling (or buying) their house without a real estate agent, agents provide clients a wide range of services, including helping you price your home, marketing it (on the multiple listing service, social media, and other venues), negotiating with home buyers, and ushering the home sale through closing.

As trained experts, real estate agents can help you fetch top dollar for your house and put out fires—while also alleviating some of the stress that comes with selling a home. (It’s no picnic!) I might be biased, since I’m an agent myself, but great ones earn their keep.

Want proof? Just look at the numbers: A recent survey found that the typical "for sale by owner" home sold for $190,000, compared with $249,000 for agent-assisted home sales, according to the National Association of Realtors®. That’s in line with a recent survey from Keeping Current Matters that found that homes listed for sale with a real estate agent sell for $46,000 more on average than FSBO houses. Perhaps that explains why 92% of home sellers use an agent to sell their house.

Is a real estate agent commission negotiable?

Though 5% to 6% tends to be the norm, commission standards can vary from state to state and among brokerages. Still, there are no federal or state laws that set commission rates—meaning commission is negotiable.

In other words, if you’re a home seller, you can certainly ask your agent to reduce their commission, but be aware that he is not obligated to do so.

A factor to consider: Because the marketing dollars for a property generally come from the agent’s commission, a lower commission could mean less advertising for your house.

That being said, it doesn’t hurt to ask for a lower commission. Most agents won't take offense, and the worst case is they say no. Or, if you’re truly tight on cash—say, because you’ve maxed out your budget buying your next home—you could opt for a transactional agreement, in which the listing agent will help you set an asking price, facilitate communication between you and the buyer, write the contract, and move the process along to closing for a flat fee or lower commission, but you won’t receive the agent's full services. It’s not ideal, but it’s the right route for some people. However, not all agents offer transactional agreements, so you may have to shop around to find one.

Bottom line: It is likely that buying and selling a home will be the biggest financial transactions of your life, so be sure you find an agent that you trust will do a great job. This is not the time to shop solely on price.

What else do I need to know about commissions?

All of the details about a real estate agent's commission (and any transaction fees the agent charges) should be outlined in the contract that you sign when you hire an agent. This is typically referred to as a listing agreement, and it also specifies how long the agent will represent you. (Generally, listing agreements last 90 to 120 days.)

Also keep in mind that there are some exceptions. For instance, rental agents work differently from purchase agents. It's usually the landlord’s job to pay the rental agent's fee, but that’s not set in stone. In New York City, for example, tenants often pay the rental agent’s commission. It's up to the landlord and the tenant to decide who pays the rental agent's fee.

Furthermore, commission is usually higher when selling a vacant lot(anywhere from 10% to 20%), since selling land often takes longer and requires more marketing dollars. Some auctions charge home buyers a 5% "premium," or commission.

As a seller, you want a real estate agent who can broker the best sales price and terms for you, but good agents aren’t cheap. As with most things in life, you get what you pay for.

Michele Lerner contributed to this report.

What Is Dual Agency? Know When It's Right, and When to Beware

By Lisa Johnson Mandell

Dual agency is a situation to describe when a real estate agent works with both the buyer and the seller. Most people familiar with the housing market know that a buyer's agent works for the buyer, a listing agent for the seller, but there's a third category that's much more mysterious: the dual agent.

Dual agents, also known as transaction brokers, work for both the buyer and the seller, combining both roles into one. Buyers might stumble across this scenario when they fall in love with a home where the agent they've hired to represent them also happens to represent the seller. It's rare, but it happens, especially in smaller markets where there aren't a whole lot of properties to go around. Dual agency can also mean that the buyer and seller have separate agents at the same real estate firm, which most often happens with large brokerages with lots of listings.

Certain states (but not all) permit dual agency as long as it's disclosed to both buyers and sellers. But is dual agency a good idea? Well, yes and no. There are both advantages and disadvantages to buying a house through dual agency. Here are the pros and cons.

Benefits of dual agency

Dual agency can certainly streamline the home-buying process. Think about it: If both buyer and seller have their own separate agents, there will be four people's schedules that must be consulted before the property can be shown. Cut one agent out, and it makes scheduling 25% easier. Or thereabouts.

Another potential perk of a dual agent is it can save you on the commission—the money home sellers pay their agent for all their hard work (typically 6% of the sales price of a home), which is then split with the corresponding buyer's agent for all their hard work. A dual agent, however, keeps the whole kit and caboodle. (Good for them!) As a result, dual agents may be more open than usual to lowering that commission a bit.

Downsides of dual agency

A dual agent is supposed to be neutral, helping clients on both sides of the deal equally. But staying truly neutral can be difficult. For instance, since an agent's commission is a percentage of a home's sales price, it's inherently in an agent's best interest to get a high selling price, because he'll make more money. That's good for the seller, but not so much for the buyer.

Melanie Atkinson of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate, in Tampa, FL, points out, "Even if you see savings on commission, how do you know you wouldn’t have negotiated a better price if you had your own capable representation?"

Also, since a dual agent works for both buyer and seller, he must tread carefully not to betray the confidence of either party. So, he might stay mum about juicy tidbits that you might have more easily learned if you'd had your own agent in your corner.

For instance: A listing agent might know his clients are desperate to sell. If the buyer's agent finds that out, he can inform his clients of their added negotiation power. A dual agent, on the other hand, might be compelled to keep mum about all personal matters.

"An example would be a buyer’s broker who may be aware of a divorce situation and may share that information to a buyer," says Joyce Mitchell of Mitchell & Associates, in Bigfork, MT. "But a dual broker cannot share that information. As a dual agent, he/she can only address issues regarding the property itself and not the people or situations involved."

When to use a dual agent

In states that allow this practice, agents are required by law to inform clients if they're facing a dual agency scenario—and they can't move forward without all parties' informed consent. What's more, both buyers and sellers have the right to opt out and use another agent so both parties have their own representation.

There are situations where using a dual agent makes sense.

"The best way to describe a transactional Realtor® is one who neither represents the seller nor the buyer but facilitates the documents necessary for the sale," says Mitchell. "An example of that would be if you and your neighbor struck up a deal to sell your home and have already negotiated the terms, price, etc. You might want to use a transactional Realtor to assist both parties toward the closing." (This is also a case where you may want to ask for a lower commission, since so much of the deal is already ironed out.)

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Buyer Agents: Working for You Free of Charge

By:Chrystal Caruthers