A skilled real estate agent is a huge asset when buying or selling a home. They provide so much support and insight, whether by helping you narrow down your home search to find the perfect property, offering staging advice to make your home more appealing to potential buyers, or managing the paperwork and making sure your real estate transaction closes without a hitch.
And, in exchange for their skills, support, and insights, they make a commission.
But there have recently been some changes to commissions, and whether you’re a buyer or a seller, you might have questions about what those changes are, and how they impact you.
A recent article from realtor.com outlined some of the recent changes to real estate commissions:
- How much is the typical real estate commission, and who pays it? There are no standardized commission rates in the real estate industry; instead, the commission rate is negotiated by the agent and the buyer or seller. Until recently, it was often the seller who paid a commission to the listing agent through the proceeds of the sale, and their agent would share a portion of it with the buyers’ agent. However, due to recent changes, the buyer and seller are now each responsible for paying their own real estate agent’s commission fees. However, sellers can still offer, or agree to, pay a buyers’ agent.
- Do real estate agents earn a salary? Generally, real estate agents aren’t salaried workers and work strictly on commission, which means they only get paid when you successfully buy or sell your home.
- Are commissions negotiable? Real estate commissions are always negotiable. But if you’re shopping for an agent who offers the lowest rate, it’s important to remember that, like most things, you might get what you pay for. So, if you want your home purchase or sale to go as smoothly as possible, hire the agent you feel is best qualified to help you achieve the best results, and come to an agreement on a commission rate that works for both of you.