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The Daily Insight

Do you pay a realtor when buying and selling?

Author

James Craig

Published Mar 24, 2026

If you’re buying a home, you’re probably off the hook for paying the commission of the real estate agents. The home seller usually picks up this payment. When the sellers set a listing price for the home, they usually take the real estate agent’s commission into account; it’s the cost of doing business.

Do Realtors make money when you sell?

Real estate agents make a commission on each home they successfully sell. That commission is generally around 5-6% of the sales price. But one agent won’t necessarily pocket the entire 5-6%. Real estate agent commissions are often split 50/50 between the seller’s agent (or “listing agent”) and the buyer’s agent.

What do realtors do for money?

Realtors make money on commission: They only get paid when they sell a house or help someone buy a house. The standard Realtor commission in the United States is between 5 and 6 percent, which is evenly split between the seller’s agent and the buyer’s agent [source: Linden].

Do realtors give a discount for buying and selling?

If your agent is your listing and buying agent, they’ll earn both commissions. There are agents who will offer you a discount if you sell and buy a home through their agency. Agents may not discount their listing commission for you while doing twice the work for less than twice the money.

How much do Realtors get paid for condos?

For Buyers Agents, the Realtors at Vancouver New Condos offer around 49-48% of the above commission that the sellers pays (3.125% on the 1st $100,000 and 1.1625% on the balance – to be exact – of the sale price, not list price). When do Realtors Get Paid? Realtors only get paid when their clients are 100% satisfied with a transaction.

Can a buyer pay a realtor a fee?

Some buyers enter into a buyer-broker agreement with the Realtor, where they agree to pay the agent a commission. The Realtor can also go to the home seller, and ask them to pay a fee to the agent for bringing in a buyer. Ann Johnson has been a freelance writer since 1995.

How much of the sale price do you pay for real estate?

Sellers pay real estate commissions, which typically total between 5% to 6% of the sale price. This amount is paid to the listing agent, who then shares roughly half with the buyer’s agent.

Do you have to pay realtor closing costs?

“Do not let the Realtors or vendors convince you otherwise.” Attorney fees, commission rates, recording costs, and messenger fees can all be negotiated down. Sometimes the buyer will have written into the contract that the seller will pay the buyer’s closing costs up to a certain percentage or amount.