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Q: Does a homeowner has to pay both seller Realtor and the Realtor who brings in the buyer when selling your home, although the seller Realtor works with the homeowner?

Anonymous, Woodbridge, VA

A: When you list your home for sale with a Realtor you agree to pay your agent a certain fee. Your Realtor will offer the listing in the MLS to other agents so that they will bring a buyer to your home. Your agent offers part of the fee you are paying to your agent to whomever can sell the home.

A: First let me start by saying that THERE IS NO STANDARD. Realtor fees are negotiable.

The answer to your question is no. When you hire a Realtor you can hire them in several different ways to sell your home. Typically, it is through the use of a exclusive right to sell listing agreement. Why is it typical? Because this protects the Realtor the best at getting a commission, if the home is sold. The Realtor you hire pays the other Realtor who brings the buyer from the commission you agreed to pay your Realtor.

Assuming that is the listing agreement that was signed, the homeowner agreed to pay the realtor a certain price to sell his home. The realtor can attempt to sell the home themselves without cooperating with other brokers in town, but this would likely limit the Realtors ability to sell your home. Because the realtor has a fiduciary duty to you as your agent, they should be looking for the most effective way to sell your home.

The most effective way is to market your property to other local realtors who may be working with home buyers. To do this one should place your home on the MLS, but if the Realtor does this, he/she must offer some sort of compensation to the Realtor who brings a successful buyer.

If I am representing you to sell your home, with your permission, I need to offer those other Realtors something. If I were to be paid $5000 from you, but only offered $100 to a Realtor who brought a buyer, I would be doing you a great disservice. Why would another realtor bring their qualified buyer to your place to buy when they know they will get peanuts for doing so and have to do half of the work involved? Hence, the 50/50 typical split that one Realtor pays the other.

Your Realtor still works for you no matter if your Realtor or another Realtor found the buyer.

A: Generally a seller pays one commission to his Realtor and that Realtor shares it with the agent that brings a buyer.

Thats one of the huge benefits of using a Realtor Multiple Listing Service to sell your home.

A: The homeowner actually pays the agents brokerage and from there the funds are distributed to the parties involved in the transaction. The listing brokerage/agent and homeowner agrees on a % the brokerage receives when the agent is successful. The agent agrees to pay the brokerage/agent a % of that fee. You are paying for success and your listing agent was successful in securing a buyer for your property. Your fee will remain the same regardless whether there is a buyers agent involved or not do to the signed contract (listing agreement). which spells out the fee for a successful sale.

Please remember you are agreeing to pay the Brokerage #1 to do a job, and that is to bring you a buyer.

If a homeowner asked me to market their property and put such a restriction on my ability to do my job and secure a buyerI would reject the listing.

This is how this situation looks at the successful close/transfer of your property.

Homeowner pays X-amount to Brokerage #1

Brokerage #1 pays #2 brokerage

Brokerage #1 pays YOUR LISTING AGENT

Brokerage #2 pays the Selling agent (with the buyer)

I realize this is a long answer but I really think the public should fully grasp how things work.

Hope this answer provides some insight into what happens to the real estate commission once it is paid.

A: This answer varies from state to state. but in Texas you, as the seller are paying a commission to your agent (the listing agent) and that agent has a separate agreement with the buyers agent to split that commission however they agree to. For example: the homeowner pays the listing agent 6% commission and that agent pays the buyers Realtor 3% from their 6%. Technically the Homeowner is paying both agents. Hope this helps!

A: Here in Florida, it is standard for the listing agent (sellers agent) to offer 50% of the commission to the buyers agent from the total commission that the seller has agreed to. For example, the standard commission in my area is 6% of the sales price, which is agreed to by the seller at the time of listing the property. When we enter the listing in our MLS, we offer 3% to any buyers agent who brings a qualified buyer that results in a closed sale.

A: You need to look at real estate law in your state. I would contact the Realtor association in your state.

Most of the time when sellers enter into a listing agreement they agree to pay X% for selling their home. The listing agent by placing it into the MLC he agrees to pay the agent X%. So he is liable for that percentage and you are contracturally to pay a commision to the agent.

Your best advice is contact the MLS in the area and find out the policies and then contact your state REALTOR association, Your local REALTOR association can help too (Some MLS and Boards work together).

Good luck

Edwin

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