Sales Commission
Definition of "Sales commission"
Broadly speaking, a commission is a remuneration a person receives after acting on someone else’s behalf.
In the real estate world, you’ll usually hear the term “sales commission”, which is the remuneration a real estate broker and/or agent earns in regards for his/her service representing the home seller (or the home buyer) in a house buying/selling transaction.
Well… most of the times, at least.
Sorry if you’re looking for easy answers; the real estate market is complex - that’s why an agent expertise is something you should not turn your back to.
Sometimes agents do earn money regardless of a house being sold: Buyer’s agents, for instance, might earn a real estate sales commission even if the prospective home buyer doesn’t end up buying a house. Think about it: the buyer’s agent drove the client around showing houses on the weekend, shared his/her educated knowledge regarding the real estate market… that comes at a cost and it wouldn’t be right if the agent gets nothing out of it should the client decide it’s not the right time to buy a house.
And there are some times when the agent gets no real estate commission at all! Yup; even if the house is sold! If an agent entered an Open Listing or an Exclusive Agency Listing but did not manage to bring the final offer to the table, then the real estate commission will go to the agent who brought it or to the homeowner.
The standard real estate sales commission is 5% to 6% of the final sales price and the listing agent splits it evenly with the buyer’s agent.
Real Estate Tips:
Check our Glossary Terms for more real estate lingo!
And find an agent to help you with the complex task of buying or selling a house!
Popular Real Estate Terms
The meaning of a disclosure statement is a legal document signed by both parties, the lender and the borrower or buyer. This statement outlines the terms and conditions, the potential ...
Oral or written contract that is not enforceable by the judicial system. Examples are contracts with minors, fraudulent agreements and contracts that exceed the statute of limitations. ...
The abstract of judgment definition is best explained as a written summary of the judgment passed by a court. This abstract of judgment includes the amount of money the losing party of a ...
Securities supported by a pool of mortgages. The principal and interest are due monthly in the mortgages and are passed through to the investors who bought the pool. ...
The geographic moving of an individual from one region to another usually because of a change in employment. Relocation normally involves the complete moving of the individual's ...
Device that places the ownership of real property with one or more trustees for security until the loan is paid by the debtor. It is used in place of a conventional mortgage contract in ...
Estimated value of property after a specified time period. ...
Building or other structure used to receive, hold, and issue products and other goods for a fee. A warehouse is a commercial property typically located in an industrial area. ...
Regulation of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) establishing the criteria to avoid a private offering. For example, John wants to sell shares in an apartment house to several ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.