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
A relatively unknown term, laches or the” doctrine of laches,” means failure to assert one’s rights or a claim in a given matter in time. Failing to take action on a ...
Insulation covered on each side by a material, such as metal. ...
State court where civil disagreements are decided by the judge or jury. A written record is kept of the deliberations. In some stats, civil and criminal courts are combined. ...
Timber wood situated on the exteriors of a loading deck to safeguard it from damage resulting when trucks unload and load. ...
Clause in an open-ended mortgage permitting the mortgagor to borrow additional sums of money in the future pledging than same real property collateral. A construction loan has a future ...
Formal, written, unconditional promise to pay on demand or at a future date a definite sum of money. The person signing the note and promising to pay is called the maker of the note. The ...
Map within a governmental jurisdiction showing the boundary lines and ownership of all real property. A cadastral program produces the cadastral map. ...
Having the intellect to comprehend the terms and conditions of a will and their impact. A testator must understand his or her estate and its eventual disposition and effects in order to ...
Individual engaged in selling a product or service. The product may be an investment in real estate. In some instances, state law may require licensing to safeguard the public by requiring ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.