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
Property interest a person has that is presently possessed by another. Upon the termination of the possession, the property reverts to the grantor. ...
Haven’t you ever paid a bill a few days after the due date? It happened to all of us, not necessarily because we didn’t have the money, but because we simply forgot about it. A ...
Construction of commercial property in a manner that enables each lessee or tenant to have access to the main strip or thoroughfare running through the property. For example, this mode of ...
The capital expenditure definition is an evaluation method of investments that a company of any kind, including real estate developments, makes to maintain or upgrade tangible assets. These ...
Mortgagor's signed statement that the stated remaining balance of a mortgage is correct and it is a property lien. This prevents a mortgagor from later stating the facts were ...
Portion of a deed that states the act and date of the transfer of the property. ...
An administrator appointed by the government or the courts to administer the laws relating to a government agency or court. A commissioner is a part of a government or court commission. ...
An agreement by which the owner of property (the lender) and a borrower agree to let the borrower use the property for a particular time period and in return the borrower will pay the ...
The lessee becomes a lessor by subletting the property to a third party. Typically, the sandwich leaseholder does not own or use the property. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.