Who Pays Realtor Fees: Buyer or Seller?
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Traditionally, the seller pays both the listing agent’s and the buyer’s agent’s commission from the sale proceeds, typically around 5-6% split between them, though that split is negotiated, not fixed. Later, the 2024 NAR settlement didn’t change who pays by default; it changed how buyer-agent compensation gets offered and disclosed.
Traditionally, the seller has paid both sides. That part didn’t change.
Who actually pays a realtor’s commission
In a traditional NYC sale, the seller pays both the listing agent’s and the buyer’s agent’s commissions from the proceeds at closing. That combined commission percentage commonly totals somewhere around 5-6%, though the figure is negotiated case by case, not set by any rule. In most traditional deals, the buyer doesn’t write a separate check to their own agent. Historically, their agent’s share has come out of what the seller is already paying.
“6% is most common but not universal,” as one NYC brokerage puts it, and nothing in NY law or REBNY’s rules fixes it there.
| Commission model | Who typically pays | Typical combined percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional agent-led sale | Seller, out of proceeds | Commonly 5-6% |
| NestApple listing | Seller, from 1% | Most often 1.5-2% |
| FSBO with a buyer’s agent | Negotiated directly | Varies, no listing-side fee |
A realtor’s commission isn’t just a fee for showing up at closing. It typically covers marketing, professional photography, staging advice, pricing strategy, and the negotiation work that happens over weeks or months. NAR’s own 2026 Member Profile found the typical individual REALTOR completed just 9 transaction sides in all of 2025.
That’s well under one a month on average. A single commission has to cover a meaningful amount of unpaid time spent on deals that don’t close.
What the 2024 settlement actually changed
The rule that changed wasn’t who pays. It’s how the offer gets made. Before 17 August 2024, a listing broker could advertise buyer-agent compensation directly on the MLS as part of the listing.
The NAR Sitzer/Burnett antitrust settlement changed that. It followed an October 2023 jury verdict and a roughly $1.758 billion judgment against NAR and two large brokerages. Offers of buyer-agent compensation are now banned from appearing on the MLS itself. A buyer must also sign a written agreement with their own agent, with compensation fully disclosed, before touring homes.
In NYC specifically, REBNY layered its own change on top. As of 1 January 2024, any offer of buy-side compensation must come directly from the seller or owner, not from the listing broker, even on the seller’s behalf.
REBNY’s own FAQ is blunt about a related myth: a 50/50 commission split was never actually mandated by the RLS. Some brokers themselves repeated this misconception for years.
Both changes point in the same direction. Commission splits are set and negotiated by the seller, not fixed by any MLS or REBNY rule. That’s also why our listing agent vs. selling agent guide is worth reading alongside this one.
“When agents say ‘I’m going to charge you five or six percent because this is the way it is,’ it’s not the way it is,” says NestApple co-founder Georges Benoliel. “Everything is negotiable, and the rates are negotiable. People should get knowledgeable and shop more for their agents, and potentially pay a smaller commission.”
Why the FARE Act doesn’t apply here
A different law, a different kind of lease, a different date. New York’s FARE Act took effect 11 June 2025 and applies only to NYC apartment rentals. Under rules from NYC’s own Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, whoever hires the broker pays that broker. Landlords now cover the listing-side broker fee in rentals, and tenants no longer pay a fee for an agent they didn’t hire.
It has nothing to do with home-sale commissions. Confusing the two laws, as some older content on this exact topic has done, gets the mechanics of both wrong. If you’re renting, our rental page covers the current post-FARE-Act model directly. For every other step in selling, our selling & commissions hub covers pricing, agents, and timing together.
If you’re selling with NestApple, our listing commission starts at 1%, most often landing around 1.5-2%, instead of the traditional 5-6% split. If you’re buying, our buyer rebate gives back up to 2% of the purchase price. That’s equivalent to roughly two-thirds of a typical 3% buyer-side commission. Run your own numbers with NestApple’s closing costs calculator to see what either side actually nets.
Common questions
Does the buyer or the seller pay realtor fees? Traditionally, the seller covers both the listing agent and the buyer’s agent out of sale proceeds. That default hasn’t changed, but how the buyer-agent offer gets made and disclosed has, since August 2024.
What actually changed with the 2024 NAR settlement? Buyer-agent compensation offers no longer appear on the MLS, and buyers must sign a written agreement with their own agent, with compensation disclosed, before touring homes.
Is the 5-6% commission rate fixed? No. The seller and their agent negotiate it, and REBNY’s FAQ confirms a 50/50 split was never mandated.
Is the FARE Act the same as the NAR settlement? No. The FARE Act, effective June 2025, applies only to NYC apartment rentals. The NAR settlement, effective August 2024, governs real estate sale commissions nationally. They’re separate laws covering different transactions.
How does NestApple’s commission compare to the traditional model? Our listing commission starts at 1%, usually around 1.5-2%, well below the traditional 5-6% split, and our buyer rebate can return up to 2% of the purchase price.
Nicole Fishman Benoliel co-founded NestApple in 2017. She's a lawyer admitted to the New York bar - her law degree is from La Escuela Libre de Derecho in Costa Rica, with further study at IE Business School in Madrid and an LLM from Fordham in New York. She does not act in a legal capacity at NestApple; every client is referred to an attorney who handles real estate deals full time.
