Can I still pay a buyer‘s agent?
Yes. You can offer a buyer’s agent any amount of compensation you desire. Or nothing at all. The change in MLS rules no longer requires an offer of compensation to a buyer’s agent when listed in an MLS.
Can a buyer ask me to pay the buyer’s agent commission?
Yes. If the buyers have a Buyer’s Contract with the buyer’s agent, they can ask for commission in the offer up to the amount listed in the buyers contract, however there is no requirement to pay the buyer’s agent commission unless it’s agreed to in the contract. It will be up to the buyer’s agent to collect commission from the buyers if the seller does not agree to pay it.
Can the buyer’s agent commission be paid through closing costs?
Yes. Most loans allow up to 3% of the purchase price to used for closing costs including agent fees. If a seller is not offering any buyer agent commission, the buyers can add 3% to their offer price to be paid by the seller to the buyers agent at closing. If it is a cash deal there are no limits on closing costs and the buyer and seller can agree to any terms regarding commissions as long as it is lawful.
Can the listing agent handle everything if there is no buyer’s agent?
Yes. This is often called Dual Agency where the buyer and seller use the same agent and the agent acts in a neutral capacity between the buyers and sellers. A buyer can certainly approach a listing agent and ask to work directly with them for the purchase as long as the seller agrees to the representation status.
Conclusion
This rule change gives sellers a choice for offering commission to a buyer’s agent. Commission can be offered upfront at any amount, or it can be negotiated during the offer process, or none can be offered at all at any point, and the buyer will compensate their agent per their own agreement. There are several options for buyer’s agents to be paid a commission per the previous questions, and depending on the offer, terms can be negotiated once all the details are known. The bottom line is sellers now have more options when it comes to buyer’s agent commissions.