Real estate commission in NYC is not set by law. You and your real estate agent negotiate it, and since January 1, 2024 you also decide whether to pay the agent on the other side, and how much.
On a Midwood home at this year’s median price of $899,500, every 1% of commission is $8,995. That is why the rate is worth a real conversation before you sign a listing agreement.
Stock photos of a home sale. Photos: Charles Parker, Pavel Danilyuk, SHVETS production, Thirdman, cottonbro studio on Pexels.
The short version
- No law sets the rate. New York City brokers must tell you in writing that it is negotiable.
- You pay your listing agent. Paying the other side’s agent is now a separate choice you make.
- At 2026 medians, a 5% total costs $44,975 in Midwood, $49,625 in Madison and $41,500 in Marine Park.
- Transfer taxes come on top: 0.4% to the state and 1.425% to the city on most Brooklyn homes over $500,000.
On this page
How New York real estate commission works in 2026
A commission is the fee a licensed real estate broker or real estate brokerage earns when your home sells. It is a percentage of the sale price, due at closing and paid to the agent at closing out of your proceeds, as shown on your closing statement. A few brokers charge a flat rate instead. Most NYC real estate agents work at a full-service brokerage and are paid this way.
The rules changed three times since the start of 2024. New York City moved first, and the national rules followed.
- January 1, 2024, New York City. The Real Estate Board of New York changed its listing rules. Any offer of agent compensation to buyer brokers now has to come from the owner, not the listing broker.
- August 17, 2024, nationwide. After the national Realtor settlement, offers to pay buyer agents can no longer appear on MLS listing systems. House hunters must sign a written agreement with their own agent before touring homes.
- August 1, 2025, New York City. REBNY removed every compensation field from its Residential Listing Service. Brokers must also say clearly that commissions are not set by law and are fully negotiable.
Who pays whom when you sell in New York City now
Seller to listing agent
The commission you agree in the listing agreement, paid at closing.
Seller to buyer’s agent
Optional. Offered in the deal itself, not on the listing system.
Buyer to buyer’s agent
Set in a written agreement the buyer signs before touring homes.
Seller to buyer
A credit toward the buyer’s closing costs, which can be shown on the MLS.
National Association of Realtors settlement rules and REBNY listing rules.
What did not change: an owner can still offer to pay the other agent. It just happens off the listing system, in the deal itself. You can also offer a credit toward the purchaser’s closing costs, and that can be shown on the MLS.
What is the average real estate commission rate in NYC? What the data shows
Here is the honest answer: nobody publishes what New York City owners have paid since the August 17, 2024 rules. We looked. These are the best numbers that exist, and each one has a catch.
| Source | What it found | The catch |
|---|---|---|
| Redfin, December 8, 2025 | The average commission paid to the agent on the purchasing side was 2.42% in the third quarter of 2025, up from 2.36% a year earlier. | National data from Redfin’s own deals. Not New York City, and one side only. |
| Federal Reserve staff note, May 12, 2025 | In the New York metro area, the typical commission offered to buyer agents was 2 percent. | Listings from 1995 to 2023, before the new rules. It counts what was offered, not what was paid. |
| Consumer Federation of America, October 19, 2022 | Typical total commissions were 3% in Brooklyn and 6% in Manhattan, from more than 2,000 sales in New York City and Hempstead. | Before the rule changes. The group is a consumer advocate, and we could read its summary but not the full report. |
Two things stand out. Brooklyn has long run cheaper than Manhattan. And the national figure for the other side’s agent has not fallen since the rules changed. It went up a little. Lower rates did not simply follow the new rules.
Outside expert, not affiliated with The Behfar Team
On the sale of a $1 million condo, agents rarely deserve $60,000 in compensation, the price of two new economy cars or one expensive one
Stephen Brobeck, Consumer Federation of America senior fellow, in the group’s October 19, 2022 release on New York City commissions. He was talking about Manhattan rates.
Outside expert, not affiliated with The Behfar Team
The biggest change is that this is a discussion. There’s value both in the seller’s agent and in the buyer’s agent, and there’s a reason to incentivize both.
Deanna Kory, a broker at the Corcoran Group, speaking to Brick Underground about the rule changes in March 2024.
Our reading: both are right about different things. Brobeck is talking about a flat high rate applied to an expensive home. Kory is talking about who gets paid, and why each agent has a job to do. In Brooklyn, where prices are lower than Manhattan’s, the useful question is what a given rate costs you in dollars, and what you get for it.
A real estate commission calculator at 2026 Midwood, Madison and Marine Park prices
A percentage is easy to wave away. Dollars are not. Use this table as a simple commission calculator. It uses the median sale price of homes in each neighborhood this year, from the city’s own sales records, not an asking price.
What each 1% of commission costs in 2026
One percent of the median sale price, January 1 to September 30, 2026.
NYC Department of Finance rolling sales, Brooklyn; houses are one to three family homes.
| 2026 median sale | Price | At 4% | At 5% | At 6% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Midwood, all homes | $899,500 | $35,980 | $44,975 | $53,970 |
| Madison, all homes | $992,500 | $39,700 | $49,625 | $59,550 |
| Marine Park, all homes | $830,000 | $33,200 | $41,500 | $49,800 |
| Midwood, one to three family house | $1,400,000 | $56,000 | $70,000 | $84,000 |
| Madison, one to three family house | $1,325,000 | $53,000 | $66,250 | $79,500 |
| Marine Park, one to three family house | $860,000 | $34,400 | $43,000 | $51,600 |
Prices: NYC Department of Finance rolling sales, Brooklyn, file dated October 13, 2026. Median of sales recorded from January 1 to September 30, 2026: one to three family houses, condos and co-ops at $100,000 or more, with multi-lot sales counted once. The rates are examples for the math, not a quote from any broker.
The gap between neighborhoods is real. A Midwood house costs more than a Marine Park house, so the same rate costs more in dollars. On a Midwood house at the median, the difference between 5% and 6% is $14,000. A split of 2.5% to each side is 5% in total.
Do you still pay the other agent in NYC? Buyer agent compensation now
Often, yes, but it is your choice now. Many owners still offer something, because a purchaser whose agent will not be paid may offer less or walk away. Others offer nothing and let house hunters pay their own agent fee.
You have three common options. You can offer a set amount or percentage to the other agent. You can offer a credit toward the purchaser’s costs instead. Or you can offer nothing and negotiate when an offer comes in.
Watch for one clause in particular. Some listing contracts charge you more if the purchaser has no agent. In a 630-comment thread on r/RealEstate this October, an owner asked about an agent who wanted an extra 1.5% on top of a 3% commission when the purchaser came in alone.
From the thread
Don’t agree to it. A real estate contract is negotiable.
The top reply in that thread. A lower reply defended the fee: “Yes, it’s common, the realtor has to do more work and there is more risk involved because unrepresented buyers are sometimes lunatics.”
The other costs of selling a home in Brooklyn
Commission is the biggest cost for most owners. Transfer taxes come next, and in New York City you pay two of them. Legal fees for your own attorney come on top.
- New York State transfer tax: 0.4% of the price, paid by you.
- New York City transfer tax: 1% up to $500,000, and 1.425% on the whole price above that, also yours.
- Mansion tax: this one belongs to the purchaser, on homes of a million dollars or more.
- Your own costs: your attorney’s fee, any payoff of your mortgage, and for a co-op, the building’s fees and any flip tax.
Here is a full example. A Midwood home sold at the $899,500 median, with a 5% commission, leaves you $838,109 before attorney fees and the mortgage payoff. That is after $44,975 in commission and $16,416 in transfer taxes.
Commission negotiation: how to negotiate real estate commission with a broker in Brooklyn
Most people never ask. You should, and you should ask in dollars, not just percentages. Negotiation is normal in New York real estate, and a good broker expects it.
- Ask for the fee in writing, before you sign. The listing agent has to give you the New York Department of State agency disclosure form before the listing agreement, and get your signed acknowledgment.
- Ask what the fee covers. Photos, floor plans, a virtual tour, open houses and who pays for them. A lower fee that skips the marketing can cost you more on the price.
- Ask how the other agent will be handled. Will you offer a set amount, a credit, or nothing? Get the plan written into the agreement.
- Ask about the length of the agreement and what happens if you want to end it early.
- Compare at least two agents who sell in your neighborhood, not just in Brooklyn.
One real example of why asking matters. A condo owner on r/AskNYC was quoted what looked like a very high rate in March 2026, and asked if it was normal. After calling the broker, the owner posted an update: “Apparently it was a mistake and the 4.5% is total with 2.25% to each buyer/seller.” One reply put the bigger point simply: “its an open market so you can walk.”
Where The Behfar Team fits
We are a Midwood team, working from 1524 East 23rd Street, and we sell homes in Midwood, Madison and Marine Park. Every listing we take gets professional photography, a floor plan and a 3D virtual tour on its own property website. You can see the full list on our seller services page.
We do not publish our fee, because it depends on the home and the plan. Call us and we will tell you what we charge and what it covers, in plain numbers, before you sign anything. If you just want to know what your home is worth first, we can start there.
Frequently asked questions about NYC real estate commission
Is real estate commission negotiable in New York?
Yes. No law sets the rate. Under the national rules in force since August 17, 2024, and REBNY’s rules in New York City, brokers must state that commissions are not set by law and are fully negotiable.
Who pays the buyer’s agent in NYC?
It depends on the deal. Since January 1, 2024 in New York City, any offer to pay that agent has to come from the owner. If the owner offers nothing, the agent can ask their own client to pay.
What is the average real estate commission in NYC?
No public source has measured it since the August 17, 2024 rules. A October 19, 2022 study found typical total commissions of 3% in Brooklyn and 6% in Manhattan. Redfin’s latest national figure for one side alone is 2.42%.
How much is the commission on a house in Midwood?
At the 2026 Midwood median for a one to three family house, $1,400,000, a 5% total is $70,000 and a 4% total is $56,000.
Does the seller pay the mansion tax in NYC?
No. The mansion tax is paid by the purchaser. The owner pays the state transfer tax of 0.4% and the city transfer tax of 1% or 1.425%, depending on the price.
Can I sell without paying the other agent?
Yes. You can choose not to offer anything. The trade-off is that some purchasers with agents may offer less to cover their own agent fee, so many owners decide once they see the offers.
Sources
- National Association of Realtors, What the NAR Settlement Means for Home Buyers and Sellers.
- REBNY, Decoupling Commissions FAQ and RLS compensation fields to be removed.
- Redfin, The Average Buyer’s Agent Commission Has Risen Slightly Since New NAR Rules Went Into Effect.
- Federal Reserve, FEDS Notes, Commissions and Omissions: Trends in Real Estate Broker Compensation.
- Consumer Federation of America, Real Estate Commission Rates in New York City.
- New York Real Property Law, section 443; NYS Department of Taxation and Finance, real estate transfer tax; NYC Department of Finance, Real Property Transfer Tax and rolling sales data.
From The Behfar Team
We work from our office at 1524 East 23rd Street in Midwood and have closed 494 buyer and seller transactions. Our 145 Google reviews average 4.9 stars, and our agents speak six languages.
Know your price before you talk fees
We will give you a price read based on what actually sold near you, so you can run the commission math on a real number. You can also call the office at 347-988-2526.
Rules and rates here come from the National Association of Realtors, REBNY, New York State law and the New York State and City tax departments. This is general information, not legal or tax advice.
