The series of lawsuits that have been shaking the real estate industry for the past several months have all revolved around the same issue: Realtor commissions.
In the Sitzer-Burnett case, plaintiffs successfully argued that real estate commission rates were too high. They also alleged that the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Code of Ethics, the MLS handbook and real estate brokerages’ practices have led to an artificial inflation of commission rates.
In that context, Clever Real Estate released a study unveiling the average Realtor commission in every state. The company surveyed 630 real estate agents across the country.
Clever’s data shows that, on average, Realtor commissions are about 5.49% nationwide. But there are variations across states of up to 189 basis points. For a home sold at $431,000, the national median price, the combined Realtor commission is about $23,000.
Listing agents tend to receive commissions ranging from 1% to 4%, with an average of 2.83%, according to Clever. Buyers’ agents earn a slightly lower average commission rate of 2.66%.
The five states with the highest commissions are West Virginia, Mississippi, Wyoming, Alaska and Kentucky.
