Ideal Agent Listing Fees: Everything You Need to Know
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How much are Ideal Agent fees?
Ideal Agent listing fees: At a glance | |
|---|---|
Ideal Agent listing fee | 2%* |
Buyer's agent fee | 2.5-3% |
Total commission with Redfin | 4-4.5% |
*Minimum $3,000 listing fee applies. | |
Ideal Agent’s standard listing fee for home sellers is 2% of the final sale price instead of the typical 2.5-3% rate most agents charge. Ideal Agent also has a minimum $3,000 fee, so if your home is less than $150,000, you'll be paying more than the advertised 2% rate.
Regardless of who you sell with — Ideal Agent, competitors with even lower rates, or a conventional realtor — you'll likely have to cover the 2.5-3% buyer's agent fee as well (in most home sales, sellers pay the buyer's agent agent fee out of their sale proceeds.) So Ideal Agent sellers should expect a total commission of about 4.5-5% come closing time.
Ideal Agent vs. alternatives: You can do better than a 2% listing fee
Ideal Agent's 2% listing fee will net you some savings compared to a conventional realtor charging 2.5-3% — but there are better options out there.
Clever Real Estate offers true 1% listing fees nationwide, and is our top pick home sellers. Clever offers the same agent quality and more selection for literally half the cost of Ideal Agent. It also has more agent selection (12,000 top agents nationwide vs. Ideal Agent's ~2,000).
Redfin also might be worth a look. Its 1.5% listing fees are lower than Ideal Agent's. But discount brokerages like Redfin bring some service quality risks you won't get with agent matching services like Clever and Ideal Agent, who match you with conventional realtors (and simply negotiate lower rates for you).
💡Our advice: Try Clever first to maximize your potential savings. If you like an agent they match you with, you'll get the best savings by far. If you don't like any of the agents Clever recommends, you can simply walk away (Clever is 100% free with no obligation) and try other services with slightly higher listing fees, like Redfin and Ideal Agent.
Try Clever's free agent matching service!
Match with top local realtors, get full service for just a 1% listing fee.
How much does Ideal Agent charge to sell your home?
Commission | Ideal Agent | Conventional realtor |
|---|---|---|
Listing fee | 2%* | 2.5–3% |
Buyer’s agent fee | 2.5–3% | 2.5–3% |
Total | 4.5–5% | 5–6% |
*$3,000 minimum fee may apply. | ||
If you sign a contract with an Ideal Agent, you agree to pay a listing fee equal to 2% of the sale price of your home. Similar to how it works with a conventional realtor, you’ll be responsible for paying your agent only after your home sells.
You’re also still responsible for the buyer’s agent fee, which is standard practice in the real estate industry. You’ll set the buyer’s agent rate in your residential listing, but it’s usually 2.5–3% of the sales price. If you offer less than the standard rate for your area, you may have difficulty finding buyers. Buyer’s agents prioritize homes that both match their clients’ criteria and pay a decent buyer’s agent commission.
⚠️ Why do I pay the buyer’s agent fee when I sell my home?
You pay the buyer’s agent fee when you sell your home because you want to attract more buyers, which will help you sell your home for the best price. If you don’t offer a competitive buyer’s agent commission, you could lose out on prospective buyers.
But listing agents take that into account when helping their client set the listing price. As a result, they may bump up the price a bit to compensate for that expense. In that way, the buyer partially shares in the cost even if it ultimately comes out of the seller’s pocket.
What services do you get for the Ideal Agent 2% commission fee?
Ideal Agent’s partner agents are conventional real estate agents who work with traditional brokerages nationwide. When signing with Ideal Agent, they agree to provide full service to their clients to help sell homes for a 2% commission rate. So, you receive about the same level and type of services you get with a conventional agency even though you’re working with a low commission broker.
Ideal Agent advertises that its partner real estate agents are the top 1% in their profession. Some vetting criteria include 14 years of experience as a real estate professional, a minimum of 100 closings per year, and a 5-star rating.
Ideal Agent’s buyer agents
Home buyers won’t save money by buying a house with Ideal Agent. The focus on savings is solely on the sales side of real estate transactions. In fact, you can’t even match with a buyer’s agent through Ideal Agent. That can complicate matters for home sellers who want to use the same agent to look for a new home.
Get a home buyer rebate with Ideal Agent alternatives
If you want to get money back after you close on a new home, go with Clever Real Estate. You can get up to 0.5% of your home’s purchase price in cash back when you buy a house with a Clever agent. For example, if you buy a house for $400,000, your agent will send you a check for up to $2,000 after you close.
You can spend Clever Cash Back on whatever you want, whereas other rebate programs like Redfin Refund require you to put the money toward things like closing costs.
» MORE: Learn more about how home buyer rebates work