What is the average fee charged by a real estate broker on a lease?
Kat asked:
I saw the cutest apartment for the right price. I called up the person on the listing and he says I have to pay, 1 month’s rent, the same amount for the deposit, and the same amount for a “brokers fee”. To my knowledge, broker’s fee is something like a fixed commission for his services, so why is he asking for so much?
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I saw the cutest apartment for the right price. I called up the person on the listing and he says I have to pay, 1 month’s rent, the same amount for the deposit, and the same amount for a “brokers fee”. To my knowledge, broker’s fee is something like a fixed commission for his services, so why is he asking for so much?
January 19th, 2010 at 11:39 pm
one months lease is normal for the fee. However normally the owner of the apartment pays that. Don
January 22nd, 2010 at 4:01 am
Over 9000! john doe
January 22nd, 2010 at 9:21 pm
The broker charges this fee to the person who is putting the property up for rent and not the renter. If this person is a licensed realtor and charging you as the renter a fee then you need to contact the state real estate commission and file a complaint as what they are doing is unethical and illegal. feltfinancial
January 23rd, 2010 at 1:32 am
Commissions are established by each office. There is no “agency” that sets the commission. That said, it’s unusual that you, as a tenant, is required to pay any fees. I would ask the agent why isn’t the property owner paying? If it’s a situation where both owner and tenant are each paying a broker’s fee, that needs to be disclosed to you in writing. It’s not unusual to charge a fee to the property owner an amount equal to one month’s rent.
realtor.sailor realtor.sailor
January 26th, 2010 at 7:08 am
It is not a fixed amount. It depends on the condition of the property, the amount of rent being asked, and the actual fair market value of the rent for the unit unit. It also depends on the tems he negotiated with the owner. Bibs
January 27th, 2010 at 12:30 pm
As a Realtor i cannot give you legal advice. I can tell you most brokers are paid a finders fee that is usually paid by the owner of the property. Ther is no standard fee. Sometmes the broker charges a flat fee and sometimes a % of the lease fee. Flat fees range from $50 to $500+. % fees range from ,5% to 3% of the gross lease. Google Az Landlords Tenant Act and download the PDF copy available. There is a section on how much you can legally be charged in fees to move-in. In my opinion the Brokers fee sounds too high anyway and a big red flag goes up. So do your homework. The Glow King
January 28th, 2010 at 8:06 pm
In the NY area it is One or Two months rent. and the tenant pays not the landlord sassy25
January 31st, 2010 at 8:37 pm
I think it varies from country to country most of the time it depends upon the condition of apartments as well. And most of the time it is payed by the person who get the property on rent through real estate broker Micheal