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Americans Say $55,000 To Sell a Home is Too Much
According to a new survey by Clever Real Estate, home sellers in 2024 spend an average of $54,616 to sell their homes. 42% report the costs exceeded their expectations.
High home-selling costs and agent commissions are eating away at American sellers’ profits in 2024. Several months after the landmark National Association of Realtors settlement eliminated NAR’s rules on agent commissions, an overwhelming majority of sellers now want buyers to pay their own agent fees.
The cost breakdown for selling a home is:
Listing agent commission ($11,136)
Buyer's agent commission ($10,467)
Repairs ($10,000)
Closing costs ($8,000)
Concessions ($7,200)
Moving expenses ($3,250)
Marketing ($2,300)
Staging ($2,263)
Had they known the true cost of selling their homes, 89% of sellers would have approached the process differently. With a different strategy, they believe they could have sold their home for an additional $50,000 on average.
Agent Fees Are in a State of Flux
The 2024 NAR settlement eliminated the real estate trade association’s rules on set commissions for real estate agents. According to the Clever Real Estate survey, 94% of home sellers endorse proposed updates to the commission system where buyers would cover their own agent's fee.
Although home sellers support changes to the commission structure, nearly half (49%) are unaware that sellers pay the buyer's agent commission under the current system.
More than three-quarters of home sellers (77%) say commission rates influence their choice of a real estate agent. Notably, 60% of those who plan to sell without an agent say they're doing so precisely because real estate commissions are too expensive.
Despite acknowledging the importance of agents, 77% of home sellers are unaware of agents' responsibilities during the sales process. More than two-thirds say they believe that artificial intelligence (AI) could outperform human agents.
Agents Oppose NAR Settlement
Unsurprisingly, 70% of real estate agents oppose changes to real estate commissions post-NAR settlement. Only 15% of agents believe the changes will have a positive impact on their business, while 58% expect negative results.
Of the agents who believe the settlement will have a negative impact, 88% think it will discourage first-time buyers from entering the market. Eighty-two percent of Realtors believe the commission changes will hurt buyers, while 42% believe the changes will also negatively impact sellers.
