Choose selling or buying, then type in your own numbers: the price, and the rate or flat fee from your agreement or quote. The calculator works in your browser and does not send your numbers to us.
Decision tool 3
Commission and net calculator
Type in the numbers from your own agreement or quote. Nothing is pre-filled with a rate: Georgia law sets none, and the fee is whatever you and the brokerage agree in writing.
Broker fees and commissions are fully negotiable and are not set by law; the buyer agreement must say so conspicuously. (National Association of REALTORS®, checked 2026-10-19)
What each mode does
Selling
You enter the sale price, the listing brokerage fee from your listing agreement, anything you agree to pay toward the buyer’s agent (as a rate or a flat amount), your mortgage payoff, other costs and any concessions to the buyer. The result shows each fee in dollars and what is left of the price before closing costs, taxes and prorations.
Paying anything toward the buyer’s agent is your decision, made in writing.
A listing agent must disclose to the seller in writing, and get the seller's approval for, any payment or offer of payment to a buyer's broker, stating the amount or rate, before it is made. (National Association of REALTORS®, checked 2026-10-19)
Buying
You enter the purchase price and the fee in your buyer brokerage agreement, then anything the seller or listing brokerage agrees in writing to cover. The result shows the full fee and the part left for you to pay.
Rules the buyer side follows
- The written buyer agreement must clearly state the amount or rate the agent will be paid, in objective terms such as $0, a flat fee, a percentage or an hourly rate. National Association of REALTORS®, checked 2026-10-19
- The buyer agreement must bar the agent from receiving more compensation, from any source, than the amount or rate agreed with the buyer. National Association of REALTORS®, checked 2026-10-19
How to read the results
- Fees in dollars. A rate is multiplied by the price; a flat fee is added as typed. If your agreement has both, enter both.
- Seller net. Price minus the listing fee, any buyer-agent pay you agreed to, your payoff, other costs and concessions. It is what is left before closing costs, not a closing statement.
- Buyer cost. The fee in your agreement minus what the seller or listing side agreed to cover. Because of the cap above, the agent’s total from every source cannot exceed what your agreement says.
- Concessions. Help with your closing costs is a separate line from the agent’s fee, and both are negotiated.
Buyers can still receive seller concessions, such as help with closing costs, and sellers can still offer buyer concessions on an MLS. (National Association of REALTORS®, checked 2026-10-19)
A worked example
Example inputs, not a typical rate or a Dahlonega price. The prices below are round numbers chosen to make the arithmetic easy to follow. Substitute the price and the fee from your own agreement.
A rate is a share of the price, so it helps to see what one percentage point is worth at a few prices:
| Example price | Each one percentage point of fee | Each half point |
|---|---|---|
| $200,000 | $2,000 | $1,000 |
| $300,000 | $3,000 | $1,500 |
| $500,000 | $5,000 | $2,500 |
So the question “how much does an agent make on a $300,000 house?” has no single answer. The brokerage fee is $3,000 for each percentage point written into the agreement, or the flat fee if the agreement uses one. Georgia brokerage engagements must also say whether the broker’s compensation will be shared.
For a seller, the order of the arithmetic is: start with the price, subtract the listing fee you agreed, subtract anything you agreed to pay toward the buyer’s agent, subtract your loan payoff and other costs, subtract concessions. Every one of those numbers comes from a document you can read: the listing agreement, the purchase contract and the payoff letter.
For a buyer, start with the fee in your agreement and subtract what the seller or listing brokerage agreed in writing to cover. If the seller covers less than your agreement says, the difference is yours to pay under the terms of your agreement. If the seller offers more, your agent still cannot receive more than your agreement allows.
Why no rate is filled in
Other calculators start from an “average” and let you adjust it. Those averages come from private surveys and disagree with each other, and no Georgia agency publishes one. A preset number can anchor a negotiation that the rules say is open. Why Georgia commission averages disagree looks at where the published figures come from.
What the agreement must say
- Compensation in a buyer agreement cannot be open-ended, such as 'whatever the seller is offering', and NAR's consumer guide says it cannot be a range. National Association of REALTORS®, checked 2026-10-19
- NAR tells buyers they can negotiate any part of a buyer agreement, including the services, the length of the agreement and the compensation. National Association of REALTORS®, checked 2026-10-19
Settle these before you type
- Rate or flat fee? Your agreement states one or the other, in objective terms. Enter it the way the agreement writes it.
- Who covers the buyer side? Only what is in writing counts: your buyer agreement, the listing agreement, or the purchase contract.
- Is the number final? Every term is negotiable until it is signed. Run the calculator once with the first quote and again with the number you agree.
- Are concessions part of the offer? A seller concession toward closing costs changes the seller’s net and the buyer’s cash, separately from the agent’s fee.
Mistakes that skew the result
- Typing a rate where the agreement has a flat fee, or both.
- Counting a seller’s payment toward the buyer’s agent twice: once as buyer-agent pay and again as a concession.
- Treating the seller net as cash at closing. Closing costs, prorations and taxes still come out.
- Using a number from a website or an “average” instead of the figure in your own agreement.
What the calculator leaves out
Closing costs, transfer tax, property tax prorations, lender fees and attorney fees are separate and are not part of an agent’s fee. The calculator’s note links an estimator for those. Your closing attorney prepares the final figures.
For the rules behind each input, read how agent pay works in Georgia, the buyer brokerage agreement guide and the listing agreement guide.
Questions people ask
Does the person who pays the agent decide whom the agent represents?
No. In Georgia, who pays or promises to pay a broker does not by itself decide whom the broker represents. The written brokerage engagement does.
Source: O.C.G.A. 10-6A-11
Can a buyer agreement say the agent gets "whatever the seller offers"?
No. Compensation in a buyer agreement cannot be open-ended, such as "whatever the seller is offering", and NAR's consumer guide says it cannot be a range.
Can my buyer's agent be paid more than our agreement says?
No. The buyer agreement must bar the agent from receiving more compensation, from any source, than the amount or rate agreed with the buyer.
Who approves a payment to the buyer's agent when I sell?
You do. A listing agent must disclose to the seller in writing, and get the seller's approval for, any payment or offer of payment to a buyer's broker, stating the amount or rate, before it is made.
Is there a standard real estate commission in Georgia?
No. Broker fees and commissions are fully negotiable and are not set by law. The amount you agree to goes into your written agreement.
Can a seller still pay the buyer's agent?
Yes. A seller may still offer to pay a buyer's agent, but that offer cannot be shared on a Multiple Listing Service.
Can a seller still help with my closing costs?
Yes. Buyers can still receive seller concessions, such as help with closing costs, and sellers can still offer buyer concessions on an MLS.
Next step: take the numbers into your interviews with the interview scorecard, or ask Gold Peach Realty what is negotiable in its own agreements.
Laws, forms and practices change. Every rule on this page links to the office or statute that sets it; confirm with that source, or a Georgia attorney, before you rely on it.
