Realtor commission on house flipping

[Vardhini K shipley]

Hello,

First time investor in cleveland, Ohio. I'm nervous as hell. Wanted to get y'all perspective as an investor, who is paying the realtor's commission of 3.5%? Is it the buyer or seller? Or is every situation is different? Please guide. Thank you- Val

[Steve K.]

Quote from @Matthew Bernal:

Welcome Val! The nervousness is completely normal every investor feels it on the first deal.

On commissions — since the NAR settlement last year this changed. Buyer agent commission is now negotiable and not automatically covered by the seller. In practice many sellers still offer it but you need to confirm upfront before touring. As an investor always ask what the seller is offering and negotiate from there.

For investment properties in Cleveland specifically, the financing side is just as important as the commission conversation  making sure you have the right loan structure lined up before you make an offer puts you in a much stronger position.

Happy to walk you through what financing looks like on a first Cleveland investment property so you have that piece figured out alongside the agent commission question.

Are you looking at single family or small multifamily for your first deal?

Hey just fyi commissions have been negotiable since around 1950, they were fixed prior to then but not since then. What the NAR lawsuit last year in 2025 changed was: 1. Buyers and their agents are now required to enter into an agency agreement before viewing properties together. 2. The commission amount that a seller is offering to a buyers agent can no longer be advertised in the MLS. There was (and apparently still is) a lot of confusion around this with many people, including people reporting on the lawsuit, for some reason thinking that commissions just became negotiable, but that is incorrect. Myself and many others have been negotiating commissions all along, since 1950 when that rule changed (well before my lifetime).