A buyer broker agreement is a written contract between you and a real estate agent that sets out what the agent will do for you, how long the arrangement lasts, and how the agent gets paid. Since August 2024, most agents have to have this contract signed before they can show you a home, even on a virtual tour. Whether you should sign the one in front of you depends almost entirely on the terms inside it, and most of those terms are negotiable.
Why You’re Being Asked to Sign One
Before August 2024, buyers routinely toured homes and even made offers without signing anything with an agent. Commissions were handled quietly between brokerages at closing, and most buyers never saw a bill.
That changed when the National Association of REALTORS® settled a class-action lawsuit over broker commissions. Under the settlement, agents who belong to NAR or work through MLS systems must now have a signed written buyer agreement in place before touring a home with you. It isn’t a federal law, but because most agents work through MLS-affiliated brokerages, it functions as industry standard. The agreement must also state clearly that compensation is not set by law and is fully negotiable.
The practical effect: you negotiate your agent’s pay upfront, before you’ve looked at a single house.
What’s Inside the Agreement
Term Length
Every agreement has an expiration date. Terms range from 30 days to a full year. Agents often propose 90 to 180 days as a starting point, but you can push for shorter. If you don’t know the agent well, a 60- or 90-day term lets you evaluate the relationship before locking in longer. You can always extend.
Exclusivity
Most buyer broker agreements are exclusive. You commit to working only with that agent for the term, and if you find a home through someone else (or on your own) during that window, your contracted agent may still be owed a commission. Non-exclusive agreements exist but are uncommon; under those, you only owe the agent who’s actually involved in the deal you close.
Agent Duties
The contract should spell out what the agent will do: find properties, schedule and attend showings, run comparable market analyses, advise on offers, negotiate with the seller, and guide you through inspections and closing. Once signed, the agent owes you a fiduciary duty, which includes loyalty, confidentiality, honest advice, full disclosure of material facts, and competent guidance throughout the transaction.
Termination
Find the section on how either side can end the agreement early. It should specify written notice, any conditions that allow penalty-free termination (such as the agent breaching their duties), and whether you’d owe a fee if you walk. If the contract is silent on early termination, raise it before you sign.
Administrative Fees
Some brokerages add flat administrative or transaction fees on top of commission. These can run from a few hundred dollars to over a thousand and cover file management, compliance paperwork, and software. If they aren’t disclosed in the agreement, ask directly. A $500 fee discovered at closing is not a good surprise.
How Your Agent Gets Paid
This is where the 2024 settlement changed the most, and where most buyers have questions. Your agreement has to state a specific dollar amount, a percentage, or a clear method for calculating compensation. Vague phrases like “customary commission” are no longer acceptable.
Buyer agent commissions currently average roughly 2.3% to 2.5% of the purchase price, though rates vary by market and price tier. On a $400,000 home, that’s roughly $9,200 to $10,000. Nothing fixes these numbers. You can negotiate a flat fee, an hourly rate, a lower percentage, or a tiered structure that drops at higher prices.
Who Actually Writes the Check
Negotiating your agent’s fee is not the same as paying it. Sellers can still cover the buyer’s agent commission, and many do. The difference now is that sellers can’t advertise this offer on the MLS listing. Instead, you ask the seller to pay your agent’s fee as a concession inside your purchase offer. The seller can accept, reject, or counter that request. If they agree, you may owe nothing beyond what the concession covers. If they refuse and you still want the house, you’re on the hook for whatever your buyer broker agreement says.
The Built-In Cap
The agreement cannot require you to pay more than the amount or rate stated in it. If your contract says 2.5% and the seller offers 3%, your agent collects 2.5%. The number you negotiate is a ceiling.
How the Agent Will Represent You
Your agreement names a representation type, and it matters more than most buyers realize.
Single-agent representation means your agent works only for you. Their loyalty runs one direction. This is what most buyers expect.
Dual agency happens when the same agent or brokerage represents both you and the seller in the same deal. The agent can’t fully advocate for either side because your interests conflict with the seller’s. Eight states ban dual agency outright. Where it’s allowed, the agent must disclose the conflict and get your written consent. Even legal dual agency puts you at a disadvantage.
Designated agency is a middle ground used in some states. If two agents from the same brokerage end up on opposite sides of a transaction, each acts as a single agent for their own client. The brokerage technically has a dual relationship, but your individual agent can still advocate for you. If this term is in your agreement, ask the agent to explain how it works in your state.
The Protection Clause
Most buyer broker agreements include a protection clause, also called a safety clause or holdover provision. It extends the agent’s right to collect a commission for a period after the agreement expires, typically 90 to 180 days. The logic: if your agent showed you a home during the term and you buy that home shortly after the contract ends, the agent still gets paid.
Without this clause, buyers could run out the clock and then purchase a home their agent found. That’s a legitimate concern. But protection clauses can be too long or too broad. Some states regulate them directly, capping the holdover period and requiring the agent to deliver a written list of protected properties.
The clause should end immediately if you sign a new buyer broker agreement with a different agent. If that carve-out isn’t in the contract, negotiate it in before you sign. A long holdover with no carve-out can trap you into paying two commissions on your next purchase.
If You’re Using a VA or FHA Loan
Government-backed loans add complications worth knowing before you sign.
For VA loans, veterans historically could not pay buyer-broker fees at all. The VA issued a temporary variance effective August 10, 2024, allowing veterans to pay these fees under certain conditions. The fees cannot be rolled into the loan, and the lender must confirm the veteran has enough cash to cover both closing costs and the buyer-broker charge. The VA also expects the buyer representation agreement to be uploaded with the loan file. The variance remains temporary as of early 2026 while the VA pursues formal rulemaking, so the rules could change. Sellers can still cover these fees, and the VA encourages veterans to negotiate the amount regardless of who ultimately pays.1Veterans Benefits Administration. Temporary Local Variance for Certain Buyer-Broker Charges
FHA borrowers have more flexibility. Sellers can offer concessions of up to 6% of the purchase price or appraised value (whichever is lower), and buyers can direct those concessions toward their agent’s commission. Whether an FHA borrower can pay the fee directly out of pocket is less clearly addressed in FHA guidelines, so talk to your lender before signing a contract that assumes you’ll be paying.
Getting Out of a Signed Agreement
Signing doesn’t mean you’re stuck with a bad agent. Start with the termination clause. It should spell out the conditions, the notice required, and any fees. Most agreements allow either party to cancel with a written letter. If the agent agrees, the process can be quick. Always get the termination in writing and signed by both sides. A verbal split leaves you exposed if the agent later claims a commission on a home you buy.
If the agent won’t agree to a mutual termination, go to their supervising broker. Your contract is technically with the brokerage, not the individual. The broker may reassign you to another agent in the firm or release you from the agreement. Brokerages generally prefer a clean exit over a hostile client.
If the agent has failed to perform their duties or breached their fiduciary obligations, you likely have grounds for termination without penalty regardless of what the contract says. Agents who stop communicating, miss showings, or share your confidential information with the other side have arguably breached first. Document everything.
And if none of that works, you can wait out a short term. One more reason to start with 60 or 90 days.
What to Negotiate Before You Sign
Read the whole agreement. The pressure of a hot market pushes plenty of buyers into skimming and initialing. Pay close attention to compensation, exclusivity, termination, and the protection clause. If any language isn’t clear, ask the agent to explain it in plain terms. If they can’t or won’t, that tells you something.
Push on the term. There’s no rule that says you accept whatever duration the agent proposes. A confident agent won’t object to proving themselves over 60 or 90 days.
Push on the commission. Ask what services justify the rate. Compare it to what other agents in your area quote. A flat fee or hourly rate may suit you better if you’ve already identified properties and need less search help.
Ask about the protection clause. How long is it, what triggers it, and does it end if you hire a new agent? If it’s longer than 90 days or doesn’t void when you sign with someone else, push back.
Make sure the agreement reflects what happens if the seller refuses to cover your agent’s fee. Your agent should be prepared to request seller concessions in every offer. But you need to know what you owe if the answer is no, so closing day doesn’t come with a bill you didn’t plan for.
Interview more than one agent before you commit. The agreement formalizes a relationship. It doesn’t create one.