Ask three Cobb County sellers whether they still pay the buyer's agent and you'll likely hear three answers. One says it's gone for good, one says nothing changed, and one isn't sure which story is true.
The honest answer is that it's your call, and the call carries real dollars either way. Below, we'll walk through what the 2024 settlement changed, what the fee looks like on a $400,000 house, how buyers react when a seller offers nothing, and how Cobb and Cherokee conditions should shape your decision.
What Changed About Buyer's Agent Pay In 2024?
The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) settlement did not outlaw buyer's agent pay. It changed where the number can appear and what a buyer has to sign first. NAR says the practice changes went into effect on August 17, 2024. Here's what shifted:
- No offers on the MLS. Offers of compensation to buyer brokers can't be posted on an MLS anymore.
- A signed agreement comes first. NAR says buyers working with an agent who uses an MLS need to sign a written agreement before touring a home.
- Agent pay is negotiable. Per NAR, broker fees and commissions are fully negotiable and not set by law.
What didn't change is the seller's ability to offer something. NAR's guidance says brokers, with the seller's approval, can share an offer through flyers, emails, yard signs and brokerage websites instead of the MLS. Seller concessions can still be communicated on an MLS as long as they aren't tied to a payment to the buyer's broker.
My own take: the new rules made the seller's side more transparent, but they made life harder for buyers. The fee was always negotiable. What was missing was agents spelling that out for sellers in full detail.
Does A Georgia Seller Have To Pay The Buyer's Agent?
No. Agent pay is not set by law, and offering something toward the buyer's agent has always been the seller's choice. What you offer is a decision you make, not an obligation you inherit.
That decision gets made when you sign your own listing agreement. You and your agent choose whether to offer a percentage, a dollar amount, or nothing. Starting at zero doesn't lock you in. If an offer arrives and covering part of the fee is what gets the deal done, you can still agree to it then.
Not required and never banned. Decide what to offer with your listing agent before the first offer shows up, so you aren't improvising in the middle of a negotiation.
What Does Georgia's Listing Agreement Say About Paying The Buyer's Agent?
The Georgia Association of Realtors® (GAR) rewrote its forms after the settlement, and the 2025 changes to the GAR forms are where Georgia sellers see it in writing. The seller's listing agreement (Form F101) now says: "Seller shall have no obligation to pay the Compensation of Buyer's Broker."
The form then gives you three paths. You can offer a specific amount or percentage, you can offer nothing, or you can decline up front but stay open to negotiating it later as part of an offer.
A few details that matter:
- The offer has to be specific. A Georgia REALTORS® guide to the settlement says any compensation to brokers must be specific and/or calculable, so think in terms of a flat dollar figure or a percentage, not a vague promise to "help out."
- Buyers can still ask. If a buyer wants you to cover part of their agent's compensation, Georgia has a form for that: the Buyer's Broker Compensation Agreement (Form F259).
- The buyer owes their agent either way. Under the buyer's agreement (Form F110), the buyer is obligated to pay the broker's full compensation, and anything the seller or seller's broker pays reduces what the buyer owes, dollar for dollar.
So if you pay nothing, the buyer is responsible for the full amount, and if you pay something, the buyer owes that much less. Whether you're listing in Kennesaw or Canton, you're never required to pay the buyer's agent, and you're never barred from it.
This is general information from public sources, not legal advice. Your listing agent and closing attorney can speak to your specific contract.
What Does A Buyer's Agent Fee Look Like In Dollars?
Redfin's report found the average U.S. buyer's agent commission was 2.42% in the third quarter of 2025, up from 2.36% a year earlier. For homes that sold for less than $500,000, the average was 2.52%.
Average U.S. buyer's agent commission, Q3 2025 (Redfin)
Average on homes sold for under $500,000, Q3 2025 (Redfin)
Put 2.5% on a $400,000 house and you get about $10,000. That's my rounded example, not a figure from any report. If you cover it, your buyer mostly needs a down payment and their own closing costs. If you don't, the $10,000 is still owed. It just becomes the buyer's to come up with, on top of everything else they're financing.
That gap matters most when a buyer's budget tops out near your price. Someone approved for $400,000 who suddenly needs another $10,000 in cash for their agent may simply drop out of the running. To see how this fee sits next to your other costs, read the difference between list price, sale price, and what you actually pocket.
That's a national figure for closed sales, and it doesn't say who paid it, the seller or the buyer. On a $450,000 home at the under-$500,000 average of 2.52%, it works out to $11,340. What it does show is that buyer's agents are still being paid, and that number is part of the math whether it comes out of your proceeds or your buyer's pocket. Your own numbers depend on your price point, your loan payoff, and what you offer, and that's where a net sheet earns its keep.
How Do Buyers React When You Offer Nothing?
With offers off the MLS, a buyer's agent often has to pick up the phone and ask what a seller is willing to do. Before the change, that number was visible in the listing before anyone wrote a word.
Say that call comes back with zero. The agent still tells their buyer about your home, but now there's a $10,000 line item attached. A buyer with no room for that cost may move on to the next listing, and you'll never know they were interested.
The buyer's side is tighter, too. Every buyer now signs an agreement with their agent before touring, and in my experience most agents won't settle for a single-house showing agreement. Add today's mortgage rates and down payment pressure, and a lot of the buyers I talk with are already stretched thin on cash.
Is Offering Worth It In Cobb And Cherokee Right Now?
Local conditions should drive the answer. In our fall housing shift post, we reported Cobb County at 2,820 active listings, up nearly 11% from the same time last year, and Cherokee County at 1,443, up just over 10%. More homes means buyers have more to compare.
Atlanta home sales with a seller concession, three months ending Aug. 31, 2026 (Redfin)
Nearly: year-over-year rise in Cobb County active listings
Redfin put Atlanta first among the 29 metros it analyzed for the share of sales that included a seller concession. In a market like that, I see covering some or all of the buyer's agent fee as a way to make your house the easy pick over a similar one down the street, without cutting your price. We covered the wider list of asks in what buyers will ask for in Smyrna.
Your own agent's fee is a separate conversation. If you want to know what that fee buys you, start with what a listing agent actually does for their commission.
Should You Offer A Set Amount, Nothing, Or Leave It Open?
Across metro Atlanta, from Marietta and Woodstock to Alpharetta and Cumming, buyers are asking for concessions, and buyer's agent compensation is one more item that can come up at the table. Here's how I'd compare the three options for a seller:
- Offer a specific amount. It tells buyers and their agents up front what to expect, which helps if a lot of your likely buyers don't want to pay their agent out of pocket. The cost comes out of your proceeds.
- Offer nothing. You keep the money, but some buyers will ask you to cover part of it during negotiation, and it can shrink your pool of buyers who can't or won't pay their agent themselves.
- Leave it open. You keep flexibility and can answer when an offer comes in, but buyers and their agents may read the silence differently than you intend.
Buyers using government-backed loans can still ask you to pay. In a March 28, 2024 notice, FHA said that if sellers continue to pay buyer-side agent commissions and fees by state or local law or custom, and the amounts are reasonable, existing policy would not treat those payments as interested party contributions, provided all other requirements are met. On the VA side, the VA said veterans can now pay reasonable and customary amounts for certain buyer-broker fees under rules effective August 10, 2024, and that nothing in the settlement prevents veteran buyers from asking sellers to pay the fees at closing. Have the buyer's lender confirm how it treats any seller-paid amount on their loan.
There's no one right answer for every home. It's completely up to you as the seller.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to pay the buyer's agent when I sell?
No. Agent pay is not set by law, and offering something toward it is the seller's choice. You can offer an amount, offer nothing, or revisit it when an offer comes in.
Can buyer's agent pay be advertised on the MLS?
No. Offers of compensation can't be posted on an MLS. With the seller's approval, they can be shared through flyers, emails, yard signs and brokerage websites. Seller concessions can appear on the MLS if they aren't tied to a payment to the buyer's broker.
What is the average buyer's agent fee right now?
Redfin reported an average U.S. buyer's agent commission of 2.42% in the third quarter of 2025, and 2.52% for homes that sold for less than $500,000.
What happens if I offer nothing?
The fee doesn't disappear. The buyer's own agreement spells out what they owe their agent, so the cost shifts to the buyer, who may then ask you to cover part of it during negotiation.
Can I change what I offer after I list?
Yes. The number is set when you sign your listing agreement, even if it's zero, but you can agree to cover some or all of the fee later if an offer calls for it.
Can a buyer using an FHA or VA loan ask me to pay their agent?
Yes. FHA guidance says reasonable, customary seller-paid buyer-side compensation isn't treated as an interested party contribution, provided all other requirements are met. The VA said nothing in the settlement prevents veterans from asking sellers to pay these fees at closing. The buyer's lender confirms how it applies to their loan.
Is my own agent's commission negotiable?
Yes. According to NAR, broker fees and commissions are fully negotiable and not set by law.
Ready To Decide What You'll Offer?
Settle this before the first offer lands and you negotiate on your terms instead of reacting. Pick a number, or a zero, with your listing agent and know what each choice does to your net.
Grab the free guide below. It lays out every cost that comes with selling, including this one, so nothing catches you off guard when offers start arriving.
Know Every Cost Before You List?
The free guide, The Real Cost Of Selling Your House, walks through what sellers pay before listing, during the sale, and at closing, so you can plan your net before you decide what to offer.
Ken Mandich is a Realtor® and team lead at Complete Realty Team, serving Metro Atlanta with a focus on Cobb and Cherokee County. As an active real estate investor, Ken brings a rare combination of hands-on investing experience and full-service agent expertise to every seller and buyer he works with. He's built his business around clear communication and walking clients through every step of the process, from pricing a home right to closing with confidence. You can reach him at 404-410-6465 or [email protected].
