Real estate agency commission: what does selling your property actually cost?
Agency fees are not regulated in France. Every agency sets its own schedule and must display it. Here is what is commonly observed, how the amount is calculated, what it covers, and where the Briveo fee schedule sits.
How much does an estate agency cost?
There is no official rate and no regulated average. Fees charged by transaction professionals have been unregulated since the ordonnance of 1 December 1986 on price freedom and competition: each agency builds its own fee schedule and publishes it.
In practice, published schedules most often sit between 4% and 7% of the sale price, with a frequently observed band around 5% to 6% depending on the agency, the area and the type of mandate. Many schedules are tiered and degressive: the rate falls as the price rises, which is why a single network can display several rates.
In other words, the only figure that binds you is the one published by the agency you appoint, restated in your mandate. Everything else is a market tendency, not a rule.
Fees unregulated since 1986. No legal cap, no floor, no national schedule.
The rate written into the mandate must match the schedule the agency displays publicly.
A tiered schedule makes the effective rate vary with the value of the property.
How is the agency commission calculated?
The commission is a percentage applied to the price of the property. Three parameters drive the final amount, and each should be checked in the mandate before signing.
The rate applies to the sale price. The price shown in a listing is usually the price including agency fees: it adds the net proceeds to the seller and the fees themselves. Always check which of the two you are being quoted.
The mandate names the party liable for the fees: the seller or the buyer. That choice is not tax-neutral, notably for the base of the transfer duties. Your notary quantifies the impact case by case.
A schedule can be quoted excluding tax, with VAT at the prevailing rate added on top. A schedule expressed including all taxes, like Briveo's, holds no surprise at completion.
What do agency fees cover?
Fees do not merely pay for putting a listing online. They cover a service framed by law no. 70-9 of 2 January 1970, known as the Hoguet law, which requires the professional to hold a professional licence (carte T), a financial guarantee and professional indemnity insurance.
- Valuing the property and setting the pricing strategy.
- Drafting the mandate and keeping the advertising compliant.
- Producing the listing, distributing it and keeping it up to date.
- Screening and qualifying buyers, organising viewings.
- Negotiating, formalising offers and counter-offers.
- Assembling the sale file and following it through to the deed.
Two rules protect the seller. The order of 10 January 2017 requires fees to be displayed including all taxes, notably in the window, on the professional's website and in listings. Article 6 of the Hoguet law forbids collecting any sum before the transaction is effectively concluded and recorded in a deed: no sale, no fee.
Read our page on the Hoguet lawThe Briveo fee schedule
Briveo is an estate agency holding a carte T. Its schedule is public and identical for everyone: 2% incl. tax on the Smart plan, 5% incl. tax on the Premium plan with a dedicated agent. Fees are borne by the principal, that is the seller, and are due only on the day the deed is signed.
One point of honesty: on the Smart plan the fee rises to 5% incl. tax if the final buyer was introduced through a completed Delegated Viewing, that is a viewing carried out for you by an authorised agent operating under the carte T of Liberty House Real Estate SAS. The rate is determined at completion, never by a switch over time.
A worked example on a property at €450,000
The table below applies each rate to the same sale price. It is an example, excluding specifics: tiered schedules, fees borne by the buyer, services included or billed separately, and the tax treatment of your own situation. Only the published schedule of the agency you appoint is authoritative.
| Scenario | Rate | Fees | Difference vs Briveo Smart |
|---|---|---|---|
| Briveo Smart | 2% | €9,000 | Reference |
| Agency, low end of the observed range | 4% | €18,000 | + €9,000 |
| Agency, low end of the frequently observed band | 5% | €22,500 | + €13,500 |
| Briveo Premium (dedicated agent) | 5% | €22,500 | + €13,500 |
| Agency, high end of the frequently observed band | 6% | €27,000 | + €18,000 |
| Agency, high end of the observed range | 7% | €31,500 | + €22,500 |
The "agency" rows do not refer to any particular brand: they restate the range of rates observed on the market. The Briveo Premium row is shown as it is: at 5%, it sits at the level of a frequently observed agency schedule.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average estate agency commission?+
There is no official average. Fees have been unregulated since the ordonnance of 1 December 1986 and each agency publishes its own schedule. Published schedules most often sit between 4% and 7% of the sale price, with a frequently observed band around 5% to 6% depending on the agency, the area and the type of mandate. Since many schedules are tiered, the effective rate also depends on the price of the property.
Is the agency commission negotiable?+
In principle yes: no law sets a rate. The order of 10 January 2017 does however require the agency to display its schedule, and the rate written into the mandate must match it. At Briveo there is nothing to negotiate: the schedule is public and the same for every seller.
Who pays the commission, the seller or the buyer?+
The mandate names the party bearing the fees. In practice they are most often borne by the seller and deducted from the price at completion. That choice has tax consequences, notably for the base of the transfer duties: your notary quantifies them case by case. At Briveo, fees are borne by the principal, that is the seller.
When is the commission due?+
Only once the sale is effectively concluded. Article 6 of the Hoguet law forbids an estate agent from collecting any sum before the transaction is effectively concluded and recorded in a deed. No sale, no fee. At Briveo the fee is settled on the day the deed is signed.
How can Briveo charge 2%?+
Because the selling journey is AI-assisted and runs online: valuation from the DVF open data published by the DGFiP, listing copy, distribution, buyer qualification and assembly of the notary file. Physical viewings are mobilised on demand through an authorised agent operating under the carte T of Liberty House Real Estate SAS, which is precisely what takes the fee to 5% when a Delegated Viewing leads to the sale. The schedule reflects that cost structure; it takes nothing away from the legal framing of the service.
Start with the figure that matters.
What your property is worth.
The estimate is free and commitment-free. You will then see exactly what the commission represents on your sale.