Do NJ Sellers Still Pay the Buyer’s Agent Commission?

Do NJ Home Sellers Have to Pay the Buyer’s Agent Commission in 2026?

No. As of August 2024, New Jersey sellers are no longer required to pay the buyer’s agent’s commission — that changed when a national settlement reshaped how compensation works on the MLS. Most Westfield and Union County sellers still choose to offer 2% to 2.5% to attract a wider pool of buyers, but it’s now a negotiated business decision, not an automatic cost. On a $1.3 million Westfield home, that’s roughly $26,000 to $32,500 — a number worth planning for before you list, not after.

By Galina Kaplan | June 22, 2026

If you’ve started prepping to sell your home this year, you’ve probably heard something changed with real estate commissions. Maybe a friend mentioned it. Maybe you saw a headline about a multi-million-dollar lawsuit. What you probably didn’t get was a straight answer about what it actually means for your closing statement.

I get this question constantly right now, and it’s one of the most search-driven topics in real estate this year — for good reason. The rules changed, the old assumptions don’t hold anymore, and most of what’s online is written for a national audience instead of a New Jersey seller trying to figure out their actual number.

Here’s the straight version.

What Actually Changed in 2024

For decades, the standard practice was simple: the seller pays both their own listing agent and the buyer’s agent, usually a combined 5% to 6%, baked into the price of the home. Buyers rarely thought about it because they never wrote a check for it directly.

That changed after a national settlement involving the National Association of Realtors took effect on August 17, 2024. Two things shifted:

• Offers of buyer-agent compensation can no longer be advertised on the MLS. A seller can still offer to pay it, but that offer now has to be communicated off-MLS, directly between agents, instead of sitting in the public listing data.
• Buyers now sign a written agreement with their agent before touring homes. That agreement has to spell out exactly how much their agent gets paid and how — no more open-ended “the seller will figure it out” arrangement.

In New Jersey specifically, the NJMLS confirmed these rule changes for every Realtor working in our market, including agents here in Union and Essex County. None of this makes paying the buyer’s agent commission illegal or unusual. It just makes it optional, and it moves the conversation off the MLS and into direct negotiation between agents.

That’s the part that trips people up. “Optional” doesn’t mean “nobody does it.” It means you, as the seller, now have to actually decide.

What Westfield and Summit Sellers Are Actually Doing Right Now

In practice, I’m seeing three approaches play out in this market:

1. Offer the full 2% to 2.5%, same as before. This is still the most common path, especially for homes priced above $1 million. It keeps your listing competitive with every other house a buyer’s agent is showing their client, and it avoids putting your buyer in the position of needing cash on top of their down payment just to cover their own agent.
2. Offer a partial amount, like 1% to 1.5%, and let the buyer cover the rest. This splits the cost and signals that you’re willing to negotiate without fully absorbing the fee.
3. Offer nothing and price accordingly. Some sellers go this route, particularly on homes that are already drawing strong interest without it. The risk: buyer’s agents working with clients who can’t pay out of pocket may simply steer them toward listings that do offer compensation.

Here’s why most sellers in Westfield, Mountainside, Scotch Plains, Cranford, Summit, and Berkeley Heights are still landing on option one or two. Right now, this market is what I’ve been calling a two-speed market — turnkey, well-priced homes are still drawing strong activity and closing well over asking, while underprepared or overpriced listings are sitting noticeably longer than they were a year ago. If your home needs every advantage it can get to stand out, narrowing your buyer pool by refusing to offer any compensation is rarely the move that gets you to the closing table faster.

What This Actually Costs You

Let’s put real numbers on it, because that’s the part most articles skip.

• On a $900,000 home in Cranford or Scotch Plains, a 2.5% buyer-agent commission runs $22,500.
• On a $1.3 million home — close to Westfield’s current median — that’s $26,000 to $32,500, depending on whether you offer 2% or 2.5%.
• On a $2.5 million luxury listing in Summit or Mountainside, that same 2.5% jumps to $62,500.

That’s on top of your listing agent’s commission, the Realty Transfer Fee, and — if your home sells above $1 million — the Mansion Tax, which shifted to a seller-paid obligation back in July 2025. It’s one more entry in the running list of 2026 tax and cost changes affecting NJ homeowners worth knowing before you list. Stack those together and the buyer-agent commission is rarely the line item that surprises people the most, but it’s often the one they assumed had simply disappeared. It didn’t. It just became a choice you have to make on purpose.

This is exactly why I walk every listing client through a full net sheet before we ever put a sign in the yard. The number on the Zestimate or the number you see on a portal listing isn’t the number that lands in your account — and the gap between the two is almost always bigger than people expect.

The honest answer to “do I have to pay this” is: no, but the real question is whether not paying it costs you more in the end through a smaller buyer pool, a longer time on market, or a lower final price. That answer depends on your specific home, your price point, and what’s happening on your block right now — which is a conversation worth having before you list, not after you get an offer and feel blindsided by the math.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is paying the buyer’s agent commission still legal in New Jersey?

Yes. Sellers can still offer to pay the buyer’s agent’s commission — it’s just no longer advertised through the MLS. The offer and amount are negotiated and communicated directly between agents instead.

How much do most NJ sellers offer the buyer’s agent in 2026?

Most sellers in the Westfield and Union County market are still offering 2% to 2.5%, the same range as before the rule change. Some are offering 1% to 1.5% and letting the buyer cover the difference, and a smaller number are offering nothing at all.

Will refusing to pay the buyer’s agent commission hurt my sale?

It can. Buyer’s agents working with clients who can’t pay their own agent out of pocket may prioritize showing homes that do offer compensation, which can shrink your buyer pool, especially for first-time buyers who are already stretching for a down payment.

Do buyers have to sign anything before touring my house?

Yes. Under the current rules, buyers working with a Realtor must sign a written buyer representation agreement before touring homes, which spells out exactly how their agent gets paid.

Where does the buyer-agent commission fit into my total closing costs?

It’s one piece of a larger picture that includes your listing agent’s commission, the Realty Transfer Fee, and the Mansion Tax if your home sells above $1 million. The only way to know your true net is to run all of it together against your specific sale price.

Every seller’s number looks a little different once you factor in your home’s price point, your timeline, and what buyers in your specific neighborhood are seeing right now. If you want to know exactly what you’d walk away with under a few different commission scenarios, comment NETSHEET below and I’ll run the numbers for you, or reach out directly and we’ll talk through your specific listing strategy.

About Galina Kaplan
I’m a North Jersey real estate agent helping buyers and sellers navigate big life transitions with clarity, strategy, and a little humor. After making the move from Brooklyn to New Jersey myself, I know how overwhelming the process can feel and how much the right guidance matters. I bring strong marketing, local insight, and a calm, hands-on approach to help my clients feel confident every step of the way.