Not only do Listing Brokers have no business setting the fees of Buyer Brokers, I feel it may be against antitrust laws. The law says that all real estate commissions are negotiable. When brokers compete for listings they know better than to say that fees are fixed, and listing fees in most areas are not all the same. They generally range from 4 to 7%. HOWEVER, isn't it something that Buyer Broker fees are 3%! I have a file inches thick of printouts and advertising from all over the United States that all say in one way or the other that Buyer Broker fees are 3%. How can listing brokers adhere to the law that says all real estate commissions are negotiable when they must comply with buyer broker fees at 3%? When I take a listing I can set my fees on what my cost are. If I am extremely efficient I may be able to charge 1 to 2% for my services. BUT then I have to tack on the buyer agency fee of 3% and up go my fees to 4 or 5%! In order for real estate fees to be negotiable Realtors must give up the set Buyer Broker fee and stop having the seller pay it. In the "old days" when everyone worked for the seller it made sense for the seller to pay both sides of the transaction. It doesn't make any sense anymore. How can a listing agent negotiate fees when they have to tell the seller they have to pay 3% to the buyer agent or they will not get their homes shown? I tried to get our local MLS to let me put homes in the MLS without a buyer agency fee and was told I could not do it. I then tried to put in negotiable instead of a set fee and was again turned down. I tried to let the seller choose an amount for buyer agency compensation (make it negotiable) and anything less than 3% was boycotted by other agents. I have had buyer brokers tell me that they will not show my listings unless I offer the "standard amount". I have had them refuse to show my listings. (who were they working for? I think buyer brokers are afraid to find out what they are worth to the public. They are afraid to negotiate fees with buyers. They want the seller to offer a set fee in the MLS and be paid without the buyer having input on their fee. The only way agents can abide by the law and make ALL real estate fees negotiable is to have sellers pay for listing services and buyers pay for buyer broker services. Many buyers have complained to me that their agent didn't do anything to earn the commission, however, it is not up to the listing agent to determine whether a buyer agent "earned" the commission. That should be up to the buyer. I have had many sellers object to paying a buyer agent because they felt the agent did not do anything, yet, if they were in the MLS system I had to pay the 3% regardless of what the buyer's agent did or did not do. . The fact that lenders are reluctant to pay buyer agency fees while they are willing to pay listing agency fees is ridiculous. I think the major reason is because they are afraid to rock the referral boat with real estate firms. Many real estate firms are committed to dual agency fees - getting both sides of the transaction. They do not want to give this up, and lenders are afraid to cross them. If all fees were truly negotiable and based on cost of doing business, listing fees would probably end up somewhere between 1 and 4% and Buyer broker fees would probably end up between 1 and 4% also. The end result would still be in the area of where fees are now - 4 to 7%. So what is really the problem? The problem is we have to be willing to let the market determine what we are worth and make ALL real estate fees negotiable and dependent upon the amount of work done and the value of our services. Who is willing to embrace the brave new world of real estate!