Buying a home? How your agent gets paid, and how to ask the seller to help

First, you agree on what you’ll pay your agent

Before an agent shows you homes, the two of you sign a written buyer agency agreement. In North Carolina that’s usually Form 201. Among other things, it says how much you’ve agreed to pay your agent, as a flat amount or a percentage.

That amount isn’t set by law. It’s negotiable between you and your agent, and you should understand it before you sign. Ask your agent to walk you through it line by line.

Then you can ask the seller to help pay it

Many sellers are willing to help with what you owe your agent. When they do, it comes to you as a credit at closing, which lowers the cash you need to bring.

Since July 2026, that request is made on a one-page addendum to your offer, Form 220. It’s part of the contract, just like the price and the due diligence fee, and it’s negotiated the same way. Only you and the seller sign it.

Three things buyers get wrong

1. “The listing said the seller would pay it.” A seller can let the listing agent say they may consider a credit toward your agent’s pay. That’s an invitation to ask, not a promise. Nothing is owed until it’s in a signed contract. (These offers can’t appear on the MLS, so your agent will usually ask the listing agent directly.)
2. “It’s the same as closing costs.” It isn’t. Help with your agent’s pay and help with your other closing costs are two separate requests in the contract, and they add together. If you need both, ask for both, as separate amounts.
3. “If the seller says no, I’m off the hook.” Usually not. Your buyer agency agreement says what you owe your agent. If the seller pays less, or nothing, the difference is generally yours. Know that before you make an offer, so there are no surprises at closing.

Why sellers may raise the price

When you ask a seller to pay part of your costs, you’re really asking them to help you finance money you’d otherwise need in cash. Many sellers respond by adding that amount to the price. Don’t be offended if that happens. You still end up bringing less cash to closing, and that’s often the whole point.

Never sign anything your agent hasn’t gone over with you

This applies to your buyer agency agreement, your offer, Form 220 and every addendum. Your agent owes you a duty to explain what you’re signing, section by section, before you sign it. That’s part of protecting you, not a courtesy.

E-signing makes it easy to skip. A link shows up in your email, you tap “sign” a few times, and you’re done. Don’t. If an agent sends you a document to sign without walking you through it first, ask them to stop and go over it with you. A good agent will be glad you asked.

With my clients, I send the document first so they can see it, we go over it together on the phone or in person, and only then do I send it for signatures. Your agent may do it differently, but they should do it.

How I handle it

I teach this contract to other brokers, and I tell them the same thing I tell my buyers: my loyalty is to the person I represent. Sometimes a seller or a builder offers an extra bonus to the buyer’s agent.

My practice has always been to put that money to work for my buyer instead, as a lower price or more help with closing costs. A bonus to me is money the seller could have knocked off your price.

Whatever agent you work with, ask how they handle bonuses before you sign.