An agency agreement is the contract that appoints your agent. It sets how their commission is worked out and when you pay it, what you'll spend on marketing, how long you're committed and how you can end it.

Commission and fees aren't set by law, says NSW Fair Trading, so you can negotiate them before you sign, along with the term and how it ends. Your state's rules set the limits. Here's what to look for, how to structure the commission, what to negotiate, and how to get out of an agreement you've already signed.

What's in an agency agreement?

An agency agreement must be in writing in every state and territory. Outside the Northern Territory, whose Act doesn't spell this out, the rules also say it must set out the commission, or how it's worked out, and the costs you'll pay, and that you must sign it before the agent can charge commission.

The first thing to check is the type of agreement, which decides who you pay if you or another agent finds the buyer. In NSW, Queensland and the ACT, a sole agency means you don't pay the agent if you find the buyer and bring about the sale yourself.

With an exclusive agency, you pay that agent whoever sells. South Australia's government guide calls that kind a sole agency, so read the commission clause, not the name.

Our guide to open listings, sole agency and exclusive agency sets out the differences, including the open listing, where you can sign with several agents and pay only the one who sells. Other rules depend on your state:

In NSW and Victoria, the estimate must be reasonable, and the agent must revise it in writing if it no longer is. Consumer Affairs Victoria warns against choosing an agent just because they give you the highest estimate. To check an agent's figure, see what your property is worth.

How can you structure the commission?

Commission can be a percentage of the sale price, a fixed fee or a mix of both. Consumer Affairs Victoria, WA Consumer Protection and South Australia's government guide all say so. It can also be tiered, with a different rate on the part of the price above a figure you agree.

A percentage or a fixed fee

A percentage moves with the sale price, and a fixed fee doesn't. Either way, ask whether the figure includes GST.

In Queensland, the approved appointment form (Form 6) asks for the commission including GST. In Victoria, Consumer Affairs Victoria says GST should be set out separately.

A tiered commission, worked in dollars

A tiered commission usually pays a higher rate on the part of the price above a figure you agree (the threshold). South Australia's guide lists a bonus above the estimate, or a lower fee below it, as terms you can negotiate.

Write down which part of the price each rate applies to. Consumer Affairs Victoria warns that a seller may take the higher rate to apply only above the threshold, while the agent may take it to apply to the whole price.

This example compares 2 per cent on the first $800,000 of the price and 10 per cent on any amount above $800,000 with a flat 2 per cent of the whole price. The round figures show the effect and aren't typical or recommended rates. They leave out GST and your other selling costs.

Each extra $20,000 above $800,000 pays the agent $2,000 instead of $400, and you keep $18,000 of it.

NSW Fair Trading warns that a commission rate that changes with the price can cost significantly more than a flat rate on the final sale price. If the threshold sits below the price the home would fetch anyway, you pay the higher rate on part of a price you'd have got regardless.

Check the threshold against the agent's estimate and recent sales.

We haven't found Australian research showing that a tiered commission, or any other structure, gets a higher price. What it changes is how much the agent earns from each extra dollar.

When is commission payable?

Your agreement says when. In NSW, commission is usually payable only when the property is sold, says NSW Fair Trading. If an agreement charges it even when a sale doesn't complete, it must carry a warning saying so.

In Victoria, the agent takes commission from the deposit at settlement (the day ownership passes to the buyer), says Consumer Affairs Victoria.

In Queensland, the approved form makes settlement the default. If you choose another option, the agent may still seek commission when the sale doesn't settle.

A 2020 guide from Queensland's Office of Fair Trading warns that agreements can make commission payable once the sale is unconditional (no longer subject to conditions such as finance), even if it later falls through. That's the risk of choosing an option other than settlement.

The Office suggests setting the buyer's deposit at least equal to the commission, so you don't lose money.

Marketing costs and other fees

Consumer Affairs Victoria and WA Consumer Protection both say you pay the marketing costs your agreement sets, even if the home doesn't sell. The exception is if you negotiate "no sale, no fee". For what a marketing quote covers, see what advertising a property costs.

• A cap on advertising. Queensland's form must show the advertising amount you authorise. In WA, the agreement must state the most you'll pay, and you initial it.
• Rebates. If the agent gets a rebate or discount on the marketing they buy for you, they must disclose it in every state and the ACT (in Tasmania, if it's over $100). In Victoria, they must pass it on to you, and in WA they can keep it only with your written consent.
• Fees if you withdraw. South Australia's guide says its sole agency, where you pay the agent even if you sell the home yourself, might include a cancellation fee if you withdraw before the agreement ends. Ask whether yours has one, and how much.

How do you end an agency agreement?

If you've signed and want out, you can end the agreement as it allows, or let it run to its end date. Some states also give you a way out by written notice, whatever the agreement says:

• Queensland: on a sole or exclusive agreement of 60 days or more, 30 days' notice, though it can't end before day 60 unless you both agree in writing.
• NSW and the ACT: on a fixed term over 90 days, 30 days' notice at any time after the first 90 days, without penalty. This doesn't apply if, under the sale contract, the seller is building the home.
• Tasmania: either you or the agent can end it by notice, and the notice period can't be more than 30 days.
• South Australia: at any time during an extension.

In Victoria and the Northern Territory, you can't end it during the agreed period unless the agent agrees. In WA, it ends as the agreement says. Our listings guide also covers each state's rules on ending an agreement.

Set the term with the ending in mind. The term is yours to negotiate, within your state's limit in the table above.

Check whether the agreement rolls over when it ends. In South Australia, if the agent sends you a notice of expiry, the agreement is extended once for 180 days. Before it expires, you can reply refusing the extension, or, in the last 14 days, agree in writing with the agent to a shorter one of up to 90 days instead.

In Queensland, it can carry on as an open listing if you both agree to that on the form.

Commission can outlast the agreement. In NSW, an exclusive agreement can entitle the agent to commission if you later sell to someone who started negotiating with them. Ask how long this lasts, and which buyers it covers.

In Tasmania, the agent can claim commission if, within 90 days of the agreement ending, you sell to a buyer they introduced or showed through, and that brought about the sale. It doesn't apply if you sell under another valid agency agreement.

Changing agents? End the first agreement in writing, as it allows, before you sign the second. Otherwise, both agents may be able to charge you commission.

Can you change your mind after signing?

In NSW, yes. Elsewhere, the agency laws give no cooling-off period on an agency agreement, so your way out is the agreement's own terms and your state's rules above.

In NSW, the cooling-off period runs until 5pm on the next business day or Saturday, whichever comes first, unless the agreement or the agent extends it.

Sign on a Friday and it usually ends at 5pm on Saturday. Sign on a Saturday and it usually ends at 5pm on Monday, or Tuesday if Monday is a public holiday, says NSW Fair Trading.

There's no cooling-off if you signed a waiver form before the agreement. The waiver only counts if the agent had given you a copy of the proposed agreement and NSW Fair Trading's consumer guide to cooling-off at least one business day before you signed the agreement.

To cancel, give the agent a written notice addressed to them before the cooling-off period ends. It must say you're cancelling the agreement. Every seller who signed the agreement, or each one's solicitor, must sign the notice.

You can hand it over, leave it at the agent's office or another address in the agreement, or email it to the address the agreement gives for notices. Keep a copy. The agreement is then treated as never made, you owe nothing, and the agent must refund any money you paid.

One exception can apply anywhere. If an agent approached you uninvited, at your door or by phone, and you signed then, the national rules on unsolicited sales may give you 10 business days to cancel. The ACCC explains those rules.

What to negotiate before you sign

Talk to more than one agent (NSW Fair Trading's approved guide suggests at least three), ask each for their agreement before you decide, and compare:

1. The commission in dollars at three or four realistic sale prices, including GST, and what triggers it.
2. When it's payable, and whether you'd owe anything if a sale falls through.
3. The marketing budget, what it covers, the most you'll pay, and whether they'd agree to "no sale, no fee".
4. The term, within your state's limits, whether it rolls over into an extension or an open listing, and how either of you can end it.
5. Commission after it ends: for how long, and which buyers it covers.
6. Any fee if you withdraw the home or it doesn't sell.
7. The agreement type, and whether they'd agree not to charge commission if you find the buyer yourself.
8. The price estimate, and the recent sales it's based on.

Put any change you agree into the agreement, in writing, before you sign.

If you're in a dispute about commission

In NSW, you can take a fee you think is excessive or unearned to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal. Queensland's Office of Fair Trading may help if commission is harsh or unreasonable.

In Victoria, you can complain to Consumer Affairs Victoria within 28 days of receiving the agent's account (their bill) or notice that they've taken the amount from their trust account, whichever is later. You can also go to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT).

In WA, the agreement itself must say you can ask the Commissioner, the state's real estate regulator, for help. Elsewhere, start with your state or territory's fair trading or consumer affairs office.

Sources

The rules on this page come from each state's regulator and legislation, checked on 16 October 2026:

• NSW: NSW Fair Trading, Agency agreements for the sale of property (updated 8 July 2026) and its approved guide to agency agreements, and the Property and Stock Agents Act 2002 and Regulation 2022
• Victoria: Consumer Affairs Victoria, Selling property with or without an agent (updated 5 May 2021), and the Estate Agents Act 1980
• Queensland: Office of Fair Trading, Commissions (updated 29 October 2020), the approved Form 6 appointment (May 2024), and the Property Occupations Act 2014
• South Australia: Selling a property: engaging professionals (updated 9 June 2026), and the Land and Business (Sale and Conveyancing) Act 1994 and its Regulations 2025
• Western Australia: Consumer Protection, Selling property (updated 25 June 2026), and the Real Estate and Business Agents (General) Regulations 1979 and Code of Conduct 2016
• Tasmania: the Property Agents and Land Transactions Act 2016
• ACT: the Agents Act 2003 and Agents Regulation 2003
• Northern Territory: NT Government, Dealing with a real estate agent, and the Agents Licensing Act 1979
• Australia-wide: ACCC, Telemarketing and door-to-door sales

This is general information, not legal advice. If you're unsure what an agreement means for you, a solicitor or your state's fair trading or consumer affairs office can help.