Work out the total commission on a New Zealand residential real estate sale. Typical NZ schedules are loaded by default — tier 1 at 3.95% on the first $400,000, tier 2 at 2.0% on the balance, an admin fee, plus GST. Adjust to match the specific schedule in your agency agreement.
$
$100k$1m$2m$3m$5m
Your agency
An industry-average anchor drawn from public reports — NOT the rates of any specific agency. Useful to understand the typical structure; do NOT quote to your agent as "the standard rate".
Source note (2026-04): Synthesised from multiple public sources. A teaching anchor, not a real agency schedule.
Sale-method options
What if you negotiated Agency A down?
10% off all tier rates
Agency A current:$37,145
With negotiated rates:$33,948
You'd save:$3,197
Commission is not a statutory schedule — it is a private commercial term. Many agencies will
negotiate, particularly in slower markets, on higher-value properties, or when the vendor is
also a buyer in the same market. Vendors who do not ask, do not find out.
Other selling costs in NZ
Agency fees are only part of what it costs to sell. Values below are NZ 2026 defaults from council websites and market sources, GST-inclusive. Override any line to match quotes you've received.
$
Council-issued. WLG $565 (incl GST) · AKL $375
$
WLG ~$630 · AKL ~$915 · more for multi-storey / monolithic
Standard sale ~$1,725 incl GST · more for complex titles
$
Local 3-bed: WLG ~$1,150 · AKL ~$1,065
$
EQC claim, tree work, compliance fixes
All-in cost of selling — Agency A
Agency fees
Commission + admin (incl GST)
$32,545
Marketing (incl GST)
$4,600
Other selling costs
LIM report
$565
Building inspection
$630
Cleaning
$630
Legal fees
$1,725
Moving
$1,150
TOTAL COST OF SELLING
$41,845
= 4.18% of sale price $1,000,000
ACTUAL NET TO VENDOR
$958,155
= sale price $1,000,000 − total cost $41,845
That "3.95% commission" is the tip of the iceberg. At a $1M sale, typical NZ selling costs add up to
$35k–$55k all-in, 3.5–5.5% of the sale price. Asking for itemised written quotes on every line — agency, marketing, legal, moving, prep — is the only way to see the real cost before committing.