The Journal · Selling
How Do Real Estate Commissions Work for South Carolina Sellers Now? What Changed After the 2024 NAR Settlement
By Denise Rush
9 min read
2026-10-29
How do real estate commissions work for South Carolina sellers after the 2024 NAR settlement? The short version: commissions were always negotiable, and they still are, but the way buyer agent compensation is posted and agreed to changed in August 2024. Sellers in most South Carolina transactions still end up paying the buyer's agent commission; it just no longer happens through an MLS listing field, and buyers now sign a written buyer-broker agreement before showings. This guide walks through what changed, who typically pays what, and how it shows up in your net proceeds.
I am Denise Rush, a REALTOR with EXIT Realty Lowcountry Group and a seller-focused agent across the Charleston Tri-County. Commission figures below are general market guidance, not a quote for your sale; the actual amounts are negotiated and written into your listing agreement.
What changed in August 2024
When the National Association of Realtors settlement took effect on August 17, 2024, the biggest change was to the MLS. Agents could no longer advertise offers of buyer agent compensation in listing fields, so the line that stated what the seller would pay a buyer's agent disappeared from the listing itself. South Carolina MLS boards that opted in, including the Charleston Trident MLS and Coastal Carolina AOR, adopted the new rules.
What did not change is that commission has always been negotiable in South Carolina. There is no set rate, and there never was. What changed is the path the money takes and the paperwork that records the agreement.
Do sellers still pay the buyer's agent?
In most South Carolina transactions, yes, sellers still pay the buyer's agent commission; it is just negotiated deal by deal now. A common structure is for the seller to agree to a buyer agent concession at closing, often as part of the purchase agreement or as a credit toward the buyer's closing costs. Published reports put the average seller-paid buyer agent concession somewhere around 2.9 to 3 percent of the sale price, figures to treat as estimates because every transaction is negotiated individually.
Because the amount no longer sits in the MLS listing, your listing agent works it out with the buyer's agent as part of the offer, and it is disclosed and approved in writing rather than advertised to every buyer up front.
The buyer-broker agreement, explained
Before a South Carolina agent shows property to a buyer, in person or through a live virtual tour, the buyer must sign a written buyer-broker agreement that specifies how that agent will be compensated, either a fixed dollar amount, a flat fee, a percentage, or an hourly rate. The agreement is between the buyer and their own agent. If the buyer wants the seller to cover that fee, it becomes a point of negotiation in the offer, commonly as a seller concession at closing.
For sellers, this matters because it makes the buyer side of the transaction more transparent. The buyer's agent no longer relies on an MLS-posted offer from you; the fee is explicit, signed, and then negotiated against your sale.
How commission shows up in your net proceeds
Commission is a seller closing cost, deducted from the proceeds at closing. Your closing cost estimate and your net proceeds worksheet should show every line: the listing broker's commission, any buyer agent concession you agree to, title and recording fees, prorated taxes, and any credits you negotiate. That is why a net proceeds worksheet matters more than a headline sale price, especially now that buyer agent compensation is negotiated per deal.
I break down the full seller side of the ledger in my guide to how much it costs to sell a home in South Carolina , and the net proceeds explainer shows what you actually walk away with.
Questions to ask your listing agent about commission
- What commission rate will be in my listing agreement, and is it negotiable? In South Carolina it is.
- If a buyer asks for a concession to cover their agent, what does that do to my net proceeds?
- How will we handle buyer agent compensation in a multiple-offer situation?
- What will my total seller closing costs be, including commission, title, and recording?
The Takeaway
Commissions in South Carolina are negotiable, and the only number that matters is your net proceeds after everything. Ask for a written worksheet shown both with and without a buyer agent concession so you can see the difference before you choose an offer.
Sources cited in this guide; commission terms are always set by the written agreements you sign
Commission rules changed, but the goal did not: you want to maximize what you walk away with. I will build you a written net proceeds estimate that shows every line, including how a buyer agent concession would change the picture, before you ever decide on an offer. No pressure, just the real numbers.
Written by Denise Rush, REALTOR® with EXIT Realty Lowcountry Group, SC license 77934, serving Charleston, Berkeley, and Dorchester counties and select Orangeburg County communities.