Selling through a broker costs a commission at closing, and for most sellers it also costs legal and accounting fees at the same moment. Budgeting for the commission alone is the most common reason the final settlement statement is a surprise.
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How much does a broker cost? The commission itself
Published US figures on this site run from 5% to 15% of the sale price across the firms that print anything, with a minimum fee that governs on smaller sales. The rate usually declines as the price rises, applied per tranche rather than to the whole, so the effective rate on a larger sale is lower than the headline.
What arrives alongside it
Legal fees for the purchase agreement and disclosure schedules, billed hourly. Accounting fees for the add back schedule, the structure and any earnings quality work the buyer requires. Escrow agent charges. Lease assignment or license transfer costs where the landlord or the authority charges for consent.
What reduces the total
A prepared file, which cuts legal and accounting hours as well as time. A known buyer, which removes the marketing element entirely. And negotiating the minimum and the tail rather than the headline rate, because those two decide more of the outcome than a point of commission does.
Other questions people ask
Do I pay the broker if I find the buyer?
Under an exclusive agreement, usually yes. Some agreements carve out named buyers you identify at the start, which is worth asking for before signing.
Are there upfront costs?
Marketing charges at some firms, and a retainer where an adviser is running a process. Ask whether either is credited at closing.
What is a reasonable total cost of sale?
It depends on size. What matters is asking three firms for their minimum, their scale and their tail in writing, and budgeting for legal and accounting fees alongside them.
Who pays business broker fee, the seller or the buyer?
The seller, in almost every engagement on this side of the market, because the seller signs the engagement letter. What varies is whether the fee is still due on a buyer you introduced yourself, which is what the tail and any carve out clauses decide.
Who pays broker fees when someone else introduced the buyer?
Read the engagement letter. Many are drafted so the fee is payable on any completed sale during the term however the buyer arrived, and a carve out for a named party has to be written in before you sign rather than argued afterwards.