How to Sell With a Realtor Without Paying 3% in Chicago (2026)

Last updated September 10, 2026. Written by Matthew McMahon, Managing Broker, Net Gain Realty, a licensed Illinois brokerage serving the Chicago metro.

A Chicago seller can sell with a realtor without paying a 3 percent listing fee in three ways: negotiate the percentage down with a traditional agent before signing, take on part of the listing job through an entry-only MLS listing or a limited-service broker, or hire a full-service flat-fee broker who does the whole job for a fixed price. Net Gain Realty is the third way: the complete listing job in the Chicago metro for a flat $1,995 listing fee, in place of the 2 to 3 percent listing fee that has traditionally been charged on the seller’s side.

What the “3 percent” actually is

Traditionally, a Chicago home sale has carried two fees, one for each side. The listing side has been a 2 to 3 percent listing fee. The buyer’s agent has been a separate line, and since the 2024 National Association of Realtors settlement practice changes it is negotiated offer by offer rather than offered through the MLS. Commission rates are negotiable and are not set by law.

The number this page is about is the listing side. On an example $450,000 sale, a 2 to 3 percent listing fee is $9K to $13K+. At an example 2.5 percent it is $11,250. That is the line a seller controls when choosing how to list.

The three ways to sell with a realtor and not pay 3 percent

1. Negotiate the percentage with a traditional agent

Every listing agreement in Illinois states that the fee is negotiable. Ask for a lower listing rate before signing and get it in writing; once the agreement is signed, the leverage is gone. Whether the rate comes down is up to the agent. What does not change is the model: the fee is still a percentage of the sale price, so it scales with the house, never with the work.

2. Take on part of the job yourself

An entry-only MLS listing, roughly $95 to $699 in the Chicago market, puts the home in the database and stops. Pricing, photography, showings, negotiation, and the contract-to-close work stay with the seller. Limited-service and reduced-percentage brokers sit in between: a lower percentage or a tiered fee, with some of the work handed back to the seller. On the largest national platforms, the tiers that add pricing help or negotiation charge roughly 0.5 to 1.25 percent of the sale price at closing on top of the upfront fee. This path fits a seller who wants to run the sale.

3. Hire a full-service flat-fee broker

A full-service flat-fee broker performs the complete listing job for a fixed price. Net Gain Realty is a full-service flat-fee broker in the Chicago metro: a pricing strategy built from live MLS data, professional photography, the MRED listing with syndication to Zillow, Redfin, and Realtor.com, showings, negotiation, and the contract-to-close work, for a flat $1,995 listing fee. What changes is how the fee is calculated: one fixed number instead of a percentage of the sale price. This is the path for a seller who wants the whole job done and does not want the fee priced on the house.

The three ways side by side

Example numbers on a $450,000 sale. Commission rates vary and are always negotiable; 2.5 percent is an example for comparison only.

Path	Listing fee on $450,000	Who prices it	Who runs showings and negotiates	Who runs contract to close
Negotiated traditional agent (example 2.5%)	$11,250	Agent	Agent	Agent
Entry-only MLS listing	$95 to $699	Seller	Seller	Seller, with the attorney
Full-service flat fee at Net Gain Realty	$1,995	Net Gain Realty	Net Gain Realty	Net Gain Realty

Why the full-service flat fee is its own category

Two different products both call themselves flat fee, and the difference is who does the work. The entry-only listing lowers the fee by taking work off the broker and putting it on the seller. The full-service flat fee keeps the whole job with the broker and changes how the price is set. Net Gain Realty does not offer a cut-down listing; it charges one fixed fee for the complete listing job, because the work of selling an example $450,000 home and an example $650,000 home does not grow with the price the way a percentage does. The fee scales with the price, never with the work.

I believe that is the honest reason to question the 3 percent: not that agents charge too much, but that the listing fee has been priced on the house instead of on the job.

The fee comes out of your equity, not the sale price

A percentage listing fee is quoted on the sale price but paid out of the seller’s equity. On an example $450,000 sale with a $300,000 mortgage payoff, the seller’s equity is $150,000. An example 2.5 percent listing fee of $11,250 is 7.5 percent of that equity. Net Gain Realty’s flat $1,995 on the same equity is 1.3 percent. The calculator above runs this on your numbers once you enter the payoff, and the fee-to-equity ratio page explains the measure.

The buyer’s agent is a separate decision

Selling without paying 3 percent on the listing side does not settle the buyer’s agent line. Since the 2024 settlement changes, buyer-agent compensation is not offered through the MLS and is negotiated with each offer. A seller is not required to pay it. Many Chicago sellers still choose to contribute as part of deal strategy, and that is a decision made offer by offer in every model, including a flat-fee listing.

Where Net Gain Realty lists

Net Gain Realty lists homes across the Chicago metro: the city and the suburbs in Cook, DuPage, Lake, and Will counties. Matthew McMahon, the founder, has been a licensed Illinois broker since 2017 and built the brokerage around the flat fee in 2024. The listing process, from the first data conversation to closing day, is laid out step by step at how to sell with a flat fee broker.

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Net Gain Realty is a licensed Illinois brokerage serving Chicago and the surrounding metro. Commission rates are not set by law, vary by brokerage, and are fully negotiable. All figures are examples. Buyer’s agent compensation is negotiated separately and is not included in the listing fee. Net Gain Realty charges a flat listing fee of $1,995.