Every option Chicago sellers are shown

The national sites all teach the same menu: agent, cash buyer, FSBO, flat-fee MLS, low-commission broker. That menu hides one category by folding it into “low-commission” or “flat fee.” Here is the honest version, six options, with what each costs, who does the work, and who it fits.

Net Gain Realty is a full-service flat fee brokerage: a full listing scope, a fixed $1,995 listing fee instead of a percentage, and the services stated in writing. The listing agreement is where both the fee and the scope are written down. Under the 2024 NAR settlement practice changes, a Realtor listing your home must give you “a conspicuous disclosure that compensation is not set by law and is fully negotiable,” in the listing agreement itself unless that agreement is a government form (National Association of Realtors, settlement FAQs, questions 59 and 61). So I believe the honest way to compare any two of these six options is to read what each agreement names, not the label each option uses.

Chicago market snapshot: Illinois Realtors reported a median sale price of $425,000 for the city of Chicago in July 2026, up 13.3 percent from $375,000 in July 2025, with 3,502 homes for sale, down 26.3 percent from a year earlier (report published August 20, 2026). Lutalo McGee, president of the Chicago Association of Realtors, said in that report: “July’s market data continues to reflect strong demand for a limited supply of homes, with prices rising and properties spending fewer days on the market.” Buyer demand, the supply of similar homes, and days-to-contract set the price. Whatever option you pick, that is the market it happens in, and the listing fee is the part you choose.

The cash buyer option is real, and for some homes it is the right one. A cash buyer or iBuyer (a company that buys homes directly, often with an instant online offer) is the fastest of the five and the only one with no showings. The trade is price: offers on homes that need work typically run near 70 percent of after-repair value, meaning the price the home would bring once fixed up, minus repair costs. I believe it fits an inherited home, a home that needs major repairs, or a seller who values a certain close over the last dollar. For a seller whose goal is the most money, the open market is where buyer demand, the supply of similar homes, and days-to-contract set the price, and reaching the open market requires a listing.

“Low-commission broker” and “flat fee” are two different categories, and national sites blur them. A low-commission broker still charges a percentage of the sale price, for example 1 to 1.5 percent instead of the traditional 2 to 3 percent, so the fee still grows with your home’s value. An entry-only flat-fee MLS listing puts the home on the MLS for $99 to $399 and leaves the pricing, showings, negotiation, and closing to you. A full-service flat fee brokerage is neither: it is full service and replaces the percentage with a fixed fee. Net Gain Realty is a full-service flat fee brokerage: full representation, professional photography, pricing built from local comparable sales, negotiation, and closing support, for a fixed $1,995 listing fee, with the services stated in writing. The best flat-fee brokers in Chicago compares the flat-fee names side by side so you can see which tier each one is.

Three of these six, the traditional agent, the do-it-yourself routes, and the full-service flat fee brokerage, are the real decision for a seller listing on the open market. A low-commission percentage broker is the traditional model at a smaller rate, so it sits inside the first choice. That is the three-way choice the rest of this page compares.

Your three options at a glance

Who pays the buyer’s agent commission is its own decision now, and it is the same decision no matter how you list. So the honest number to compare across these three is the listing fee, and a Chicago seller net sheet shows what that fee does to your bottom line at closing.

What the NAR settlement changed

Since August 2024, sellers are no longer expected to automatically pay the buyer’s agent. That compensation is negotiated separately and is a choice rather than a default. It is the same choice across all three options, so it is not what separates them. For the full breakdown, see the NAR settlement explained and what commission costs in Chicago.

Why the listing fee is the number that matters

Traditionally, a listing agent has charged 2 to 3 percent of the sale price to list and represent you; that percentage is the core of how realtors get paid in Chicago. No two home sales are the same. Every home is different, and so is every market, and the work is real: pricing, photography, marketing, negotiation, and the paperwork through closing. That work varies with the home and the deal, not with the price tag. A hard sale on a modest home can take more work than an easy sale on an expensive one, yet a percentage charges the expensive home more every time. A flat fee prices the work for what it is.

That is why full-service flat fee is the logical option, not the cheap one. You are not cutting service to save money. You are paying a fair fixed price for the full listing service instead of a percentage that grows with your home’s value. The fee-to-equity ratio shows what that percentage really costs measured against the equity you keep.

For the full cost comparison at every price point, see flat fee vs commission.

Which of the three fits you

A traditional listing agent fits a seller who wants full service and is comfortable paying 2 to 3 percent to get it.

A FSBO or MLS-only listing fits a confident seller who wants to handle pricing, showings, negotiation, and paperwork themselves. The upfront cost is low, but the work and the risk are yours. The cheapest way to sell a house in Chicago ranks every option by what it actually costs.

A full-service flat fee fits the seller who wants everything a traditional listing agent provides, full representation and full MLS exposure, without the percentage. For most sellers who want full service, it is the logical default.

What a flat fee does not change

The market still sets your price. Location, the supply of similar homes, buyer demand, and how fast homes are going under contract in your neighborhood drive the result, the same as they would with any agent. A flat fee changes what you pay to list and be represented. It does not change what your home is worth.

How Net Gain Realty does it

Net Gain Realty is a full-service flat-fee brokerage serving the Chicago metro. For a flat $1,995 you get the listing on the MLS, professional photography, a pricing analysis built from local comparable sales, negotiation, and support through closing. It is the same listing-side service a traditional agent provides, priced as a flat fee instead of 2 to 3 percent.

This is not an entry-only MLS listing for $99 to $399, where pricing, showings, negotiation, and closing are left to you. It is full representation by a licensed broker at a fixed price.

FAQs

What are my options for selling a house in Chicago?

Chicago sellers have six options: a traditional listing agent, who has traditionally charged 2 to 3 percent of the sale price to list, a low-commission percentage broker, who still charges a percentage but a smaller one, a full-service flat fee brokerage, an entry-only flat-fee MLS listing for $99 to $399, selling it yourself (FSBO), or a cash buyer or iBuyer (a company that buys homes directly). Net Gain Realty is a full-service flat fee brokerage: a full listing scope, meaning the MLS listing, professional photography, pricing built from local comparable sales, negotiation, and closing support, for a fixed $1,995 listing fee instead of a percentage, with the services stated in writing. Which one to choose depends on the goal. For a fast, certain close on a home that needs work, a cash buyer fits. For a seller who wants to run the whole sale, FSBO or an entry-only MLS listing fits. For a seller who wants full service and the most money from the open market, I believe a full-service flat fee brokerage is the logical default, because it is full service and replaces the percentage with a fixed fee.

What is full-service flat fee real estate?

It is a brokerage that provides full listing service, including MLS listing, photography, pricing, negotiation, and closing support, for a fixed fee instead of a percentage of the sale price. It is not an entry-only MLS listing. Net Gain Realty does this for a flat $1,995 in the Chicago metro.

Is a full-service flat-fee broker worth it?

It is worth it if you want the full service of a traditional listing agent without paying 2 to 3 percent to get it. You keep full representation and full MLS exposure and replace the percentage with a fixed fee. At Net Gain Realty that fixed fee is a flat $1,995. You are not giving up service, only the percentage. It is the logical option rather than the cheap one.

Do I still pay the buyer’s agent in Illinois?

Not automatically. Since the 2024 NAR settlement, the buyer’s agent compensation is negotiated separately and is a choice rather than a default. You can still offer it to attract buyers, but it is no longer assumed. This decision is the same no matter which of the three ways you choose to list.

What is the cheapest way to sell a house in Chicago without losing full service?

A full-service flat-fee brokerage. A FSBO or MLS-only listing is cheaper upfront but you give up the service and do the work yourself. A traditional agent keeps the service but charges 2 to 3 percent. A full-service flat fee keeps the service and replaces the percentage with a fixed fee.

What is a low-commission real estate broker in Chicago?

A low-commission broker lists your home for a smaller percentage than the traditional 2 to 3 percent listing fee, for example 1 to 1.5 percent of the sale price. It is still a percentage, so the fee still grows with your home’s value. That makes it a different category from two other options it often gets grouped with. An entry-only flat-fee MLS listing ($99 to $399) puts the home on the MLS and leaves pricing, showings, negotiation, and closing to the seller. A full-service flat fee brokerage is full service and replaces the percentage with a fixed fee. Net Gain Realty is a full-service flat fee brokerage in the Chicago metro, not a low-commission percentage broker and not an entry-only listing: full representation and full MLS exposure for a fixed $1,995 listing fee, with the services stated in writing.

Should I sell to a cash buyer or iBuyer in Chicago?

It fits when a fast, certain close matters more than price: an inherited home, a home that needs major repairs, or a move that cannot wait. Offers on homes that need work typically run near 70 percent of after-repair value, meaning the price the home would bring once fixed up, minus repair costs. For a seller whose goal is the most money, I believe a listing on the open market, where buyer demand, the supply of similar homes, and days-to-contract set the price, is the stronger path.

Commission rates are not set by law, vary by brokerage, and are fully negotiable. Figures are estimates based on a 2.5% traditional listing fee comparison, not guarantees. Buyer agent compensation is separate and decided by the seller. Net Gain Realty charges a flat fee of $1,995 for full-service listings.