Sell with an agent or sell yourself? The numbers, with no side taken

Why this dossier can be honest

Agents cite studies showing they sell for more; commission-free platforms cite studies showing the opposite. Both camps live off their answer. Payotte earns no referral commission, sells no package and collects nothing on your transaction, whichever way you go — which is why this dossier can afford NOT to decide for you, and to refuse to cite either camp's studies.

What we publish instead: the debate's only verifiable numbers — the actually observed average commission (independent rate-my-agent 2026 study, 979 verified transactions), applied to your market's real price.

The dollar stakes in 61 cities

The seller's typical total commission — both sides, listing agent and buyer's agent — at the province's observed average (2 × the per-agent rate, rate-my-agent 2026 study), on the reference price published by each city's board. This is the amount at stake when you ask the question.

"Seller rate" = 2 × the province's average per-agent rate (the seller generally pays both sides). NO schedule is imposed anywhere in Canada: these averages describe the market, not a rule — every mandate is negotiated. P.E.I. and the territories excluded (the source flags its own figures as estimates). Per-province detail in our commission dossier.

Selling yourself: what the saved commission has to pay for

The listing package. For-sale-by-owner platforms (DuProprio in Quebec, flat-fee listing services elsewhere) sell the visibility an agent brings along. Their prices are FLAT fees published publicly — orders of magnitude below the commission — but they change regularly: check today's price with the provider, not in an article. That is also why we cite none here.

Your time, at market price. Photos, the listing, phone calls, showings (curious neighbours included), follow-ups, negotiating directly with the buyer or THEIR agent: it is a second job lasting weeks to months — our days-on-market dossier gives your market's average timeline. If your time has a high opportunity cost, price it honestly.

What never goes away. In Quebec, the notary remains mandatory either way (the buyer picks and pays them, but the seller has their own deed costs); the up-to-date certificate of location, the seller's declarations and the legal warranty are on you, agent or not. Selling yourself doesn't eliminate the paperwork — it becomes yours.

Execution risk. A miscalibrated list price (see our price dossiers), solo negotiation against an experienced buyer's agent, a poorly drafted purchase offer: mistakes cost silently, in the final price or in legal fees. It is the one line item impossible to price in advance — and the agents' central argument, which isn't wrong either.

The third path: negotiate the commission

The choice isn't binary. No commission schedule is imposed in Canada — every mandate is negotiable: the percentage, the structure (Western-style tiers: higher on the first $100,000, lower after), the brokerage contract's duration and the services included. One negotiated commission point on Toronto's reference home is $9,340 recovered — without taking back a single showing.

So the real question is not "agent or not", but "what am I buying, at what price, and what can I do myself?". Our net-proceeds dossier runs the full math, and our commission dossier details the averages by province.

Frequently asked questions