Buy commission-free property in Berlin

What commission-free means exactly

Adverts say “commission-free” or “commission-free for buyers”. In both cases it means you, as the buyer, pay no agent's commission. There may still be an agent. They then work solely for the seller, and the seller pays them in full.

The second common case is the developer. They sell newly built flats directly or bear their own sales costs. This changes nothing about your path to the notary; there is simply no invoice for 3.57% of the purchase price.

The equal split: the rule since December 2020

For a long time in Berlin it was usual for buyers to pay the whole commission. Since 23 December 2020, §§ 656a to 656d BGB have applied. The rules on splitting the commission apply when a flat or detached house is sold to a consumer, that is, to you as a private individual (§ 656b BGB).

Since then, the agency agreement must be in text form; an email is enough, a handshake is not (§ 656a BGB). If the agent works for both sides, they may charge buyer and seller only the same amount (§ 656c BGB). If only the seller has instructed them, the seller can pass on at most half of the costs to you, and your share only falls due once the seller proves they have paid their own share (§ 656d BGB).

So no one may charge you more than half for a flat or detached house. Less is allowed. So is nothing, and that is exactly what a commission-free offer is. In Berlin the total commission is usually 7.14% including VAT, so the buyer's half is 3.57%. This level is not set out in any law; it has settled in the market. The guide Equal split principle for agent's commission explains it in detail.

What you save: the calculation

An example with a purchase price of €400,000, once with buyer's commission and once commission-free:

Notary and land register fees are empirical values between 1.5% and 2.0%, calculated here at 2.0%.

You can work out your own figure like this: purchase price times 0.0357. On €300,000 that is €10,710, on €500,000 it is €17,850.

The saving is felt most in your equity. Banks generally expect you to pay the additional costs from your own money. If you buy commission-free, in the example you need a good €14,000 less in savings, or the amount stays as a reserve for moving, the kitchen and the first repair. If you finance part of the additional costs, the repayment falls instead: €14,280 less loan is around €69 a month at 3.81% interest and 2% repayment (€14,280 × 5.81% ÷ 12). How much equity makes sense is covered in the guide Equity when buying property; what the bank wants to see before it commits is under Getting mortgage financing.

Why commission-free often means new build

Anyone in Berlin looking specifically for commission-free property mainly finds new-build projects. A developer sells many flats in a building on uniform terms. They build the sales costs into their calculation, whether they appoint an agent or employ their own sales staff.

So sales are not free of charge. The cost is in the price, like the plot, construction costs and profit. Compare the price per square metre with similar projects nearby, not just the additional costs. For context: for first sales of flats in newly built multi-family buildings, the Berlin valuation committee (Gutachterausschuss) found an average of €7,878 per square metre of living space for 2024, and €5,929 for converted period flats (Altbau) built up to 1919 (IBB housing market report 2025, table volume).

One detail is often overlooked. Real estate transfer tax is based on the purchase price (§§ 8 and 9 Grunderwerbsteuergesetz, German Real Estate Transfer Tax Act). If the commission is in the price, you pay tax on it; a commission you pay separately under your own agency agreement is generally not part of the tax base. If a new-build price includes €14,280 of sales costs, they cost you a further €857 in real estate transfer tax (€14,280 × 6.0%). That is no argument against a commission-free offer. It is simply one more reason to compare the price per square metre carefully.

When buying from a developer you also do not pay all at once, but in instalments as construction progresses. The first instalment falls due at the earliest once the earthworks have begun (§ 3 para. 2 MaBV). What should be in the developer contract is explained in the guide Buying a new build in Berlin.

Commission-free in existing properties

Used flats and houses are also offered commission-free. Either the owner sells without an agent, or they have instructed an agent and bear the full commission. Some sellers do this to reach more prospective buyers, because buyers on a tight budget sort by total cost. Others build the commission into their price. Both are permitted.

In the end, what counts is what is in the purchase contract. If the brochure says “commission-free” but the notary's draft contract still contains an agent's clause at your expense, what you sign applies. So read the draft before the appointment with this passage in mind, and ask if it is not clear to you.

If you buy privately without an agent, you save the commission and take on their work in return: requesting documents, reading the land register (Grundbuch), coordinating viewings and giving the notary all the details. If this is your first time, you will find the steps in the guide Buying your first property.

When you do pay commission

You only owe a commission if you have concluded an agency agreement yourself or validly assume a share in the purchase contract. It only falls due once the purchase contract is validly concluded (§ 652 BGB). If the purchase falls through, you pay nothing.

The equal split applies only to flats and detached houses with a private buyer. For a multi-family building, a building plot or a commercial unit, the commission is freely negotiable, as it is if you buy through a company. There, the full commission can also fall on the buyer. So read the commission note in the brochure before the first viewing.

The equal split also works the other way round. If you instruct an agent yourself to search for you, you pay them, and you may involve the seller in at most half (§ 656d BGB). A search profile with us costs you nothing; what commission applies to a listing is stated in the brochure for that listing.

What to look out for with commission-free offers

Commission-free is a cost item, not a quality feature. Check such an offer as thoroughly as any other.

• Price per square metre. Put it next to listings with buyer's commission in the same location. Only this comparison shows whether you really save.
• Reservation fee. A reservation fee that does not depend on success, in an agent's pre-formulated terms, is invalid (Federal Court of Justice, ruling of 20 April 2023, I ZR 113/22). If anyone asks you for money before the notary appointment, ask what the basis is.
• Documents. Even without a commission, for a flat you need the declaration of division (Teilungserklärung), owners' meeting minutes and the annual budget (Wirtschaftsplan), and for a new build the construction description and the payment schedule.
• Additional costs. Real estate transfer tax (Grunderwerbsteuer), notary and land register (Grundbuch) fees still apply, around 8% of the purchase price in Berlin.

The guide Buying an owner-occupied flat lists which papers you should have read before the notary appointment; The purchase process from reservation to key handover describes the path to handover. The article Additional purchase costs in Berlin shows which additional costs arise in detail. You will find current offers without buyer's commission in our listings with the commission-free filter.

Sources

• § 656a, § 656b, § 656c and § 656d BGB (German Civil Code), text form, scope and allocation of agents' costs; Act on the Allocation of Agents' Costs in the Brokerage of Purchase Contracts for Flats and Detached Houses, in force since 23 December 2020
• § 652 BGB, when the agent's fee arises
• § 3 Makler- und Bauträgerverordnung (Real Estate Agents and Developers Ordinance), instalment payments in a developer purchase
• Federal Court of Justice, ruling of 20 April 2023, I ZR 113/22, reservation fee in agents' standard terms invalid
• § 8 and § 9 Grunderwerbsteuergesetz (Real Estate Transfer Tax Act), tax base and consideration
• IBB housing market report 2025, table volume, table 28: price level of vacant owner-occupied flats 2024 based on data from the Berlin valuation committee (Gutachterausschuss)
• Deutsche Bundesbank, effective interest rates on residential construction loans, August 2026, 5 to 10 years' fixed rate 3.81%
• Senatsverwaltung für Finanzen Berlin (Berlin Senate Department for Finance), real estate transfer tax rate 6.0%