Real Estate Brokerage Fees in Japan Explained

Selling and Buying

Typical Brokerage Fee = Sales Price x 3% + 60,000 + Tax (8%)

The brokerage fee charged to a Seller or Buyer is typically 3% of the purchase price. However this can vary somewhat depending on the price of the property:

Depending on the number of real estate agents involved in a transaction, the brokerage fee which is paid to the agent can change. If the property price is high or located in a desirable area, in many cases, there will be several agents involved in the transaction.

The Real Estate Law requires the real estate agency to list the property from the seller on the “REINS” property listing website for the realtors. However, some companies do not list their properties on REINS. We specialize in finding these unlisted properties.

Renting

Brokerage Fee = 1 Month Rent + Tax (8%)

The Real Estate Law stipulates that the brokerage fee for rental transactions is equivalent to a maximum of 1 month’s rent. In Tokyo and other metropolitan areas, building owners will also often pay real estate agencies an additional 1 month’s rent as an “Advertisement Fee” to promote their property. If there is no advertisement fee, and 2 agencies are involved, they will generally split the 1 month’s agency fee, so that each party will receive 0.5 month’s rent as the brokerage fee. There are some companies advertising no brokerage fees. They typically receive “key money” or some other type of compensation. In other words, they will receive a commission or kick back other than the standard brokerage fee.

At Solid Real Estate, we believe in being 100% transparent about the fees for our services.