That’s an extra $70,000, all because we didn’t settle for less and allowed the buyer to dictate the terms.Key Takeaways:Don’t settle for less: Just because a buyer tries to leverage you into a lower fee doesn’t mean you have to accept.

I need to do research once I get settled somewhere (our other house was heavily damaged by trees falling on it) but thought I'd ask this forum in the meantime. 

Allen, 15% is where we settled out as well but for a very nerdy reason:X is a month's rent.

Don’t settle in your requirements.

The marketplace is always evolving, so may eventually see more listings where sellers only set their listing agent commission for marketing the property and negotiating on their behalf, and not offer any buyer agency fee up front, and just settle on that in the Offer the buyer agent brings them.

For now I've settled on the "live in flip" and "house hack" approach which seems to be the best way to get your foot in the door in an expensive market.

These days homes can be extremely expensive and I'm not going to spend my hard earned money to settle for a home that has all these funky changes.   

In some cases the bankable borrowers conscientiously choose to fund their projects with alternative lender because they  can achieve better leverage, won't have to maintain a set depository relationship with a bank, or they need to settle quickly.

You can also contact them and often settle them for pennies on the dollar.

To illustrate, a property initially valued at $60 million might see its worth decrease by 30%, settling at around $45 million.