50/50 vs 60/40 Conjunction Splits in Queensland: What the Market Uses

You have a buyer. Another agent holds the listing. They’re willing to conjunct. Before you say yes, you need to know whether the split on the table is reasonable — and whether you have any real leverage to negotiate it.

The conjunction split ratio is the number that determines how the gross commission gets divided between the listing agency and the selling agency. In Queensland, there is no legislated default. No REIQ schedule mandates 50/50. The ratio is entirely negotiable, and what the market actually uses depends heavily on the context: which party brought what to the table, how high demand is for the property, and what kind of agency-to-agency relationship exists. Getting this number wrong — or agreeing to it without proper documentation — is a fast route to a commission dispute.

How Conjunction Split Ratios Actually Work in Queensland

A conjunction involves one agent who is the exclusive listing agent and another who finds a willing buyer for the property. In this scenario, the commission payable is shared with a signed agreement set in place. The split ratio is the core commercial term of that agreement — it dictates how the gross commission is sliced before anyone at either agency counts their internal earnings.

It is worth being precise about the mechanics. The conjunction amount equals the gross commission multiplied by the conjunction split percentage. The adjusted gross is then defined as the gross commission minus the conjunction amount, and franchise fees are calculated based on the adjusted gross after conjunctions are removed. This waterfall structure matters: if your principal runs a franchise, the conjunction amount comes off the top before franchise royalties are calculated, which affects what your office actually nets.

The split percentage itself is expressed from the perspective of the conjuncting agent — that is, the agent who brings the buyer. If you hear “we’ll do a 50 split,” that means the conjuncting (selling) agent receives 50% of the gross commission. If the listing agent offers you 40, they are offering the buyer-side agent 40% and retaining 60% in-house.

The conjunction agreement records how the commission will be split between those agencies and the conditions for payment. Those conditions must be in writing. Under Queensland’s Property Occupations Act 2014, a commission-sharing arrangement that is not properly documented can be rendered unenforceable — a point that the Queensland courts have confirmed in disputes where agents attempted to rely on verbal understandings or implied terms.

The 50/50 Split: When Equal Makes Sense

A straight 50/50 conjunction split ratio reflects a position of approximate parity: both agencies contributed roughly equivalent value to the transaction. The listing agent secured the property, created the marketing material and managed the vendor relationship. The conjuncting agent located a ready, willing and able buyer and facilitated the transaction across the line.

If the commission is to be split, a conjunctional sale will take place. The arrangement might be 50/50, which means, regardless of which agency sells the property, there will be an even split in commission. That structural equality is why 50/50 is often the starting point in Queensland — it is the easiest split to justify to both principals and requires no defence of why one party deserves a larger share.

Where 50/50 tends to be most appropriate in practice: the buyer was entirely sourced by the conjuncting agent and required no qualification assistance from the listing agency; the conjuncting agent conducted their own inspections, managed all buyer communication and wrote the offer; and the property is broadly marketable — not a specialised or difficult-to-sell asset where the listing agent’s database and ongoing marketing investment was the predominant reason a buyer was reached at all.

This arrangement can cause issues if a licensee from one agency perceives they have made more of a contribution towards the sale than the other. That perception is the most common source of conjunction disputes in Queensland. When roles are unclear upfront — when the listing agent ends up running inspections, renegotiating contracts and managing conditions while the conjuncting agent does little beyond the initial introduction — an equal split creates a grievance that can poison the relationship and the transaction.

The 50/50 ratio also works cleanly in what the REIQ describes as “joint appointment” arrangements, where two agencies work together under a commercial arrangement and both agents are jointly appointed to sell the property “in conjunction” with the other under the PO Form 6 Appointment. In those cases, shared responsibility logically underpins a shared commission.

The 60/40 Split: When the Listing Agent Holds the Advantage

A 60/40 split — where the listing agent retains 60% and the conjuncting agent receives 40% — represents the market’s most common asymmetric ratio in Queensland for standard residential property conjunction arrangements. It acknowledges that the listing agent carries the greater structural burden: they hold the agency agreement, they have invested in the vendor relationship, they carry the liability under the Property Occupations Act 2014 for the conduct of the sale, and they manage the vendor through what is often an emotionally demanding process.

A good compromise is a 70/30 split or thereabouts. Licensees from both agencies are motivated to work because they know that, whoever sells the property, they will get some commission. However, the larger share goes to the agency that sells the property. This logic holds equally at 60/40 — the split rewards the listing agent’s pre-existing investment while still making participation worthwhile for the conjuncting party.

In Queensland’s current market, a 60/40 split is most commonly proposed in three situations. First, when the property has already attracted significant buyer interest through the listing agent’s own campaigns and the conjuncting agent’s buyer is not distinctly better qualified than others already registered. Second, when the listing agent is an established performer in the area with a strong vendor-facing track record and the conjunct is being granted access to their work rather than meaningfully adding to it. Third, in off-market or pre-market situations where the listing agent has deliberately created scarcity and controlled access — offering a conjunction is a commercial concession, not a joint enterprise.

From the conjuncting agent’s perspective, accepting 40% of a commission you would otherwise not have earned at all is rational. The key question is whether 40% exceeds your internal threshold once office splits and any running costs are factored. On a property selling at $900,000 with a 2% commission, the gross is $18,000 (plus GST). At 40%, the conjuncting agency receives $7,200 before internal splits — a figure that is meaningful even after overheads. Agents who reflexively reject 60/40 without doing this arithmetic are sometimes declining legitimate income.

Other Ratios in Market Use — and When They Appear

Beyond the standard 50/50 and 60/40, Queensland agents will encounter other ratios in specific contexts. Understanding when and why they arise prevents you from being caught off-guard or accepting a split that does not reflect the actual dynamics of the deal.

70/30 is not unheard of in Queensland, particularly where the listing agent is working a difficult or distressed sale, has an established exclusive database buyer who has expressed strong interest, and is offering a conjunction as a courtesy to a particular relationship rather than out of need. A 30% cut to the conjuncting agent is uncommon and will typically only hold if the conjuncting agent’s buyer is the one who actually proceeds — if the listing agent’s own process produces the buyer, there is no conjunction at all.

Referral arrangements operate on a different logic entirely. Buyer conjunctions have become largely obsolete by the advent of property portals. One experienced principal still regularly engages in seller conjunctions — otherwise known as referrals. “Another agent might reach out with a client selling a property in Toowong. If we agree to take it on, we do it essentially the same as a conjunction where we’re both working for the seller. That’s a lot more common in our profession; there’s usually a 20 per cent referral fee and it works great.”

A referral is when agency one refers a potential client to an agency in a different location, market or for a different type of service. This typically occurs when an agent has a client who is looking to buy or sell a property outside their area of expertise or geographical reach. In return for the referral of this client, the referring agent may receive a referral fee or a percentage of the commission from the successful transaction.

This distinction matters for Queensland agents who conflate the two. A referral is structurally different from a conjunction: the referring agent plays no ongoing role in the transaction. A 20% referral fee on a conjuncted sale is very different from a 20/80 split on a full conjunction — in the latter, the conjuncting agent is expected to actively facilitate the sale and a 20% cut is commercially indefensible for the work involved.

The Legal Framework Governing Queensland Conjunction Splits

The conjunction split ratio is not merely a commercial arrangement — it sits within a specific legal framework. Queensland’s Property Occupations Act 2014 (POA) replaced the former Property Agents and Motor Dealers Act 2000 and governs the conduct of property agents in this state. While the POA deregulated the maximum commission amount — the cap on commission for agents has been removed — it did not remove the requirement for proper written documentation of commission-sharing arrangements.

The POA’s Schedule 2 dictionary defines an “associate” to include a property agent who acts, for a sale of property, in conjunction with a property agent appointed to sell the property. This is significant: conjuncting agents are classified within the statute’s framework, meaning disclosure obligations attach to the arrangement.

Making sure the vendor’s authority allows you to engage another agent, or getting written consent, is essential. The listing agent’s authority to conjunct derives from their agency agreement with the vendor. If that agreement does not expressly permit conjuncting, the listing agent needs vendor consent before any split can be validly executed. An undisclosed conjunction arrangement — one where the vendor is unaware another agency is involved and entitled to a portion of the commission — risks a challenge to the commission entitlement altogether.

The Queensland case of Equity 2 Pty Ltd v Best Price Real Estate Pty Ltd [2020] QDC 180 is instructive on how carefully the terms of a conjunction agreement must be drawn. This District Court of Queensland case highlights that a lack of understanding when it comes to contract terms could cost real estate agents their commission. The case involved a dispute arising from a conjunction agreement, and the Court held that where a buyer who was not specified in the terms of the contract purchases the land, the entitlement to commission will not be recognised.

The decision shows the reluctance of courts to read outside the terms of an agreement. It is important when entering a contract to understand the nature of the terms — anything which is not expressly stipulated will not be recognised solely on the grounds of good faith.

The practical implication: if your conjunction agreement specifies a particular buyer or buyer category and a different buyer ultimately transacts, your entitlement to the split may fall away entirely. The ratio written into the agreement only matters if the agreement is valid and its conditions are met.

What Belongs in a Written Conjunction Split Agreement

Regardless of the ratio agreed, the split must be documented before the transaction proceeds. A conjunction agreement that is silent on any of the following terms is an invitation to a dispute:

• The exact percentage or dollar split of the commission — 50/50, 60/40, or otherwise — clearly expressed
• Whether the split applies to gross commission or net commission (after GST, franchise fees or other deductions — this is a critical distinction)
• The trigger for payment: typically settlement of the contract of sale, not exchange
• Whether amounts are inclusive or exclusive of GST
• Who pays: usually the listing agent collects from the principal and remits the agreed share; and “effective cause” wording to prevent double claims by tying payment to being the effective cause of the sale
• The process for recording buyer introductions — for example, an email log — and any protection period if the introduced party later transacts

Verbal arrangements — a handshake deal — feel quick, but leave too much to interpretation. Always document the split and scope. This principle cannot be overstated. In the Queensland market, where off-market conjunctions and informal inter-agency conversations happen at speed, the temptation to proceed on a verbal understanding is real. That temptation should always be resisted.

Without a defined “effective cause” test and an intro log process, both sides may claim the same buyer. Build clear rules into the agreement.

GST, Internal Splits and the Real Value of a Ratio

A conjunction split ratio quoted in discussion is almost always a percentage of the gross commission — the amount the vendor pays — before GST. GST at 10% is calculated on top of commission, and the GST component is collected and remitted by the listing agency as the party holding the agency agreement with the vendor. This means the headline split number is not the same as the after-GST amount each agency actually receives.

When a listing agent says “I’ll give you 50%”, that 50% is of the commission exclusive of GST — and both agencies will remit their own portion’s GST to the ATO through their own registered entities. When doing back-of-envelope calculations to assess whether a split is worth accepting, always start with the ex-GST figure.

Then apply your internal split. If you are a salesperson on a 60/40 split with your principal (receiving 60% of what the agency earns), and the conjunction gives your agency 40% of a $20,000 gross commission, your agency nets $8,000 (ex-GST). Your personal share is $4,800. That figure — not the headline conjunction percentage — is the number you should be running when a listing agent offers you terms in the field.

Conjunction fees are deducted from gross before splits in the commission calculation waterfall. For principals and office managers modelling conjunction transactions, this sequencing matters: the conjunction payment leaves the building before franchise fees, office splits and agent shares are calculated.

Negotiating the Split Ratio: Leverage and Timing

The ratio a listing agent first proposes is rarely the last word. Your leverage in negotiating a conjunction split ratio in Queensland comes from a small number of factors: the quality and exclusivity of your buyer, the urgency or difficulty of the listing, and whether the listing agent believes your buyer will otherwise transact on their own.

A highly qualified, motivated buyer who has been registered with no other agents, is pre-approved and has a genuine time pressure to purchase, is your strongest negotiating asset. If the listing agent’s campaign is stale, the property has been on the market for an extended period, or the vendor is under financial or circumstantial pressure to sell, the listing agent’s willingness to accept a 50/50 arrangement increases substantially.

Conversely, if you are bringing a buyer to a well-run, recent listing that is already attracting multiple enquiries, a listing agent who offers 40% is behaving entirely reasonably. Insisting on 50/50 in that context is likely to end the conversation. A 40% share of a commission you would otherwise not have earned at all is still commercially sound.

The worst negotiating position is to begin the conversation after you have already introduced your buyer to the property without any split agreement in place. If the listing authority doesn’t allow conjunctions and the vendor objects later, commission can be at risk. Get consent first. Listing agents who receive buyer enquiries from another agent and fail to formalise the conjunction arrangement before the buyer inspects are also exposed: if their vendor later disputes the split or claims they were unaware, the path to recovering the conjuncted share becomes complicated.

Negotiate — and document — before inspection. This is the single most reliable practice for protecting your commission entitlement in a Queensland conjunction.

Conjunction vs Referral: Different Arrangements, Different Ratios

One of the most common misunderstandings among newer Queensland agents is treating conjunctions and referrals as equivalent. They are not, and the appropriate ratio differs significantly between them.

A conjunction involves ongoing active participation by both agencies. A real estate conjunction typically refers to a partnership between two real estate agents on behalf of their agencies, to sell a property. Usually, agency one is appointed by the sellers as the listing agent and lists the property for sale. Agency two supplies a buyer for the purchase. This arrangement is suitable where an agency other than the listing agency has access to a buyer that is suitable for the property.

A referral involves agency one passing a lead to agency two and stepping out entirely. The referring agent plays no role in the transaction after introduction. A referral fee is therefore much smaller — industry practice in the Queensland residential market typically places referral fees in the range of 15% to 25% of the receiving agency’s commission, rather than a percentage of gross commission. One experienced principal quoted in REIQ commentary places common referral fees at around 20%.

Accepting a 20% “referral arrangement” when you intend to actively work the buyer through the purchase process is an error you will regret. Clarify at the outset whether the arrangement being proposed is a conjunction (active, higher split) or a referral (passive, lower split). The answer shapes the ratio discussion entirely.

What This Means for Queensland Agents

The 50/50 and 60/40 conjunction split ratios that dominate Queensland market practice are not arbitrary numbers. They reflect the balance of contribution, risk and leverage between two agencies on a specific transaction. Neither is inherently “standard” — the right ratio depends on what each party actually brings to the deal.

For listing agents, the key disciplines are: confirm your agency agreement permits conjuncting before you engage, obtain vendor consent in writing, document the split and all conditions before the buyer inspects, and ensure effective cause language is clear enough to survive a dispute.

For conjuncting agents, the key disciplines are: assess what proportion of the work you will genuinely be performing before accepting any ratio, confirm whether the quoted split applies to gross or net commission, factor in your internal split to calculate actual earnings before deciding whether to proceed, and never rely on a verbal agreement regardless of your relationship with the other agent.

The decision in Best Price Real Estate shows the reluctance of courts to read outside the terms of a conjunction agreement. Courts will not rescue inadequately documented arrangements, and they will not fill gaps in a split agreement with what the parties believed they had agreed. The ratio that goes into the written agreement is the ratio that will be enforced — or that will fail to be enforced at all if the agreement is unenforceable for lack of proper documentation under the Property Occupations Act 2014.

No matter what kind of agreement is entered into — conjunction, referral, or otherwise — sales agents must ensure it continues to meet its disclosure obligations in accordance with the Property Occupations Act. A well-structured conjunction split, documented before the buyer steps through the door, is one of the cleaner ways to expand your transactional reach in Queensland without compromising your entitlement to be paid for the work you perform.