Buyer’s Agents in Queensland: How They Get Paid, What They Charge and the Conjunction Question
A buyer walks into your open home. They’re confident, ask sharp questions, and already have a copy of the contract. You notice the letterhead on the folder they’re carrying — it belongs to a buyer’s agency you haven’t dealt with before. They want a conjunction arrangement. Do you know exactly what that means for your commission, your Form 6, and your obligations under the Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld)?
Buyers agents are no longer a novelty in the Queensland market. They are a permanent and growing part of the transaction landscape, and every selling agent in this state needs to understand how they operate, how they get paid, and precisely what happens when their client wants to buy your listing.
The Queensland Buyers Agent Market: Where It Stands Now
The buyers agent sector has grown substantially across Australia. In 2016, the Property Investment Professionals of Australia (PIPA) estimated there were 500 buyers agents registered across Australia. By 2025, that number had grown to over 1,000. In Queensland, that growth has been concentrated at the premium end — investors from interstate, overseas buyers targeting the South East Queensland corridor, and owner-occupiers who want professional representation in a fast-moving market.
Queensland’s property market continued to surge through 2025, with the statewide median house price rising by around 3.7 per cent during the June 2025 quarter to reach approximately $850,000, while Brisbane house prices increased by more than 4 per cent over the same quarter, taking the median to roughly $1.27 million. That price pressure is one of the structural drivers of buyers agent growth: as markets become more competitive and entry prices higher, buyers are more willing to pay for professional search and negotiation expertise.
Townsville, Rockhampton, Gladstone and Mackay recorded annual growth of more than 20 per cent, highlighting the demand flowing into areas outside the capital. Regional buyers agents — particularly those operating on behalf of interstate investors who cannot physically inspect properties — have followed that demand outwards from Brisbane. Queensland’s geographic spread, combined with an active investor market, makes it one of the more fertile states for buyers agency as a dedicated practice.
The other driver is the broader shift in buyer sentiment. Rising property prices mean that the cost of a buyers agent fee, which might once have seemed significant, now represents a relatively modest percentage of a total purchase outlay. A buyer paying $1.2 million for a Brisbane home views a $20,000–$30,000 buyers agent fee differently to how they would have viewed it when the same suburb transacted at $700,000.
Licensing: The Same Licence, A Different Role
One of the most common misconceptions about buyers agents in Queensland — particularly from agents in other states — is that they hold some separate, specialised licence. They do not. To work as a buyer’s agent in Australia, you will need a real estate licence specific to your state, with each state and territory having its own set of real estate qualifications and study requirements.
In Queensland, a buyers agent holds the same real estate agent licence issued under the Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld) as any other licensed agent in the state. The distinction is not in the licence class — it is in the appointment. A buyers agent acts under a buyer’s appointment (a Form 6 completed in favour of the buyer as client) rather than a seller’s appointment. Their fiduciary and statutory obligations run to the buyer, not the vendor.
Under the Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld), real estate agents must be validly appointed using the approved PO Form 6 or PO Form 6A before providing services to a client. For a buyers agent, that Form 6 appointment names the buyer as the client and sets out the scope of engagement, fee structure, and authority granted. Without a valid appointment, the agent has no legal entitlement to recover fees — the same rule that applies to any agent in Queensland.
This matters for selling agents trying to assess who they’re dealing with. If someone presents as a buyers agent, you have every right to ask about the nature of their appointment. What you should never assume is that a buyers agent licence is anything other than a standard Queensland real estate licence used in a buying capacity.
How Buyers Agents in Queensland Get Paid: Fee Structures Explained
Buyers agents earn money through fixed fees or commissions, and like real estate agents generally, do not earn a fixed monthly income. How much a buyer’s agent earns depends on the number of closed transactions and the fee or commission structure they charge.
There are three primary structures operating in the Queensland market. Understanding each matters both for selling agents navigating conjunction arrangements and for buyers evaluating what they’re being quoted.
Flat Fee (Fixed Fee)
The fixed fee pricing model involves the buyer’s agent charging a flat fee regardless of the final purchase price, offering price transparency and budget certainty as the buyer’s agent fee is set upfront. This is the most transparent structure for buyers and increasingly favoured by professional buyers agencies. It eliminates any perception — justified or otherwise — that the buyers agent has an incentive to push the purchase price upward.
Many buyer’s agents charge a single flat fee for their services, meaning the cost to the client is clear up front, with the agent offering a standard set of inclusions set out at the commencement of the agreement. If the client’s needs ultimately exceed what was included under the flat fee arrangement, the buyer’s agent typically bills for additional work on top of the flat fee.
In practice, flat fees in the Queensland market for a full-service engagement — search, due diligence, negotiation, and contract management — typically range from approximately $10,000 to $25,000 inclusive of GST, varying by price bracket, location, and complexity. These are industry estimates based on publicly available market data; actual fees vary between agencies and individual practitioners.
Percentage of Purchase Price
Percentage-based commissions are calculated as a percentage of the property purchase price, with buyer’s agent fees usually between 0.9% and 3%, with the percentage depending on the level of service provided.
In Queensland, there is no legislation which regulates what agents can charge on a residential property transaction. In practice, most buyer’s agents charge a fee of around 2.5% of the purchase price (plus GST).
The structural tension in this model is one buyers agents themselves acknowledge. The percentage commission structure can introduce an unhelpful conflict from the client’s point of view — the higher the purchase price, the more money the buyer’s agent will make. Some buyers agents address this by using a tiered, declining percentage structure: where a buyer’s agent’s fees are based on a percentage of the sale price, it’s common for the commission to be structured in tiers, meaning a lower purchase price may yield a higher commission for the agent. For example, a buyer’s agent might structure things so that for every $100,000 more their client pays for a property, the rate of commission decreases proportionately.
Hybrid and Partial-Service Models
Different pricing models exist, including percentage-based fees, fixed fees, and hybrid structures, with costs varying based on the scope of service and specific offerings like auction bidding or negotiation assistance. Some buyers agents offer unbundled services: an engagement-only retainer, a negotiation-only fee, or an auction bidding service charged as a standalone item. These partial-service models are common for buyers who have already located a property and simply want professional assistance at the pointy end of the transaction.
All fees charged by a buyers agent in Queensland must be disclosed in the Form 6 appointment before services commence. There is no ambiguity on this point — undisclosed fees are unenforceable under the Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld), the same framework that governs selling agent appointments.
Conjunction Arrangements: What Actually Happens to the Commission
This is the question selling agents most frequently get wrong, and the misunderstanding creates friction — sometimes disputes — that benefits nobody.
When a buyers agent introduces a buyer to a listed property, a conjunction sale arises. The conjunction is the co-operation between two licensed agents on a single transaction: one acting for the seller, one acting for the buyer. The critical point is that the two agents are paid from entirely different sources.
A selling agent’s commission flows from the seller, as agreed in the Form 6 appointment between the selling agent and the vendor. That appointment is not affected by the existence of a buyers agent on the other side of the transaction. The seller pays the selling agent the commission rate set out in their Form 6 — full stop. The buyers agent is not carved out of that commission unless the selling agent’s Form 6 explicitly provides for it.
The buyers agent’s fee flows from the buyer, under the separate buyer’s appointment. The two commission flows are independent. Neither agent is ordinarily splitting the selling agent’s commission with the buyers agent in a standard residential transaction where the buyers agent has a properly executed buyer’s appointment and charges their own separate fee.
Where confusion arises is when buyers agents attempt to negotiate a seller-funded or conjunctional fee — that is, an arrangement where the selling agent agrees to pay a referral or introduction fee to the buyers agent out of the selling commission. This is a different arrangement entirely. Property developers or real estate agents must show a potential buyer the Disclosure to potential buyer form (Form 8) to disclose their interests, including any relationship with a third party they’ve referred the buyer to, any commission they get from or pay to that third party, and their interests in the property. Penalties apply if you fail to disclose your interest, and this is a requirement of the Property Occupations Act 2014.
In a residential transaction, if a selling agent is paying a referral fee or commission to a buyers agent, that must be disclosed. Section 157 of the Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld) requires that a residential property agent for the sale of residential property must disclose to any prospective buyer any relationship, and the nature of that relationship, the agent has with an entity to whom the agent refers the buyer for professional services associated with the sale. A failure to comply with section 157 may result in a fine of up to 200 penalty units.
The practical takeaway for selling agents is straightforward: if a buyers agent asks you whether you’ll “co-op” or “split” commission, the correct response is to clarify exactly what is being proposed. A buyers agent with a valid buyer’s appointment and a fee arrangement with their own client does not need any portion of your commission. An arrangement where you agree to pay a referral out of your commission triggers disclosure obligations — and your Form 6 may not contemplate or authorise that payment to begin with.
The Effective Cause Question
A conjunction sale also raises questions about entitlement to commission, particularly in open listing situations. In Podium Project Marketing Pty Ltd v B Global (Aust) Pty Ltd [2024] QDC 219, the Queensland District Court examined agent entitlement to commission where the appointed agent had engaged sub-agents to locate buyers. In deciding whether the agent was the effective cause of sale, the Court referred to authorities which demonstrated that an agent may be the effective cause of sale whether it is the sole cause of the sale or an effective cause of sale, among other causes. The Court said that the fact that buyers were located by sub-agents — which were consequently themselves also effective causes of the sales — does not mean that the appointed agent was not also an effective cause of the sales.
This is relevant context for selling agents dealing with buyers agents on open listings. The fact that a buyers agent introduced the purchaser does not, without more, defeat the selling agent’s entitlement to commission if they were the effective cause of the sale under their Form 6 appointment. The analysis is fact-specific and turns on the terms of the appointment.
Sellers’ Commission Context: What the Numbers Actually Look Like
Understanding buyers agent fees requires situating them alongside the broader Queensland commission landscape. In May 2014, the Queensland Government passed the Property Occupations Act 2014, which deregulated real estate agent commissions, giving agents the freedom to set their own fees and compete based on service quality, marketing approach, and results.
Commissions are not regulated in Queensland — caps were removed — so everything including rate, inclusions, and timing is negotiable. Agents must, however, disclose all fees and charges in writing in the Form 6 appointment.
In practice, high-demand inner Brisbane suburbs such as Paddington, New Farm, and Teneriffe often see selling commission rates closer to 1.8–2.2%, while the Sunshine Coast sits around 2.5–2.7%, and rural Queensland areas often reach up to 3%, reflecting the smaller buyer pool and longer sales campaigns.
This context matters because buyers agent fees — typically 1.5–2.5% on a percentage basis — are broadly comparable to selling agent commissions as a percentage of the purchase price. The buyer, in a typical full-service engagement, may be paying fees of a similar magnitude to the vendor’s selling commission. On a $1.5 million Brisbane property, that is a meaningful cost — and it explains why flat-fee structures are increasingly attractive to buyers looking for cost certainty.
Disclosure Obligations When Working Alongside a Buyers Agent
Selling agents dealing regularly with buyers agents need to be clear on what the Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld) requires of them — not just what it requires of the buyers agent.
If you refer a buyer to a buyers agent, or if you have any commercial relationship with a buyers agent whose client is purchasing your listing, your disclosure obligations under the Act are triggered. Property developers or real estate agents with a beneficial interest in a sale must give the seller a completed Disclosure of beneficial interest to the seller (Form 7), as a requirement of the Property Occupations Act 2014.
Separately, under the Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld), real estate agents must be validly appointed using the approved PO Form 6 or PO Form 6A before providing services to a client. If the agent is incurring expenses and charging the client fees for services related to the preparation of documents, the fees and expenses must be disclosed in Part 8 of the PO Form 6 or PO Form 6A.
For buyers agents specifically, the appointment and fee disclosure disciplines mirror those applying to selling agents. A buyers agent whose Form 6 buyer’s appointment is deficient — wrong form version, incomplete fee disclosure, missing signatures — may find their commission unenforceable. As noted by the REIQ, should the parties use the incorrect form, they risk the appointment being invalid, which may cost the agent their commission in addition to affecting particular rights and obligations for the parties.
The reform of the Form 6 in May 2024 also has direct relevance to buyers agents. The REIQ’s notes and commentary on the new Form 6 specifically addressed how the new form affects buyers agents, auctions, and property managers. Buyers agents operating on pre-May 2024 appointment forms should have long since transitioned to the new forms. Any agent — buyers or selling — dealing with a Form 6 from that earlier era should treat the appointment as expired.
The REIQ Position and Industry Professionalisation
The REIQ has consistently recognised buyers agency as a legitimate and growing practice within the Queensland industry framework, whilst holding firm on the requirement that all practitioners — including buyers agents — hold the appropriate Queensland licence and comply with the same disciplinary and conduct standards applicable to any licensed agent.
The REIQ’s own form updates, including the May 2024 Form 6 revisions and ongoing commentary on buyers agent practice, reflect the recognition that buyers agents are now mainstream participants. They are not fringe operators or interstate interlopers — they are licensed Queensland agents whose client simply sits on the other side of the transaction.
The professionalisation of the buyers agent sector in Queensland is also visible in the growth of dedicated buyers agency practices, particularly in the investment property space. Strong buyer demand driven by interstate migration and infrastructure projects including preparation for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics has brought a new cohort of out-of-state and overseas buyers who are accustomed to — and expect — professional buyer representation. These buyers are driving a change in market norms that is not going away.
What This Means for Queensland Agents
Whether you are a selling agent managing listings, a principal running a team, or a buyers agent structuring your own practice, several practical points flow from the above.
For selling agents, the most important discipline is clarity on conjunction arrangements before they become disputes. When a buyers agent contacts you about a listing, establish immediately whether they are acting under a buyer’s appointment and charging their own fee to the buyer, or whether they are seeking some form of referral from your commission. The former is a clean arrangement that does not affect your commission at all. The latter triggers disclosure and potentially requires consent from your vendor before you can agree to it.
For buyers agents, Form 6 compliance is not optional formality — it is the foundation of your right to recover fees. Without a valid appointment, arguably the client will not be required to pay a commission for your services. Every buyer’s appointment must be properly executed using the current-version Form 6, with fees fully disclosed, before services commence.
For principals, the growth of buyers agency as a practice stream is worth considering from a business development perspective. Some Queensland agencies now operate hybrid practices with both selling and buyers agency arms. This is entirely permissible under the Property Occupations Act 2014 (Qld), but it requires careful management of conflicts of interest and disclosure obligations when the two arms operate in the same transaction.
Queensland’s property market continued to surge through 2025, and the structural conditions driving buyers agent growth — rising prices, competitive markets, increasing interstate and international investment, and the complexity of purchasing in an unfamiliar market — show no sign of reversing. For selling agents who understand how buyers agents operate and get paid, they are straightforward co-participants in a transaction. For those who don’t, they are an ongoing source of confusion and potential disputes.
The conjunction question, handled well, closes sales. Handled poorly, it creates liability.