In my opinion, the broker should always be paid by the party on whose behalf they perform most of their activities.
So what does a broker do and on whose behalf?
He first creates an exposé and thus offers the property on behalf of the seller. In doing so, he evaluates the property and sets an asking price, which also reflects the seller's interests. Additionally, the broker profits from a higher price. In the end, the broker finds a buyer who is willing to pay the price. The buyer search also takes place in the interest of the seller; otherwise, the seller would have to do it themselves and conduct the viewings and negotiations. The broker may also assist with the purchase process. That is in the interest of both parties.
What does the broker do in the interest of the buyers?
Usually, the buyer searches online for offers that might suit them. Among them are also offers from brokers, but ultimately, as a buyer, I don’t care if one suddenly has to pay exorbitant broker fees. I would evaluate this differently if I, as a buyer, went to the broker and gave them a specific search order for a suitable property according to my wishes and this was then found. Then the broker would have to represent my interests against the seller (a lower or fair price, only offering suitable properties, etc.). But that can’t really work because the broker is usually interested in a high commission for themselves. If the broker were to represent buyer interests, they would also have to sometimes advise against a property if it has defects. However, they rarely do that because they have to sell the property themselves.
So I usually see a broker acting more in the seller’s interest, so in my opinion the seller should also pay the broker. Besides, he can include his costs in the asking price, as other sellers also have to do.
Only if a broker independently searches for me as a buyer, regardless of their own offers, would I be willing to pay them accordingly. But that is likely the exception.
Perhaps I see it somewhat too negatively due to a lack of positive experiences with brokers, but I think this is what many people think about brokers. In my opinion, the broker profession has a massive image problem and this is often due to a few bad apples.
I would be interested to know if there are buyers here who have had really good experiences.
My negative example was a broker who wanted part of his commission/purchase price in cash to receive it under the table. In this case, he was both the seller himself and the buyer also benefited because the notarial purchase price was lower and accordingly the taxes and notary fees.