A commercial real estate brokerage is the firm whose brokers and agents represent owners, landlords, buyers and tenants in the sale or lease of income property. It earns a commission when a deal closes. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) says brokers and agents "help clients buy, sell, and rent properties" (BLS). A sales agent "must work with a broker" (BLS), so the brokerage is the firm the agents work under, and it signs the agreement with each client.
A brokerage takes one side of a deal under a brokerage agreement:
- Owner or landlord representation. The owner hires a listing broker to price and market a building or a vacant space, show it and negotiate with the other side.
- Buyer or tenant representation. A business hires a broker to search for space, compare proposals and negotiate the lease. The broker bargains over rent, free months and the tenant improvement allowance, the money a landlord puts toward fitting out the space.
- Investment sales. A broker sells an income property to investors and prices it on the rent the building collects.
The broker who brings the buyer or tenant to another firm's listing is the cooperating broker, and the two firms usually share one fee. The BLS notes that one commission often goes to several parties: the buying agent, the selling agent, the brokers and the firms (BLS).
A broker brings three things most owners and tenants lack in-house:
- Market evidence. The rents and prices that similar buildings signed recently, which set what to ask for and what to accept.
- Reach. Owners, tenants and buyers beyond the public listings, through the brokers the firm deals with every week.
- Practice with costly terms. Renewal options, operating-cost pass-throughs (the share of taxes, insurance and upkeep a lease bills to the tenant) and the improvement allowance, which decide what a lease costs over its whole term.
A tenant who calls the number on a listing reaches the landlord's broker, whose duty runs to the landlord (see who a listing broker works for). A seller also gets a price check. A broker's pricing of a listing is a broker opinion of value, and our valuation guide shows how it differs from an appraisal.
The BLS counts residential and commercial brokers together: real estate brokers held about 103,500 jobs in 2025, and real estate sales agents about 427,000 (BLS). It publishes no commercial-only count, and it notes that most brokers and agents "sell residential property" (BLS).
More than half of them work for themselves: self-employed workers made up 55% of real estate brokers and 54% of sales agents (BLS). A self-employed agent's income depends on the deals it closes.
In most places the same licence covers homes and commercial property, and Quebec is the exception. Our guide to commercial real estate careers covers which jurisdictions issue a separate commercial licence. The skill that transfers least is pricing, because a commercial buyer pays for income. A residential agent who moves over also learns lease structures and how to judge a tenant's finances.
A commercial broker represents the party that signs its brokerage agreement: the owner or landlord, or the buyer or tenant. Each state or province sets its own rule for acting on both sides. The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) sets out the roles in a notice. "Texas law requires all real estate license holders to give the following" information to buyers, tenants, sellers and landlords (TREC).
A Texas broker "becomes the property owner's agent through an agreement with the owner" (TREC). It becomes a buyer or tenant's agent "by agreeing to represent the buyer" (TREC). In either role, the broker's first minimum duty is to "Put the interests of the client above all others, including the broker's own interests" (TREC).
Three regulators show how far the rule on acting for both sides, often called dual agency, varies:
| Jurisdiction | Name for acting on both sides | Allowed on a commercial deal? | What it takes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas (TREC) | Intermediary | Yes | The written agreement of each party, stating who will pay the broker |
| Ontario (RECO) | Multiple representation | Yes | A written disclosure to each client and each client's written consent |
| Quebec (OACIQ) | Double representation | Yes | The ban in force since June 10, 2022 covers residential buildings of fewer than five dwellings |
Yes in all three places, on terms that differ. To act as an intermediary, a Texas broker "must first obtain the written agreement of each party" (TREC). That "agreement must state who will pay the broker" (TREC).
In Ontario, a brokerage may represent more than one client in a trade once each client consents in writing after a written disclosure (RECO). The Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) calls this multiple representation.
Quebec has prohibited double representation since June 10, 2022, on residential deals, according to its regulator, the OACIQ (OACIQ). "Only residential transactions are subject to the double representation ban," it writes (OACIQ). The ban covers chiefly residential buildings of fewer than five dwellings, co-ownership units and residential lots (OACIQ). A Quebec office building or shopping centre falls outside it. The same five-dwelling line separates residential and commercial property for lenders.
The brokerage agreement decides who pays, and on a commercial lease the landlord usually pays, including the commission of the tenant's broker. The US government's leasing rules show the convention. The US General Services Administration (GSA) leases space for federal agencies and obtains support from brokers for some of those leases (GAO). Its lease solicitations read: "The Government expects the Lessor to pay a commission to the Broker" (GSA).
A landlord that already pays a listing agent also pays the government's broker the commission it would earn "consistent with local business practices" (GSA). On a sale, the listing agreement sets the fee, and the listing broker often shares it with the broker who brings the buyer.
A lease commission is usually a percentage of the rent due over the lease. The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) describes the federal version the same way. "The standard commission a broker earns is normally a percentage of the total lease value," it writes (GAO).
Take a hypothetical shop lease of 5,000 square feet at $30 per square foot a year for a five-year firm term. The 5% commission is an assumption for the arithmetic:
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Rent over the five-year firm term (5,000 sq ft × $30 × 5 years) | $750,000 |
| Commission at an assumed 5% | $37,500 |
| Listing broker's share, if the two firms split evenly | $18,750 |
| Tenant's broker's share | $18,750 |
The term counts as much as the rate. The firm term is the length of a lease "that GSA cannot cancel without cause" (GAO). An option period is extra time the tenant may choose to add, such as a renewal. On a GSA lease, the commission covers the firm term and no option period or later year (GSA). Under that rule, a five-year renewal option in the example adds nothing to the $37,500. A private listing agreement sets its own rule for renewals.
The landlord pays the tenant's broker out of the rent the lease brings in, so the commission is part of the deal the tenant negotiates. The federal government shows how a tenant can take part of it back. Under GSA's earlier broker contracts, the broker agreed to give up a percentage of its commission (GSA). That amount, the commission credit, comes off the government's rent (GSA).
GAO audited the program. In fiscal year 2024, brokers earned about $39 million in standard commissions on GSA leases, while commission credits returned about $55 million to federal tenants (GAO).
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-25-107050 (March 2025), GSA leases involving brokers, fiscal years 2020 and 2024.
The credits exceeded what the brokers earned in both years. Two limits apply. Projects GSA assigns under its interim broker contract, in effect since January 16, 2026, carry no commission credit (GSA). Outside federal leases, a tenant who wants a share of the commission has to negotiate it in its own broker agreement.
Commercial brokers earn most of their income from commissions paid at closing, and the firm shares each one with the agent who did the work. The BLS reports that "Brokers and sales agents earn most of their income from commissions on sales" (BLS). It adds that "The commission varies by the type of property and its value" (BLS).
Sales agents "often work for brokers on a contract basis, earning a portion of the commission from each property they sell" (BLS). A commercial lease or sale can take months, so income arrives in uneven amounts. The BLS pay figures cover residential and commercial work together, and the careers guide linked above sets them out by job.
A broker wins business by knowing who will need space, or want to sell, before they call anyone. The common methods:
- Tracking lease expiries. A tenant whose lease ends within a year or two will soon look for space or renegotiate.
- Canvassing owners. Calls and visits to the owners of one property type in one area make the broker known before an owner decides to sell.
- Referrals. Lawyers, accountants and lenders often learn early that a client plans to move, expand or sell.
- Cooperating on listings. Brokers who list space share the fee with the brokers who bring tenants, so both sides have a reason to call each other.
- Marketing each listing. Listing platforms, a written offering package and a sign on the building bring buyers and tenants who then call the listing broker.
Most brokers pick one property type and one side of the deal and build these habits there.
Commission is one income stream among several. Owners collect rent and gain when a building's value rises. Property managers earn a management fee, developers earn a profit on what they build, and lenders earn interest on the mortgage. Appraisers charge a fee for each report, whatever value they conclude.
Three beliefs cost clients the most: the listing broker works for everyone, one standard commission rate applies, and a dual broker still advises each side.
The listing broker works for the owner. In Texas, an owner's agent "must inform the owner of any material" information about the property or deal that it knows (TREC). That includes what a buyer tells it. A tenant who wants advice on the rent hires its own broker.
The rate is a negotiated term of the agreement. In Texas, the law sets no fee for an owner's agent (TREC). The OACIQ "did not develop any mandatory forms for brokerage contracts" on commercial property (OACIQ). Even so, the contract must set out the broker's "remuneration method and terms of payment" (OACIQ).
In Ontario, the advice stops. RECO warns that in multiple representation, no client is fully represented, and "The agent effectively must act as a facilitator of the transaction" (RECO). Texas keeps some advice in place. With both parties' written consent, an intermediary may "appoint a different license holder associated with the broker to each party" (TREC). Each appointed agent can "provide opinions and advice" to its own party (TREC). Read that consent before signing it, because it sets how much advice you keep. The commercial real estate learning centre collects the rest of this series.