How Commission Works at Singapore's Big Agencies: Fee Guides, Splits and the 90% Payout
What PropNex, ERA and Huttons publish about the commission clients pay, what their accounts show about how much goes to agents, and every dated report of an agency split, with what is still not known.
In Singapore, the client pays commission to the agency, not the agent, and CEA sets no fixed rates. PropNex's published commission guideline asks sellers for a minimum of 2% and up to 4%, and buyers 1% to 2%; ERA's asks sellers for 2% to 5%; Huttons' for at least 2%; all plus GST. The agency then pays its agent a share. No agency publishes its split, but the two listed agencies' accounts show about 90% of revenue paid out as cost of services, mainly commission (PropNex 89.7% of revenue in 2025; APAC Realty, ERA's owner, 90.0% of brokerage revenue). PropNex's 2018 prospectus gave its agents 70% to 90% of the commission, rising with their production.
Commission at a Singapore agency works in two steps: the client pays the agency, and the agency pays its agent a share. The first step is public: CEA sets no rates, but three of the big agencies publish a fee guide. The second is mostly private: no agency publishes its split table. This page sets out the published fee guides, what PropNex's and APAC Realty's accounts reveal about how much of the commission goes to agents, every split figure that has been reported with its date and source, and what remains unknown.
How does commission work at PropNex, ERA, Huttons, OrangeTee and SRI?
The client pays the agreed commission to the agency, never to the agent, and the agency pays its agent a share under the agent's own contract. PropNex, ERA and Huttons publish client fee guides; none of the five publishes its agent split, but the two listed agencies' accounts show about 90% of revenue going out as cost of services, mainly commission.
Two steps, one public and one private:
| Step | Who pays whom | What is public |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The fee | Client → agency | Fee guides from PropNex, ERA and Huttons |
| 2. The split | Agency → agent | Not published; filings show the total |
| 3. Overrides | Agency → team leaders | PropNex's 2018 prospectus; ERA's bonus scheme |
Sources: CEA; the agencies' commission-guideline pages; PropNex's and APAC Realty's filings, including PropNex's 2018 prospectus; a 2018 analyst report. All read 6 Nov 2026 and detailed below.
CEA's rule is plain: "There are no fixed commission rates nor prescribed guidelines on commission amounts", and the client must "pay the agreed commission to the property agency, not to the property agent". PropNex's own guide says the same: payment "shall be made payable to PropNex Realty Pte Ltd and not the individual Salesperson".
How the money moves in general, from gross commission to an agent's take-home, is in PropKaki's guide to the property agent commission split. This page is about what the five big agencies publish.
What are PropNex's commission guidelines?
PropNex's published commission guideline asks a seller for a minimum of 2% and up to 4% of the contracted price, a buyer it represents for 1% to 2%, and for a lease of up to 24 months at least one month's rent, all subject to GST. It is a fee scale for clients, not the split PropNex pays its agents, and it says it does not restrict private arrangements.
| Client | PropNex's guideline |
|---|---|
| Seller | Minimum 2%, up to 4% of the contracted price |
| Buyer (if represented) | Minimum 1%, up to 2% |
| Lease, 24 months or less | Minimum one month's rent |
| Each later 12 months or renewal | Minimum half a month's rent |
| Assignment | Minimum $3,000 or 10% of the fee |
Source: PropNex, "Commission guidelines" page, read 6 Nov 2026. The page carries no date; its downloadable copy is headed "2010 / 2011".
Three lines in PropNex's guide matter most: commission is paid to PropNex Realty, "and not the individual Salesperson"; "PropNex Realty is a GST-registered estate agency" and all commission "are subject to GST"; and the scale "is not intended to restrict or interfere with any private arrangements". In a co-broked deal, "the sharing of commission shall be negotiated and agreed between the parties".
The guideline is where negotiation starts, not a rate you must pay.
How do ERA's and Huttons' commission guides compare with PropNex's?
ERA's guide asks sellers for 2% to 5% of the listed or target price, with the amount by which the price beats that target split equally between seller and ERA; Huttons' asks for at least 2%; PropNex's for 2% to 4%. No commission guide was found for OrangeTee & Tie or SRI.
| Client | PropNex | ERA | Huttons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seller | 2% to 4% | 2% to 5% | At least 2% |
| Buyer | 1% to 2% | 1% to 3% | At least 1% |
| Lease, whole unit | 1 month's rent minimum | $1,500 or 1 month's rent | 1 month's rent minimum |
| GST | Added | Added | Charged |
Sources: each agency's commission-guideline page, read 6 Nov 2026 (ERA's and Huttons' in a browser). ERA's lease row is for whole units let for over 12 and up to 24 months, whichever is higher. None of the three pages is dated.
ERA's guide adds an incentive: the amount by which the sale price beats the listed or target price is "a bonus sum … divided equally between the Vendor and ERA". It also says two ERA agents acting for opposite sides of one deal is "NOT DEEMED to be dual representation", but must be disclosed in writing.
Why there is no industry scale: in 2008 the competition regulator (CCS) said the Institute of Estate Agents' fee guidelines were likely anti-competitive and advised it to remove them. Each guide above is one firm's own.
Is there a fixed property agent commission rate in Singapore, and is GST charged?
No: CEA says there are no fixed commission rates and no prescribed guidelines on amounts, so the fee is whatever the client and agency agree in writing. GST is charged when the agency is GST-registered, as PropNex, ERA and Huttons say they are, and IRAS treats an agreed commission with no GST shown as including GST.
- The rate. CEA: "There are no fixed commission rates nor prescribed guidelines on commission amounts." Agree the fee before the agent starts work.
- One side only. An agent "cannot collect commission from more than one party in the same transaction, as doing so is an offence", and an agent paid by you cannot also take a co-broking fee from the other side.
- GST. IRAS's guide for the industry (fifth edition, 30 January 2026): GST-registered estate agents "are required to charge and account for GST on the commission"; a GST-registered salesperson charges it on their share too. If GST is not shown separately, "the commission will be treated as inclusive of GST".
What a client usually pays in practice, and how to negotiate it, is covered in PropKaki's commission guide.
How much of the commission goes to the agent at PropNex and ERA?
On average about 90%: PropNex's cost of services, which it describes as mainly commission to salespersons, was 89.7% of its revenue in 2025, and APAC Realty's, ERA's owner, was 90.0% of its brokerage revenue. That average covers every agent, team leader and deal type, so it is not any one agent's split.
| Year | PropNex: cost of services ÷ revenue | APAC Realty: cost of services ÷ brokerage revenue |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Not computed | 90.2% |
| 2023 | 90.3% | 90.6% |
| 2024 | 90.9% | 91.6% |
| 2025 | 89.7% | 90.0% |
Computed by PropKaki from the filed figures: PropNex's annual reports 2024 and 2025 and FY2025 interim statements; APAC Realty's annual report 2023 and FY2024 and FY2025 interim statements. Read 6 Nov 2026.
What the companies say the line is: PropNex attributes the rise in its 2025 cost of services to "higher commission payouts to salespersons"; APAC Realty told shareholders in 2018 that "for every commission dollar receivable, there is a corresponding commission payable to an ERA salesperson".
Three caveats:
- Deal mix moves the ratio. PropNex's gross margin rose to 10.3% in 2025 on "a higher contribution from the Project Marketing segment"; APAC Realty says resale and rental deals carry lower margins than new-home sales.
- PropNex counts revenue after co-broking. It books co-broked commission "on a net basis", so its ~90% is of revenue after any share paid to another agency.
- It includes leaders. The payout covers team-leader overrides as well as agents' own shares.
The agency keeps roughly a tenth on average; what one agent keeps depends on their contract.
What commission splits have been reported at Singapore's big agencies?
PropNex's own 2018 prospectus said its agents were generally entitled to between 70.0% and 90.0% of the commission, rising as they hit commission targets; an analyst report that year put the top 90% tier at cumulative commission above S$80,000, with most agents on it. Other dated reports give ERA 74% of agents on 90/10 (2018), Huttons up to 95% (2020), and a 10% agency cut for one PropNex and one ERA agent (2026).
| Agency | What was reported | Source, date |
|---|---|---|
| PropNex | 70.0% to 90.0%, rising with targets | PropNex prospectus, Jun 2018 |
| PropNex | 70% → 80% → 85% → 90% by cumulative commission | UOB Kay Hian, Sep 2018 |
| PropNex | A 10% cut, for one named agent | The Straits Times, Aug 2026 |
| ERA | About 74% of agents on a 90/10 split | RHB, May 2018 |
| ERA | Agents "generally get between 70% to 90%" | DBS, May 2018 |
| ERA | A 10% cut, for one named agent | The Straits Times, Aug 2026 |
| Huttons | "Up to 95%" to its agents | EdgeProp, Sep 2020 |
| KW Singapore | "Up to 94%" | EdgeProp, Jul 2025 |
| OrangeTee, SRI | Nothing found | — |
Read 6 Nov 2026. The prospectus and the analyst reports are 2018 figures and may no longer apply.
The prospectus, dated 25 June 2018, is the only split PropKaki found published by an agency itself: "Our salespersons are generally entitled to a share of between 70.0% and 90.0% of the commission paid to our Group for each completed transaction. The commission share increases as the salesperson achieves certain commission targets."
PropNex's 2018 tiers, as UOB Kay Hian printed them: up to S$20,000 of cumulative commission, 70%; S$20,001 to S$50,000, 80%; S$50,001 to S$80,000, 85%; above S$80,000, 90%. The split "varies according to the project type, primary vs secondary sales and seniority of the agents".
The longer history, as EdgeProp told it in 2017: commission was once shared 60:40 between agent and firm; ERA's arrival raised agents to 70%; and 90:10 "has now become the industry norm for agents who have hit their financial targets". Stacked put the agency's cut at "between 10 to 20 per cent" in 2022.
How do team leaders get paid from their team's commission?
Through an override: a share of each deal their team members close. PropNex's 2018 prospectus said each Team Leader and Team Manager was entitled to between 2.0% and 15.5% of over-riding commission per transaction by a supervised salesperson, depending on the scheme; APAC Realty, ERA's owner, discloses a growth bonus of 0.1% to 0.5% for a subsidiary's Division Directors.
- PropNex. Its 2018 prospectus: "Each Team Leader and Team Manager is additionally entitled to between 2.0% to 15.5% of over-riding commission for each transaction completed by a supervised salesperson depending on their respective commission scheme." An analyst report three months later (UOB Kay Hian) gave "4-13%" and said that after an agent's share "the balance is then shared between PropNex and team leaders/managers". Its annual reports say "all terms, including responsibilities and commission splits, are outlined in the Associate Agreements", and that team leaders sign "an additional contract". PropNex also lists a 10-year pension scheme for performing team leaders and a legacy programme for passive income after retirement.
- ERA. APAC Realty's 2023 annual report describes a Loyalty Growth Dividend Scheme, set up in 2017 by "one of the subsidiaries", giving its full-fledged Division Directors "a gratitude bonus based on 0.1% to 0.5% of the team's performance growth rate".
- Huttons, OrangeTee, SRI. No override figure is published.
Leader titles, too, depend mainly on team size and team production, on one PropNex group's published career path (see what agency titles mean). How leaders structure a team is in how to build a property agent team.
When does an agent at a big agency get paid their commission?
Only after the agency is paid, which can be months after the deal: PropNex's Chief Agency Officer Eddie Lim told The Straits Times in August 2026 that agents may wait three to six months after completion, and 12 to 24 months on some new launches. If the client never pays, PropNex's accounts show it has no obligation to pay the agent.
Eddie Lim's full description, as The Straits Times reported it on 16 August 2026: "Active salespersons may take three to six months to close a deal and then another three to six months after completion of the deal to receive their commission. We have seen salespersons receiving their commission even 12 to 24 months after completing the deal for some new launches."
PropNex's 2024 annual report shows the same rule from the accounts side: when a client's debt is written off, it removes the matching commission payable, "as the Group does not have obligation to pay its salespersons when the trade receivables were impaired".
ERA's Eugene Lim added in the same report that agents have no basic salary and no employer CPF. What that means for income is in PropKaki's guide on whether property agents get a salary.
How does co-broking change the commission split?
When one side collects the commission and pays the other a co-broking fee, the two agencies share it by agreement before each splits its part with its agent. SEAA's 2024 best-practice guide says each agent should be paid by their own client, and gives no sharing percentage.
- Each side pays its own agent. SEAA's guide: agents "should collect commission from who he or she represents", the seller's agent from the seller and the buyer's agent from the buyer; if a buyer won't pay, the buyer's agent may ask the seller's agent for a co-broking fee, "subject to their agreement".
- The sharing is a contract. Sharing "is a contractual matter to be negotiated and agreed upfront"; the guide "is not a regulation". It took effect on 1 July 2024, after 57 agencies signed a memorandum with SEAA in November 2023.
- In the agency's books. PropNex records co-broked commission net of the other agency's share, so its payout ratio is measured after co-broking.
PropKaki's guide to how co-broking works covers the rules in more detail.
What is not known about commission splits at the big agencies?
No agency publishes its current split table or leader-override rates, so every split figure is either a dated report or an average from the accounts. The gap may narrow: CEA will collect commission data from agencies every month from 1 January 2027 and has said it will publish aggregated, anonymised figures, with no date set.
What remains private, as at 6 November 2026:
- Current tiers. Whether PropNex's 2018 range (70.0% to 90.0%), tiers and thresholds still apply; ERA's current split.
- Huttons, OrangeTee, SRI. No dated, sourced split beyond Huttons' "up to 95%" of 2020. Huttons and OrangeTee declined to give The Straits Times commission data in August 2026.
- Overrides at every agency except PropNex's 2018 range (2.0% to 15.5%) and APAC Realty's growth bonus.
- Fees behind the headline. What conditions, caps or charges sit behind any "up to" figure, such as KW Singapore's 94%.
What CEA has announced: a CEA spokesperson said it "will collect commission data every month from property agencies starting Jan. 1, 2027" (Mothership, 28 July 2026), and will publish "aggregated and anonymised industry-level information", not individual agents' figures. PropKaki's commentary on what ERA and PropNex disclosed in August 2026 is what property agents earn.
What is the biggest mistake agents make about commission splits?
Treating a headline figure as their own split. In PropNex's 2018 tiers, 90% was reached only after S$80,000 of cumulative commission, while the ~90% in the accounts is an average across everyone, and an agent's own costs come out of their share afterwards.
| The figure sounds like | What it actually is |
|---|---|
| "90% to the agent" | PropNex's top tier in 2018, after S$80,000 |
| "About 90% of revenue" | An average across agents and leaders |
| "Up to 95%" or "up to 94%" | A ceiling, conditions not stated |
| "A 10% cut" | One agent's split, before their own costs |
The two agents The Straits Times profiled in August 2026 each gave their agency a 10% cut; one then spent close to $20,000 on portal advertising in 2025, and the other about $30,000 on expenses in her first year. Ask for the split in writing, at your production level, with the fees. PropKaki's guide on what to consider before joining an agency lists the questions.
How do you compare commission terms between agencies?
Ask each agency and team for its written split at your expected production, its tier thresholds, any desk, admin or marketing fees, what the team leader takes, and when commission is paid. Then compare the agencies on the records CEA keeps, which do not depend on what a recruiter tells you.
- The agencies side by side: PropNex vs ERA vs Huttons vs OrangeTee vs SRI.
- The team: its dated size and leader in Singapore's biggest agent groups, and each member's CEA record in the agent finder.
- Leaving with open deals: switching agencies covers how commission on pending cases is handled.
- The market: how many property agents there are, and how many are active.
Sources
The agencies' fee guides and filings, the regulators' pages and the reports each figure comes from, read on 6 Nov 2026.
Methodology and sources
Where every fee, ratio and split comes from, and what we deliberately did not claim.
What we used.
- Fee guides: PropNex's, ERA's and Huttons' commission-guideline pages, read on 6 Nov 2026; none is dated, and we say so. no guide was found on OrangeTee's or SRI's sites.
- Payout ratios: computed by PropKaki from PropNex's and APAC Realty's filed revenue and cost-of-services figures (annual reports and interim statements on SGX). They are averages over every agent, leader and deal.
- Reported splits: PropNex's IPO prospectus of 25 June 2018 (the only split an agency has published), analyst reports (UOB Kay Hian, RHB, DBS, 2018) and news reports (EdgeProp, Stacked, The Straits Times), each dated in the text. None is a current agency disclosure.
- Rules: CEA's consumer pages, IRAS's GST guide for the industry, CCS's 2008 statement and SEAA's 2024 guide.
What we did not claim. We do not state any agency's current split, say which agency pays agents best, or show any agent's earnings; the two named agents' 10% splits are as The Straits Times reported them. The fee guides are each agency's own starting point, not a market rate. IRAS's worked examples use illustrative splits, which we do not cite as market data. If an agency publishes its split, we will add it.
Read more about how PropKaki works with data on our methodology page. This page is for information only; it is not career, legal, tax or financial advice.
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