Changing Real Estate Agents Mid-Sale: How to Avoid Paying Two Commissions
By the AgentFind Editorial Team — Australian Property Professional Directory, Sydney
Changing real estate agents is common and perfectly legal. The expensive mistake is the order you do it in. In the past month, sellers on an Australian property forum asked the same question three different ways: if I switch agents, could I end up paying both of them? NSW Government guidance answers it directly. End your agreement with the first agent before signing up with another, “Otherwise, both agents may charge you commission when the property is sold.” This guide sets out the rules state by state, the clause behind most disputes, and a step-by-step process map you can follow.
Key Takeaways
End the old agreement in writing before you sign a new one, find out which buyers the old agent introduced, and get the new agent to agree in writing that you will pay one commission only.
- Overlapping agreements are the main risk. If an exclusive or sole agreement is still running when you sign a new agent, both may be able to charge you commission.
- Exclusive agreements cover sales by anyone. In NSW, an exclusive agreement may entitle the agent to commission if the property sells during its term, “even if the property is sold by you or by another agent.”
- Some agreements reach past their end date. In NSW and WA, an agent may be entitled to commission if the property later sells to a buyer it introduced.
- Terms differ by state. Queensland caps sole and exclusive appointments at 90 days. In Victoria the default exclusive period for a private sale is 60 days after signing. NSW gives a one-business-day cooling-off period; Victoria gives none.
- An introduction alone is often not enough. Where a claim rests on having introduced the buyer, courts ask whether the agent was the “effective cause” of the sale.
What Sellers Asked This Month
We reviewed questions posted on PropertyChat, an Australian property investment forum, between mid-September and early October 2026. Three threads went to the heart of this topic.
- “How do I change agents?” (Victoria, 25 September 2026). An investor signed a 10-day exclusive authority for an off-market campaign, and it lapsed without a sale. A different agent now wants to bring a first-home buyer through. The owner’s worry: what if the first agent showed the same buyer during the exclusive period? Should they ask for a list of everyone that agent introduced?
- “Changing agents, and previous agents claiming commission fees for introductions” (NSW, 26 September 2026). A seller wants to leave an exclusive agreement early. They asked whether an agent they interviewed but didn’t hire, who had mentioned the property to a buyer, could claim commission, and how an old agent would even know who bought.
- “Buyer cancellation and agent fees” (Victoria, 10 October 2026). A seller asked what commission is owed if a buyer pulls out. It is a reminder to check exactly when your agreement says commission becomes payable.
The replies, mostly from experienced investors and agents, were consistent. Put everything in writing. Ask the old agent which buyers it introduced. Tell the new agent up front that you will pay one commission only, and leave any split to the two agencies. Several also pointed out that agents check settled sales on property data services, so an old agent will usually find out who bought. These are informal opinions, so the sections below check them against official guidance.
Why You Can End Up Paying Two Commissions
There are two separate ways it happens, and they need different fixes.
1. Two agreements running at once. If you sign a new agent while an exclusive or sole agreement is still in force, each agreement can be valid on its own terms. Consumer Affairs Victoria’s advice is blunt: “You should not sign more than one exclusive authority.” The fix is timing. End the first agreement properly, then sign the second.
2. The introduced-buyer clause. Many exclusive agreements entitle the agent to commission if the property later sells to a buyer it introduced, even after the agreement has ended. The NSW Government warns that “The agent may also be entitled to commission if the property later sells to a person who started negotiating” with that agent. WA Consumer Protection says an agent may be entitled to commission if the property sells within a set period after the exclusive rights period “to someone introduced to the property by themselves” or “to someone introduced by another person during the exclusive rights period.” The fix here is information. Find out who the old agent introduced, and read how long the clause lasts.
The Rules by State
Each state regulates agency agreements differently. This table summarises the official consumer guidance; your agreement’s own wording still matters most.
| State | Term and how it ends | Double-commission risk the regulator flags |
|---|---|---|
| NSW | No set minimum or maximum term. End it with written notice under the agreement’s notice period. | End the agreement before signing another agent, “Otherwise, both agents may charge you commission.” An exclusive agent may be owed commission on a sale during the term by anyone, and on a later sale to someone who started negotiating with it. |
| VIC | If no period is stated, an exclusive authority ends 30 days after the auction, or 60 days after signing for a private sale. Once it expires, tell the agent in writing that you no longer need them. | Don’t sign more than one exclusive authority. You can’t cancel during the authority period unless the agent agrees. |
| QLD | Sole and exclusive appointments run for 90 days at most. A term of 60 days or less ends on its end date. Over 60 days, either party can end it with at least 30 days’ written notice, but it must run at least 60 days. Open listings can be cancelled at any time in writing. | If you cancel incorrectly and then sell through another agent, “you may have to pay 2 commissions.” Under an exclusive agency, the same risk applies if another agent sells. |
| WA | The written authority sets the exclusive rights period. Any change must be made in writing on every copy and initialled by you and the agent. | Commission may be payable on a sale within a set period after the exclusive period, to a buyer the agent introduced or one introduced by someone else during the exclusive period. |
| SA | The agreement must state its term, up to 90 days. It can be extended once, by no more than 90 days, and during an extension you can end it with at least 7 days’ written notice. | Withdrawing from a sole agency early may trigger a cancellation fee, and listing with a new agent could mean paying commission to both. |
In the ACT, Tasmania and the Northern Territory, check the current rules with Access Canberra, Consumer, Building and Occupational Services (Tasmania) or NT Consumer Affairs before you end or sign an agreement.
Cooling-off on the agreement itself. In NSW you can cancel a new agency agreement during a cooling-off period of one business day. It “starts when you sign the agreement and ends at 5pm on the next business day or Saturday”, and it does not include public holidays. It can only be waived if you were given the unsigned agreement and a waiver form at least one business day earlier. In Victoria, “There is no cooling-off period with a sales authority.” Wherever you are, read the new agreement before you sign it, not after.
Insider Insight: A promise from your new agent to “sort it out with the old agency” only binds the new agent. Get it in writing anyway, ideally as a special condition in the new agreement, saying you will pay no more than one agreed commission and that any share with the previous agent is a matter between the agencies. Then ask the old agent, also in writing, to name the buyers it introduced. If a name on that list makes an offer, the two agencies can agree a conjunction split before contracts are signed. That is far cheaper than a dispute after settlement.
Effective Cause: When an Introduction Becomes a Commission Claim
Two questions decide whether an old agent can claim. The first is what your agreement says. The second, where the claim rests on having introduced the buyer, is whether that agent was the “effective cause” of the sale.
Exclusive agreements often give the agent a contractual right to commission on any sale during the term, whoever finds the buyer. That is why ending the agreement properly matters so much. Outside that contractual right, Australian courts look at what actually brought the sale about. The Estate Agents Co-operative puts it this way: “The mere introduction of the purchaser to the property is often inadequate to establish effective cause.”
- LJ Hooker Ltd v Adams Estates Pty Ltd (1977) 138 CLR 52. The High Court held that an agent must show a causal link between its actions and the sale: the sale has to come about through its agency.
- Outerbridge v Hall [2020] NSWCA 205. The NSW Court of Appeal said effective cause depends on all the circumstances, and rejected the first agent’s claim. Its chance of a sale ended when it could not be contacted.
- Moneywood Pty Ltd v Salamon Nominees Pty Ltd (2001). The first agent’s early work “flowed through” to a second contract and influenced it, so that agent was the effective cause and was entitled to commission.
The cases point both ways because they turn on their facts. If a buyer the old agent introduced makes an offer, get advice from a solicitor or conveyancer before you sign a contract of sale.
Step by Step: Changing Agents Safely
The process map below puts the official guidance and the forum advice into one sequence. Each decision point shows what to do either way.
PROCESS MAP
Changing agents without paying two commissions
The order that protects you
Read your current agency agreement
Find the type (open, sole or exclusive), the end date, the notice period and any clause about buyers the agent introduced that applies after it ends.
Is a sole or exclusive period still running?
Ask for a written release, or give notice exactly as the agreement requires. Don’t sign another agent yet.
→ Wait until it has ended, then step 2
The authority has expired, or it was an open listing.
→ Step 2
End it in writing
Email the agent that their services are no longer required, and keep a copy. A phone call leaves no record.
Ask who they introduced
Request, in writing, the names of buyers who inspected or made offers through them, and any offers received.
Brief the new agent, then sign
Share that list. Get it in writing that you pay one commission only, and that any split with the old agent is for the agencies to agree (a conjunction arrangement).
Does an offer come from a buyer the old agent introduced?
Pause before you sign a contract of sale. Whether the old agent is owed commission turns on its agreement and on “effective cause”. Get legal advice.
→ Proceed once advised
No overlap with the old agent’s buyers.
→ Step 5
Exchange, settle and check the bill
Make sure the commission invoice matches what you signed. Raise any dispute with your state’s consumer regulator quickly (in Victoria, within 28 days of receiving the agent’s account).
What to Put in Writing
- To the old agent: the date the agreement ended (or your notice under its terms), and a statement that their services are no longer required.
- Also to the old agent: a request for the names of buyers who inspected or made offers through them, and details of any offers received during the agreement.
- To the new agent, before you sign: that list, plus a written term that you will pay one commission only and that any share with the previous agent is between the agencies.
- In the new agreement: the type, the term, the notice period, the commission rate and when commission becomes payable.
- For your records: copies of all of the above, kept with your contract of sale.
When Is Commission Payable If a Buyer Pulls Out?
It depends on your agreement, so check the commission trigger before you sign. In NSW, the agreement must warn you if commission is payable even when the sale isn’t completed. In Victoria, the agent usually deducts commission from the deposit at settlement, and you can complain to Consumer Affairs Victoria within 28 days of receiving the agent’s account, or apply to VCAT. For the other costs that come out of a sale, see our guide to the hidden costs of selling property.
Frequently Asked Questions
âž• Can I change real estate agents before my agreement ends?
âž• Will I have to pay two commissions if I change agents?
âž• How long after an agreement ends can the old agent claim commission?
âž• Is there a cooling-off period on an agency agreement?
âž• What is a conjunction agreement?
âž• Can an agent I interviewed but never signed claim commission?
About AgentFind
AgentFind is an Australian directory of property professionals — selling agents, buyer’s agents, mortgage brokers, conveyancers and strata managers — searchable by location and speciality. Listings are not exclusive by area, so more than one professional can appear in the same suburb and you see the full field rather than a single paid name. Enquiries go directly to the professional you contact, and AgentFind takes no commission on any resulting sale.
Compare Selling Agents Before You Switch
Browse real estate agents by city, compare their profiles, and ask each one in writing how they would handle buyers your previous agent introduced.
Popular searches: real estate agents in Sydney, real estate agents in Melbourne, real estate agents in Brisbane, real estate agents in Perth and real estate agents in Adelaide. Related reading: red flags when interviewing listing agents, auction vs private treaty and how to sell your house in Australia.
Important — currency and verification notice
This article is general information current at the time of publication (October 2026). It summarises state government consumer guidance and published commentary on court decisions. Agency agreements vary, and the wording of yours decides most disputes. Forum posts are quoted as examples of the questions sellers ask, not as advice.
AgentFind is a directory service. We do not provide legal advice and we accept no responsibility for decisions made in reliance on this article. Before ending an agreement or signing a contract with a buyer your previous agent introduced, obtain advice from a solicitor or licensed conveyancer in the state or territory where the property is located.
Sources: NSW Government — Agency agreements for the sale of property in NSW (updated 8 July 2026); Consumer Affairs Victoria — Selling property with or without an agent; Queensland Government — Appointing a real estate sales agent (updated 19 July 2024); WA Consumer Protection — Selling a property (updated 25 June 2026); SA Government — Hiring a professional for house and land sales (updated 9 June 2026); Estate Agents Co-operative — Agents’ entitlement to real estate commission (10 November 2020); PropertyChat forum threads: How do I change agents? (25 September 2026), Changing agents, and previous agents claiming commission fees for introductions (26 September 2026) and Buyer cancellation and agent fees (10 October 2026).
