On a KSh 5 million house sale, the legal scale fee for the seller's agent is KSh 184,000. That is about 3.7 per cent, not the 5 or 10 per cent buyers abroad are sometimes quoted.
Estate agent commission rates in Kenya are set by the Estate Agents (Remuneration) Rules, made under the Estate Agents Act (Cap. 533). Rule 2 says an estate agent's remuneration "shall be calculated in accordance with the scale of fees" in the Schedule. The scale is tiered, so the percentage falls as the price rises.
Estate agent commission rates in Kenya for sales (Scale I)
For an agent selling property:
- 10 per cent on the first KSh 100,000
- 6 per cent on the next KSh 900,000
- 3 per cent on the rest
Worked through on two prices:
- KSh 5 million sale: 10,000 on the first 100,000, plus 54,000 on the next 900,000, plus 120,000 on the remaining 4 million. Total KSh 184,000.
- KSh 10 million sale: 10,000 plus 54,000 plus 270,000 on the remaining 9 million. Total KSh 334,000, about 3.3 per cent.
The same scale applies to land. A plot is property, and an agent who sells it is doing estate agency.
The scale for purchases (Scale IA)
If you instruct an agent to find and buy property for you, the scale is lower:
- 5 per cent on the first KSh 100,000
- 3 per cent on the next KSh 900,000
- 1.5 per cent on the rest
On a KSh 5 million purchase that comes to KSh 92,000, a little under 2 per cent.
Lettings and management (Scales 2 to 4)
For residential lettings, the rules set the fee for finding a tenant at 7.5 per cent of the annual gross rent for a lease of up to one year, or one month's rent for a lease of more than one year. Commercial lettings are 7.5 per cent of annual rent with a sole agency and 10 per cent with a general agency.
For managing a residential property, the scale is 10 per cent of gross rents or less depending on the circumstances, and not less than 5 per cent. Commercial management is 7.5 per cent or by arrangement, with a floor of 2.5 per cent.
There is also Scale 5 for mortgages. An agent who negotiates a mortgage alongside a successful deal may agree a commission, and one instructed only to arrange mortgage funding is capped at 0.25 per cent of the mortgage value.
Who normally pays
The rules set the fee by the job. They do not say "the buyer pays" or "the seller pays". The person who instructs the agent pays the agent. If the seller hires an agent to sell, the seller pays the Scale I fee out of the sale price. If you hire an agent to buy for you, you pay the Scale IA fee.
The trouble starts when one agent, or a chain of middlemen, takes money from both sides on the same deal. You may be paying a "finder's fee" to someone who is also being paid by the seller, which leaves you asking whose interest they are protecting. Ask, in writing, who the agent is acting for and who else is paying them on this transaction.
When the fee can be different
The scale is the default, not a ceiling for every case. In Mapis Investment (K) Ltd v Kenya Railways Corporation, decided by the Court of Appeal on 9 June 2006, the court read the schedule then in force as allowing a special fee or commission to be agreed for sole agency instructions. A seller who gives one agent the exclusive right to sell may agree a different fee.
The same case shows what happens when the agent is not registered. Mapis had sold Kenya Railways land for KSh 120 million and claimed KSh 17.5 million still owed in commission. The court found the agency was not registered under the Act and held that a contract for estate agency services is only legal if made with a registered estate agent. It refused to award the balance.
Section 18 of the Act says no individual may practise as an estate agent unless registered, and a company may only practise if its directors who do agency work are registered. As amended in 2025, a person who breaks this rule can be fined up to one million shillings, or up to five million for a company.
What this means if you are buying from abroad
This is where most of the overpayment happens. A relative introduces a man who knows a plot. The man has a friend who knows the owner. By the time a price reaches you, two or three people have added their cut, none of them registered, none of it written down.
- Check registration first. The Estate Agents Registration Board keeps the register of estate agents. Search the agent's name before you discuss fees.
- Get the fee in writing before viewing. A short letter of engagement should say what the agent will do, who they act for, the fee and how it is calculated, and when it becomes payable.
- Tie the fee to completion. A sale fee is normally earned when the sale goes through. Be wary of anyone who wants commission paid up front, before a search or a sale agreement.
- Pay the agent's business account against an invoice. Not cash at the site, not a personal number.
- Keep the agent's fee separate from the purchase price. The deposit and balance should go to the seller's advocate or through your own advocate, never through the agent.
Questions people ask
What is the standard estate agent commission in Kenya? There is a legal scale. For sales it is 10 per cent on the first KSh 100,000, 6 per cent on the next KSh 900,000 and 3 per cent on the balance, which comes to roughly 3 to 4 per cent on most house prices.
Can an agent charge more than the scale? The Court of Appeal in 2006 accepted that a special fee could be agreed for sole agency instructions. Outside that, the rules say fees are calculated on the scale. Anything different should be agreed in writing before work starts.
Does the buyer pay the agent's commission? Only if the buyer instructed the agent. A seller's agent is paid by the seller. If you are asked to pay an agent you did not hire, ask in writing what the payment is for.
What happens if the agent is not registered? Practising without registration is an offence under section 18, and in the Mapis case the court refused to enforce an unregistered agent's commission claim.
Where Karibu fits
Karibu checks agent licences on the EARB register, title records and asking prices by area, so you can see whether the person quoting you a fee is registered before money changes hands. Our pricing page shows what each check covers.
Work out the scale fee on your price before the first call with an agent, so you know the number they should be quoting.
Sources: Estate Agents (Remuneration) Rules, Legal Notice 36 of 1987 (standing regulation, as amended 2002). Estate Agents Act, Cap. 533 (standing law, as amended by Act No. 6 of 2025). Mapis Investment (K) Ltd v Kenya Railways Corporation, Court of Appeal, 9 June 2006. This article is general information, not legal advice. Speak to an advocate about your situation.