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Real estate agent vs Private Deals

Seller guide · Kitchener-Waterloo

Real estate agent vs Private Deals: which nets you more?

Listing with a real estate agent and selling directly to Private Deals are two different products. One aims for the highest sale price; the other trades some price for speed, certainty and no preparation. This page lays out what each one costs in Kitchener-Waterloo, so you can work out which leaves you with more.

By the Private Deals team · Updated

Pedestrians passing brick storefronts and hanging flower baskets on King Street in downtown Kitchener
King Street, downtown Kitchener

The short answer

  • With an agent you pay a negotiated commission, commonly around 3% to 5% of the sale price, plus 13% HST on that commission. On the 2025 Waterloo Region average sale price of $754,199, 4% plus HST is $34,090.
  • Private Deals buys the house itself: no commission, no showings, no repairs, a written offer in 24 to 48 hours, and a closing date you choose from 7 days to 6 months.
  • A well-prepared listing usually sells for a higher price. The fair comparison is net: what you keep after commission, HST, repairs, staging, carrying costs and time.

How the two options compare

When you list with an agent, the agent markets your home on the MLS® to buyers, most of whom will need a mortgage. When you sell to Private Deals, there is no marketing step: we are the buyer, and we pay without a financing condition.

Listing with an agent vs selling to Private Deals
Real estate agentPrivate Deals
Who buys your homeA buyer found through the MLS®Private Deals buys it directly
CommissionNegotiated, commonly ~3–5% of the priceNone
HST13% on the commissionNone
Repairs and stagingUsually expected before listingNone, bought as-is
ShowingsOpen houses and private showingsOne walkthrough
Time to an offerAverage 27–45 days on market in 2025Written offer in 24–48 hours
ConditionsOften financing, inspection, sale of buyer’s homeNo financing condition
Closing dateTypically 30–90 days after a firm dealYou choose: 7 days to 6 months
Sale priceUsually higherUsually lower than a well-run listing
CertaintyDeals can fall through on conditionsFirm offer; no renegotiation after the walkthrough

What selling with an agent really costs

Commission in Ontario is negotiable and is usually split between the listing agent and the buyer’s agent. Whatever rate you agree, HST at 13% is charged on top. Here is a worked example on the 2025 Waterloo Region average sale price of $754,199, at a 4% total commission:

Commission and HST are only the start. Most listings also involve some preparation, such as paint, repairs and staging, and you keep paying the mortgage, property tax, insurance and utilities until closing. If the house is vacant, those carrying costs are pure loss.

Your own lawyer’s fee applies either way, as do any mortgage discharge or prepayment penalty from your lender, so they don’t change the comparison.

Example selling costs with an agent on a $754,199 sale

  • Commission (4%)

    $30,168

  • Repairs & staging (est.)

    $7,500

  • Carrying costs, 3 months (est.)

    $9,000

  • HST on commission

    $3,922

Worked example, not a quote. Commission rates vary and are negotiable. Repairs, staging and carrying costs are illustrative estimates; your own figures may be higher or lower.

Calculate your net proceeds

Enter what you expect the house to sell for on the open market and your own estimates. The calculator shows what you would keep by listing, and the cash offer that would leave you with the same amount. Any offer above that break-even line puts more in your pocket than listing would.

Total agent commission: 4.0% + 13% HST

3%
4%
5%

Mortgage, tax, utilities

Listing to closing

Listing with an agent

Sale price

$754,199

Commission (4%)

−$30,168

HST on commission (13%)

−$3,922

Repairs & staging

−$7,500

Carrying costs (3 mo)

−$9,000

You keep

$703,609

Break-even cash offer

$703,609

A direct offer of $703,609 (93.3% of the expected sale price) leaves you with the same as listing, without the showings, conditions or wait. Your lawyer and any mortgage payout apply either way.

See what we’d offer

Estimates only, for comparison. Not financial, tax or legal advice. Need your mortgage payout and legal fees too? Use the realtor cost calculator.

Time is a cost too

On top of the dollars, the listing route takes months. In Waterloo Region, homes took an average of 27 days to sell in June 2025 and 45 days in December 2025, and that is before conditions and a 30-to-90-day closing.

If you are paying two mortgages, managing an estate from out of town, or have a job starting in another city, every extra month has a real cost, even if it doesn’t show up on a statement of adjustments.

Typical timeline from first call to closing

Preparation / offer

On market & conditions

Closing period

Typical timeline from first call to closing
Listing with an agentPrepare: about 14 daysOn market: about 35 daysConditions: about 7 daysClose: about 60 days
Direct sale to Private DealsOffer: about 3 daysClose: about 14 days
Illustrative. Days on market uses a figure between the June 2025 (27) and December 2025 (45) regional averages. Direct-sale closing shown at 14 days; you can choose 7 days to 6 months. Source: Cornerstone Association of REALTORS®, Waterloo Region housing statistics release, December 2025 and full-year 2025.

When listing with an agent is the better choice

We would rather you make the right decision than the one that suits us. Listing is usually the better route if:

  • The house is in good, move-in-ready condition and shows well.
  • It is a detached home in a popular Kitchener or Waterloo neighbourhood, where supply is tight and buyers compete.
  • You have time: no deadline, no second mortgage, no estate to wind up.
  • You are comfortable with showings, negotiations and the chance a deal falls through on conditions.
Red maple trees lining a quiet residential street in Kitchener, Ontario
A residential street in Kitchener

When selling to Private Deals is the better choice

A direct sale tends to make sense when the price gap is small relative to what the listing route would cost you, or when certainty is worth more than the last dollar:

  • The house needs repairs a buyer’s lender or home inspector would flag. See selling a house that needs repairs.
  • It is tenanted and you don’t want to manage showings around tenants. See selling a house with tenants.
  • It is part of an estate and the executors want a clean, simple sale. See selling an inherited house.
  • You need a guaranteed closing date, whether that is next week or six months from now.
  • You want privacy: no sign on the lawn, no open houses, no listing history.

How to compare a cash offer fairly

Not every company that buys houses works the same way. Whoever you talk to, including us, check these before you sign:

  • Get a market opinion first. Ask a local agent what the house would likely sell for as-is and after preparation. That is your benchmark.
  • Compare net, not price. Use the calculator above with your own numbers.
  • Read the conditions. A real cash offer should not depend on the buyer getting a mortgage. Watch for long inspection periods that let the buyer walk away.
  • Ask about renegotiation. Some buyers make a high offer, then cut it after an inspection. Private Deals does not renegotiate after the walkthrough.
  • Check for assignment clauses. Some “we buy houses” operators put your home under contract and sell the contract to someone else. Ask who is actually buying.
  • Have your own lawyer review it. Always.

How Private Deals makes money

We buy houses to renovate, rent or resell, and we earn the difference between what we pay and what the property is eventually worth to us, after our own costs and risk. That is why our offer is usually below what a fully prepared listing could achieve, and we would rather say so up front.

What you get in exchange is a known number, a date you choose and none of the work. For a lot of sellers that is the right trade, and for some it isn’t. If you want to see our number next to your agent’s, request an offer and compare them side by side. Or read how to get top dollar for your home in Kitchener-Waterloo if you are leaning toward listing.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Private Deals buys homes directly and is not a real estate brokerage. Talk to a lawyer before you sign anything.

See your number before you decide

Get a no-obligation written offer in 24 to 48 hours and compare it with what listing would net you.

Get my cash offer(647) 333-0170
Realtor vs Private Deals: Which Nets You More? | Private Deals