Seller-paid Compensation: Understanding the New WB Offer Provisions | Wisconsin REALTORS® Association | October 2026 News

Wisconsin's revised WB offers to purchase include new provisions addressing compensation paid by a seller directly to a firm working with a buyer. These provisions are part of the 2027 practice changes resulting from 2025 Wisconsin Act 69, which takes effect January 1, 2027.

Under the new law, firms may no longer compensate other firms for brokerage services in transactions involving properties containing one to four residential dwelling units. However, sellers may still agree to pay compensation directly to firms working with buyers. Any such seller-paid compensation must be documented in the executed offer to purchase or option to purchase.

To accommodate these changes, the revised WB offers include a section titled Seller Payment of Compensation to Drafting Firm, with two separate provisions: Buyer Agent Compensation (Buyer Client) and Seller Offer of Compensation (Buyer Customer). Although both provisions address compensation paid by the seller, they serve different purposes and are not interchangeable.

Buyer Agent Compensation (Buyer Client)

The Buyer Agent Compensation (Buyer Client) provision is used when a buyer has entered into a buyer agency agreement with a firm.

Under the WB-36 Buyer Agency Agreement, the buyer agrees to compensate the buyer's firm according to the terms of the agreement. However, the buyer may ask the seller to pay some or all of that compensation as part of the purchase transaction.

The new provision allows the buyer to make that request directly in the offer to purchase. The seller may accept the request, reject it or negotiate different terms.

If the seller agrees, the payment is applied toward the compensation the buyer owes under the buyer agency agreement. If the seller pays only a portion of that compensation, the buyer remains responsible for the difference unless the buyer and the firm agree otherwise in writing.

For example, a buyer and a buyer's firm have entered into a buyer agency agreement establishing the firm's compensation. The buyer would prefer that the seller pay part of that expense. The buyer may include a request in the offer that the seller pay an agreed amount toward the buyer's firm's fees at closing. If the seller accepts the offer, the seller's payment reduces the amount the buyer owes the firm.

Importantly, the buyer's firm cannot receive compensation from any source exceeding the amount or rate agreed to in the buyer agency agreement.

The provision also states that the seller's payment does not create an agency relationship between the seller and the buyer's firm. The firm continues to represent the buyer, even though the seller is paying some or all of the firm's compensation.

What about multiple representation?

The buyer-client provision may also be used when the same firm represents both the buyer and seller in a multiple representation relationship.

In that situation, the firm has a listing contract with the seller and a buyer agency agreement with the buyer. Each agreement establishes separate compensation obligations.

The buyer may request that the seller pay an amount toward the compensation owed under the buyer agency agreement, even though the same firm is also the listing firm. If the seller agrees, the payment reduces the buyer's obligation under the buyer agency agreement but does not automatically change the compensation owed under the listing contract unless that was negotiated in the listing contract between the seller and the firm.

Seller Offer of Compensation (Buyer Customer)

The second provision, Seller Offer of Compensation (Buyer Customer), applies when a firm is working with a buyer customer rather than representing a buyer client.

Unlike a buyer client, a buyer customer has not entered into a buyer agency agreement with the firm. Consequently, there is no buyer agency agreement establishing a compensation obligation to that firm.

The seller may nevertheless offer compensation to a firm that brings a buyer to the transaction. The buyer-customer provision allows that existing seller Offer of Compensation to be documented in the offer to purchase.

There is an important limitation: The buyer-customer provision may be used only in response to an offer of compensation made by the seller. It is not intended to allow a firm working with a buyer customer to independently request compensation from the seller.

The provision confirms that the seller has made an offer of compensation and identifies the amount the seller agrees to pay the firm at closing. It also requires the firm to act consistently with the duties owed by a subagent under Wisconsin law.

Selecting the correct provision

The revised offers instruct the drafting licensee to check only one of the two compensation provisions, if applicable.

The distinction depends on the firm's relationship with the buyer and the circumstances surrounding the seller's payment.

When the firm represents a buyer client, the Buyer Agent Compensation provision allows the buyer to request the seller pay toward the compensation established in the buyer agency agreement.

When the firm works with a buyer customer, the Seller Offer of Compensation provision documents compensation the seller has already offered to that firm.

Neither provision requires a seller to pay compensation to a firm working with a buyer. Seller-paid compensation remains negotiable, and the parties determine whether and on what terms the seller will agree to make a payment.

As licensees begin using the revised WB offers, understanding the distinction between these provisions will be important to properly documenting compensation arrangements and explaining how those arrangements affect buyers and sellers.

To learn more about the 2027 practice changes, see the WRA’s 2027 practice changes resource webpage.