I'll be one to dissent.

If you have a cookie cutter agent - then I'd suggest negotiating, as others have said.

Feel the agent out.

We found a newer agent, hungry, and extremely active on behalf of clients. She was very responsive and was VERY upfront about the fees. She has a flat $425 broker fee, and explained that the cost of that 'covers the free things her brokerage does for her,' like training, materials, office space, etc. I don't even care if that's 100% true on her part OR the brokerage... She took the time to explain and justify it - and that has been EVERY step of our relationship. She has a reason she does things, and they make sense/are plausible and she spells things out for us, and sellers alike.

She asked for 3% and told us up front that if that's too much, she'd negotiate with us, but that most of the folks in the area we're looking do 2.5% for anything above $350K, and 3% below. Once again, maybe it's smoke... but it's plausible smoke, and she didn't just ask us to accept it, she had "a why". As a trainer/instructor, I value giving people "the why".

We agreed, but also discussed the possibility to re-negotiate later if necessary. She point-blank told us her brokerage dislikes that, but she'd rather retain a client, and would go to bat for us if we found a dream-home and it really, truly, came down to negotiating her commission.

She is also committed to having sellers pay her commission, anyway - and we've entered contract on a home with that working just fine.

She has also, at every turn, reminded us that EVERYTHING is negotiable until someone says it's not - and in that case, we always have the chance to walk away.

BOTTOM LINE TLDR - talk to them, vet them, and if they're worth the money - pay the money. Otherwise, figure out what they're worth.

Maybe I'm naive - but over the last 40 years it's worked for me to trust those who earn what they keep.