The problem I have with brokers and realtors is that they should charge either a flat hourly rate or a transaction rate. Lawyers, consultants, and software dev

The problem I have with brokers and realtors is that they should charge either a flat hourly rate or a transaction rate. Lawyers, consultants, and software developers virtually all work on that model. But brokers and realtors have conditioned the public into believing that a 3% or 10% commission on the transaction is "reasonable". Which is certainly not when you are buying a million dollar property or renting for $5k/month. Also, when realtors are making more in commissions than doctors are in salary, you can be sure the market is distorted, and ripe for innovation.