[throwaway2037]

Are there any highly industrialised economies in the world where real estate agents get only 1% fee? I find it hard to believe. That would mean a 500K USD home would result in an agent fee of only 5,000 USD. Even if they sell one per month (unlikely), their revenues would only be 60K per year. It seems impossible, as expenses (company car and small office) would eat up a lot of that revenue.

Also: Take a look at housing in France (outside Paris), Germany (outside Berlin), and Italy (outside Milan). It hardly changes faster than inflation. How do they do it? Low population growth, combined with careful community planning (new housing starts, etc.)