Forget it MD, to know the concept behind real estate commission is to understand how this works globally, hence the reason most of the agents here dont think it is extortion.

MD is right, the agent takes the burden off the owner, and it is actually a sort of "favor" that renters are looking for these properties, saves you on advertising etc (which in the global market generally comes out of the commission fee).

Now perhaps you can understand why so many expats get a bad feeling about paying commission? The real estate market is not just Doha based.