In my experience, the people listing their property are the ones that pay the realtor fee.

You will need to sign a contract with the realtor basically stating that you won’t work with other realtors (this is to ensure they get their commission). With you renting sight unseen, tjey are the ones that will do the legwork in more ways than one. I.e carefully read through the lease agreement to make sure it’s agreeable to your needs or that the landlord doesn’t slip anything in there that they shouldn’t. They’ll be the ones that go to tour the place. The photos on sites like Zillow can be misleading. The realtor is there to help you, the tenant.