It could soon cost homeowners a lot less to sell their homes after a real estate trade group agreed to slash commissions to settle lawsuits against it.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) agreed in March to pay $418 million over roughly four years to resolve all claims against the group by home sellers related to broker commissions. The agreement goes into effect on August 17, and is expected to bring sweeping changes to how real estate agents across the nation carry out transactions. Experts even expect home prices to fall, given that sale prices won’t include the steep commissions that have been the industry norm for decades.
Almost 9 in 10 home sales are handled by real estate agents affiliated with NAR. The organization, the country’s largest trade association, requires home sellers to determine a commission rate, typically 6%, before listing homes on its property database, known as the Multiple Listing Service, or MLS.
The lawsuits argued that the structure harms competition and leads to higher prices.
“NAR has worked hard for years to resolve this litigation in a manner that benefits our members and American consumers. It has always been our goal to preserve consumer choice and protect our members to the greatest extent possible,” NAR interim CEO Nykia Wright said in a statement Friday. “This settlement achieves both of those goals,”
How will this impact real estate commissions?
Notably, the landmark deal will…
