Today, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced its agreement to settle the Sitzer antitrust lawsuits, where it and several brokerage groups stood as Defendants. Previously, the Court entered a judgment of $1.78 billion dollars against the Defendants. While NAR stated an intention to appeal the judgment, today’s announcement resolves the court case, pending the judge’s approval of the settlement.
Revolutionizing Real Estate: Major MLS Changes Post-NAR Settlement
As part of the settlement, NAR agreed to upend the current Multiple Listing Service (“MLS”) process regarding commissions as well as the required membership to MLS that was in place prior to the settlement. Starting in July, MLS will no longer disclose commissions to cooperating agents and NAR will mandate the use of representation agreements for its agents to disclose fees and services to their clients.
Navigating New Real Estate Norms in Florida: Commissions and Representation Post-Settlement
The most frequent question received lately has been the concern over how cooperating commissions will be handled after July. Given the likely revisions to listing agreements and other commission-related documents here in Florida, the jury is still out on the overall effect this settlement will have on the local real estate market and related commissions. Ultimately, becoming familiar with Buyer Representation Agreements and other forms that relate to commission is the best course of action. If you have any questions regarding the topic of commissions and how the NAR settlement may affect the real estate market, please do not hesitate to reach out to your local real estate attorney.
