ST. LOUIS, Mo. – The National Association of Realtors agreed to settle a series of lawsuits by paying $418 million in damages and by eliminating its rules on commissions Friday.
“We knew it was coming down; we just didn’t know the timing. So it was a little surprising,” Tina Siebert, president of St. Louis Realtors, said. “Right now, we have a notification inside our MLS that says I’m willing to cooperate with the person who brings the buyer for x percent or a certain dollar amount. In this new settlement, this will be wiped away.
“There will be a lot more conversations before you go into a home to see it between the realtors to say, ‘How is this compensation going to work,’ and the buyer knows exactly what they’re getting into before the walk through the door. For St. Louisans, it’s not new. For the United States, it’s new. There’s a lot of different states that don’t have a buyer’s agency,” Siebert added.
Currently, agents working with a buyer and seller typically split a commission of around 5% to 6%, paid for by the seller. But Siebert still has concerns when it comes to how commissions would be determined and paid under the new arrangement.
“I still have a little concern about some of our first-time home buyers—VA buyers—but we’ll get it figured out. We’re going to be working with our industry partners to try to make sure every single person is covered under this,” she said.
The policy changes could make it easier for home buyers to negotiate fees with their own agents and could lead more buyers to forgo using agents altogether.
“You need to have an advocate in your corner. Whether you’re the seller or the buyer. Can you do this on your own? Absolutely. Should you do it on your own? That’s a big question,” Siebert said.
If the court signs off on the settlement, the National Association of Realtors will implement the rule changes in mid-July. Siebert says one thing won’t change.
“The St. Louis consumers need to know that the realtors have their back. We’ve been working behind the scenes and they’re not going to get any type of different service. We care about our buyers, and we care about our sellers,” she said.
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