Saul Ewing Partner Francis “Trip” Riley and Florida Agency Network CEO Aaron Davis were featured in October Research LLC’s “Strategies for a post-NAR settlement market” webinar, moderated by RESPA News Editor Elizabeth Childers. They answered questions about the impact of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) settlement on real estate agents, titles agents, and current marketing strategies.
Riley began by reviewing the timeline of antitrust class action lawsuits against NAR and several national real estate brokerage companies. In providing context as to the impact being made by the NAR settlement, as well as the settlements with the original defendant brokerages and now many other regional brokerages, he made a point to highlight the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) objections filed in February to the settlement proposed in Nosalek v. MLS, et al., and the possibility the DOJ will object the NAR settlement, or file a new action against NAR.
“From its objection filed in the Novalek action, you can see what the DOJ wants, which is a complete decoupling of the commissions paid by the seller and commissions that might be paid by the buyer,” he explained.
Decoupling means that no commissions would be offered by the seller, nor would a portion of the listing agent’s commissions be offered to the buyer’s agents, Riley said.
The changes resulting from the NAR settlement are expected to go into effect in August. While some market participants are anticipating a huge, dramatic shift, Riley and Davis said this probably won’t be the case, as it takes time for the changes to make their impact on the market.
“I think everything goes live and people are thinking something huge is just going to happen, something monumental, overnight. And it’s not,” Davis said.
Currently, there are approximately 37 states where it is customary the buyer selects and pays for title, 13 or so where the seller picks, and some states that vary, Davis said.
“The discussion you really start getting into is the one around if the buyer’s agent has less impact, or has less ability, in the months and years to come,” he added.
Over the hour, Riley and Davis also discuss:
- Changes to real estate agent commission structures.
- Changes title agents and attorneys can prepare for.
- Changes to sales and marketing strategies.
The webinar is available here.