NAR Settlement - Consumer Resources

by Amanda Geller

Everyone knows by now about the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) settlement.

There are SO many headlines and opinions about what it means and how it's going to change the industry.

As of Aug 17, 2024, NAR, State, and local associations preemptively made adjustments to our practices to further create transparency. This has led to more forms and the removal of the offer of compensation (whether a dollar or percentage amount) from MLSs.

My local association Broward, Palm Beaches, and St Lucie Realtors® has instead included an optional yes/no field: "Negotiable Seller Concessions".

What has changed:

Buyers are now required to enter into written agreements with buyer representatives before viewing homes in person or virtually. This is per association rules, it is NOT currently a law in Florida.
1. Buyer's agents should be meeting with their buyers in a consultation-like setting to go over the duties of the agent, what is expected of the buyer, and any costs associated with their services.
Sellers' Brokers negotiate their fees at the time of signing the listing agreement. This may or may not include compensation to a Buyer's Broker, or a concession to a Buyer to help cover their closing costs and potentially the Buyer's Broker compensation.
1. If the Seller is not offering any compensation or concessions, it is up to the Buyer and their Broker to negotiate for that, or the buyer may cover it themselves.
Offers of compensation are NOT listed in any MLS or on any site that gets its data from the MLS. Compensation may be listed anywhere else, such as For Sale signs, on flyers in the home, or on Brokers' company websites. Agents may call each other to confirm.
Any compensation offered including the amount and who pays must be disclosed to all parties with additional documentation. Yay forms!

By the way, many agents, Brokers, and local Associations have gotten cranky about the outcome of the NAR settlement and have chosen to withdraw their membership from NAR. This means that those licensees are not bound by the NAR Code of Ethics and they may not call themselves Realtors®, as that is a trademark of NAR.

I could get way more in the weeds about all of this, so if you have any questions please feel free to reach out any time!

Resources for Consumers:

NAR Settlement Facts for Consumers

Resources for Realtors®:

Broward, Palm Beaches, and St Lucie Realtors® Settlement Resources

Florida Realtors Forms, Resources, Webinars

Florida Realtors FAQs

NAR Settlement Facts

Downloads: