BREAKING NEWS: How the NAR commission settlement affects RE agents, home sellers & buyers in Washington State

A first look at the local impact of the historic NAR commission settlement on real estate agents, home sellers and buyers in the Seattle area and Washington State.

SEATTLE - March 21, 2024 - PRLog -- NW Real Estate Roundup, a regional podcast focused on real estate issues in the state of Washington, examines the local impact of real estate broker commission rule changes included in the landmark lawsuit settlement by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

On March 15, 2024 NAR agreed to pay $418 million to end legal claims from home sellers who argued the group artificially inflated real estate commissions. In addition to the monetary payout, NAR agreed to ban any rules that would allow a home seller's real estate agent to set the commission paid to a home buyer's real estate agent. Buyer's agent commissions can no longer be published on NAR-owned multiple listing service (MLS) websites, and real estate agents representing home buyers must enter into a written buyer's agent agreement.

If approved by a Federal judge, the new broker commission rules would go into effect for all NAR-owned MLS systems in July of this year.

NAR does NOT own the Northwest Multiple Listing Service (NWMLS), which covers most of the state of Washington, so the broker commission rule changes in the proposed NAR lawsuit settlement do not directly affect real estate agents in the state, but the news has raised many questions from Seattle area home sellers and buyers.

Eastside real estate agent Ericka Nash says, "It's all over the news. I definitely have clients asking about it, especially home sellers."

Nash questions the impact of the proposed changes to the broker commission rules. In her listing appointments with prospective home sellers, Nash says, "It's never been 'this is what you have to pay'...It's always been a negotiation. Here's what my fees are and here is what is generally expected on the buyer's side, but it's not required by any means." Sellers are free to offer more or less than the "generally expected" buyer's agent commission when they list their home for sale.

One change in the proposed NAR settlement is already law in the state of Washington. Starting January 1, 2024, real estate brokers are now required to enter into a written service agreement in order to represent a home buyer as a buyer's agent.

Tune into the NW Real Estate Roundup to hear a wide ranging discussion of the local impacts, pros and cons, of the real estate broker commission rule changes proposed in the historic NAR settlement.

About NW Real Estate Roundup

NW Real Estate Roundup is the podcast for real estate agents, financial planners, and professionals engaged in the buying and selling of homes in Washington State, primarily in the Greater Seattle area. Hosted by Steve Tytler, founder and owner of Best Mortgage® and a four decade veteran of the Seattle area real estate scene, this podcast is crafted to sharpen your expertise, broaden your insights, and empower your decisions in the real estate and mortgage landscapes. Individual home sellers and buyers can also pick up valuable advice by listening to this podcast.