“Change is hard. But honestly… sometimes change is good.” —Allison Norman, real estate agent
NAR agents to share among other members what properties are for sale at any given time, along with other information such as property details, price, commission rates, open home or viewing times and more. Prior to the internet, the general public had little access to timely and up-to-date property- sale information and relied on NAR agents for MLS access. While in recent years public sites like Zillow and Realtor.com have chipped away at the power of the MLS, they still don’t provide all the information necessary to compete for the best deals in an increasingly competitive real estate market. While some industry watchdogs view the settlement as a harbinger of major change to the industry, NAR has largely downplayed impending fallout. In a Jan. 30 letter to the editor in Bloomberg, NAR President Kevin Sears refuted the allegation that the commission model creates a conflict of interest. “The opposite is true,” Sears argued. “Offer compensation to buyer brokers in this fashion fosters consumer choice, stimulates market competition and boosts access to homeownership by lowering the cost burden for buyers.”
In its March 19 statement, NAR highlighted just one policy change from the settlement: “NAR has agreed to put in place a new MLS rule prohibiting offers of broker compensation on the MLS.” While NAR’s official policy may only be changing marginally, it’s what some would describe as the industry’s unofficial policy that stands the biggest upheaval—and few outside of NAR members are defending the current seller-pays-all 6% commission model. In fact, some agents are conceding it is high time the 6% commission got the boot. A semi-retired real-estate agent in Novato, who asked not to be named, agrees that Zillow and other websites provide buyers with much of the information they need to find a suitable home—and agents are really only necessary for overseeing certain legal aspects of the process, such as the closing contracts. He said if he weren’t winding down his practice, he’d begin offering specialized services for home buyers—let them find the home and make an offer and he’d handle the paperwork for a set fee of $4,000. He believes he’d do very well. Alexander Narodny, a Corte Madera-based Realtor, is taking a positive approach to the settlement. I consider it a good thing for the industry,” says Narodny. “This will force buyers’ agents to have a more transparent commission conversation with their clients that should have been taking place all along.” He also believes it’s a chance for the best agents to set themselves apart in the marketplace through their knowledge of the local community—everything from knowing the good schools to the best hiking trails. “Bay Area buyers need a lot of help to locate their ideal property and, most importantly, feel secure and fulfilled at the end of the process.” One Sonoma County agent told NorthBay biz his office forbade agents to speak to the media about the settlement. Norman, meanwhile, is taking a wait-and-see approach. “Change is hard,” she concedes. “But honestly… sometimes change is good.” Still, she stresses, “the sky is not falling.” “Buyer representation is not going away,” she says. “Real estate has been through many upsets, changes and challenges over the years. Realtors, brokerages and consumer will adapt as we always have.” g
Please email comments to editor@NorthBaybiz.com
Corte Madera agent Alexander Narodny hopes the new commission model brings positive change to the industry.
40 NorthBaybiz
April 2024
Made with FlippingBook - Online magazine maker