In a July 12 ruling, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in Washington, D.C., denied the National Association of REALTORS®’ (NAR) request for a rehearing in its dispute with the Department of Justice (DOJ).
NAR and DOJ had originally reached a settlement agreement requiring NAR to increase transparency regarding broker commissions and settle other issues.
A panel of three judges ruled in April that the DOJ could reopen its investigation, which the DOJ indicated it had closed in November 2020.
A recent meeting between NAR and the DOJ did not result in any substantive agreement. Earlier in June, the DOJ argued to an appeals court that the petition for a rehearing of the agency’s bid to reopen its investigation into the association is “not warranted.”
An NAR spokesperson emailed this reply to RISMedia when asked for comment:
“This ruling stands in opposition to years of precedent on the interpretation of government contracts and the bedrock principle that the government must honor its word. We are evaluating all remaining legal options and are committed to exploring all avenues to ensure the DOJ is held to the terms of our 2020 agreement.”
This is a continuing story that will be updated.
This is an absurd frivolous suit just so an attorney can make money –
How bout lowering the DOJ’s salary or the attorney’s salary..
It’s gonna be the same thing – just harder to do – why are we re-inventing the wheel that has been working for years and years –
I don’t think people realize how hard Realtors work….Ignorance!!!!
You are absolutely right
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Agreed! Why hit the realtors pockets, when the attorneys are the ones making all the money in this fiasco.
The attorneys complaining about our 2-3% per side take 30-50% of their client’s proceeds. Figure that out.
I don’t see a class action against attorneys taking at least a third of what their clients make. All transactions are negotiable, but not when you work with attorneys….go figure.
If this entire affaire was truly anti-trust, the only logical remedy should have been making the commission amount displayed inconspicuously on all listing platforms. Sellers have full right to offer incentives to attract Buyers that DO NEED to have their agents. The entire lawsuit is BOGUS, since Sellers always had and have an option to do FSBO (for sale by owner) among other options.
Well this is BIG government at its best, and to think people want more bloated gov’t with a war chest of tax payer money to fight anyone.
Millions of agents have chosen real estate as their full-time career. In most professions, compensation is guaranteed either in advance or upon job completion. However, in real estate, agents often work without the certainty of being compensated. A 2-3% commission is a reasonable reward for the hard work agents put in, and it’s concerning to see the DOJ scrutinize their efforts.
For instance, I once showed nearly 80 houses over 8 months to secure a contract for a client. Imagine the time, energy, and resources invested in that single project. In another case, I showed about 20 houses over 3 months, only for the client to switch agents and eventually decide not to buy. In both scenarios, the agents received no compensation for their extensive work.
Real estate agents work tirelessly without guaranteed compensation until a contract is signed and the sale is finalized. Moreover, not all agents have a steady stream of business year-round; in fact, 90% of agents sell only 2-3 houses annually. Shouldn’t they deserve fair compensation to support their families?
I agree with David Marcantuno statement attorneys are making money and we the realtors and the consumer are paying the price. As we realtors I believe we help drive the economy with every transaction. Every one involves makes money, the two agents and the two brokerages’ firms, how about the Title company or/and the attorney involved and the mortgage bank, the loan officers the clerks and then the appraiser, the property inspector, the handyman, the cleaning crew, the roofer, the gas station where I fill the tank of my car to do showings and the sign companies who do my marketing so on and on. We the realtors have to add more documentation to our transaction more explaining to do to the buyer and to the seller and if you don’t you will get fined. We are in the middle and we drive the economy so everyone involved gets a piece of the pie. Something wrong with this picture.