The California Association of Realtors (CAR) has published an open letter in nearly 40 California newspapers designed to clarify the facts surrounding the recent settlements by the National Association of Realtors and several major brokerages regarding the homebuying process.
“Recent coverage by media entities, industry insiders and anyone with an opinion and a smartphone have offered up a mix of fact and fiction,” said the letter. “All this noise has caused confusion, fear and, in some instances, panic about the process of buying and selling a home.”
The letter outlines the two major changes resulting from the settlements – properties listed in the multiple listing services will no longer be allowed to include an offer of compensation to buyer’s agents, and homebuyers who want to work with an agent will need to sign a written agreement with that agent prior to touring a home.
“We come to this job because we love putting people in homes,” the letter continued. “We stay in this job because we love working with our clients, who become our friends and neighbors. As we’ve done for decades, through up markets and down markets, through periods of industry change, we will stand by our clients, serve our communities, and continue to do what we do best — work to create a future that enables homeownership for all who want it.”
Among the newspapers where the letter appeared are the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Mercury News, Sacramento Bee, San Diego Union-Tribune and Orange County Register, as well as the California editions of The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.
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I AM A REALTOR IN TENNESSEE… WISH OUR STATE ASSOCIATION WOULD STEP UP AND PUT OUT SOME POSITIVE PRESS LIKE THE CAL FOLKS DID…,
Agreed!
Agree! I’m hugeydisappointed that our state, local and national associations haven’t done more to get ahead of this.
The NAR needs to be abolished. We are paying dues to pay for their current and many future lawsuits. Their “hate speech” provisions are an example of how insane they have become.
Their comment is false, they are in it for the money and not for the love of putting people in a home, and when thigs are tight and fees go up or brokers demand larger spreads of what should have been a fixed fee, then it becomes unfair and nothing short of criminal. The public has no clue what goes on behind the scenes and all the manipulation brokers have between themselves. I was a commercial broker for over 40 years but also a developer and it is even worse in the world of commercial brokers where both sides demand full fees and although me as a landlord would have to pay the ransom or loose a deal but the real loser is when the developer refuses and the deal is never shown to the tenant or buyer even though it may be the perfect match and the perfect deal, that is not love of what you do but love of the dollar.
it is a disgrace to publish a letter to explain that you really didn’t lose the lawsuit and how the conclusion was misunderstood, you lost because you could not justify that you did not do wrong and it is simple as that, the newer of them to assume that the public is stupid and can’t read or understand so they have to simplify it. if you had in the cookie jar when mom comes in, there is no other explanation, would you disrespect her and insist that she didn’t see you hand in the jar or just face the music.
I could go on but why. I hope that the commercial brokers are also slammed for their practices as many times as I have filed complaints, not one has ever been heard or ever a reprimand or penalty imposed.
sounds like you’ve had some bad experiences in your real estate careers. that’s too bad. i’m a 19 year licensed realtor specializing in residential homes. yes, i want to be paid for my time and experience but i’ve made a lot more money in other business. i am a real estate agent because i like meeting new people, getting to know what they want in a home and helping them find the right home. yes, many of my clients have in fact become my friends. yes, i’m a people person. of course i like to get paid but if that was most important i’d do something else. just saying.
Hi Bob! Of course, Realtors want to earn money to live and feed their families. Please do not include all Realtors in your statement “we are just in it for the money”. We do work hard for our clients and certainly work 40-60 hours a week. I enjoy working and helping people and we already negotiate commission for long term clients and situations where we may work as an Intermediary. Many a time we have chipped in for repairs and reduced commissions to make deals work. Many young Buyers may have good credit but not a lot of savings built up. We are in a military market, and it is often the case that Buyers simply do not have the funds to pay commission and closing costs. Sellers are more willing to pay Buyer’s commission when they have equity in the sale. I do not see this as much change in our market. We simply negotiate as we have always done. If homes do not move because Buyer’s do not have enough funds to pay their closing costs and commission on top of it, the sales market will adjust accordingly.
If I were you and felt this way, I would get out of the business. Perhaps you should have chosen better firms to represent your properties as I have never witnessed any underhanded actions as you described. In most cases where there was a problem, my brokers have pitched partial commissions into the deal to make it work. The last sale a made, the broker gave up about 20% of their commission to make the deal work. Perhaps you should stick with the stock market. Maybe you can trust those brokers more. 😉
Your a disgrace to the industry that we love.. you expect us to work for free? Your crazy .. go play someplace else and find another avenue to write your comments on!
It’s all a voluntary agreement and contract. No one forces anyone to hire a REALTOR nor pay a fee you don’t agree to up front. Simple.
It’s a shame that you want to throw all Realtors into the same basket just because of a few bad actors. There are bad actors in all industries. I’ve been in the business for 30 years and it’s our fiduciary duty to fully explain who represents who and how the Realtors in the transaction gets paid. I think it’s shameful that NAR caved in on this lawsuit. They should have fought and prosecuted the violators.
Amen Donnie! Its apparent that NAR has no back bone! They are to protect & help the ethical agents & yes prosecute the violators!!
Geeze Bob, too bad all of your experiences with the greedy realtor criminals still kept you in the business for 40 years. I bet you enjoyed your compensation and I’m sure, an upstanding gent such as yourself, was always the beacon of light in a sea of grey, never profiting, just working for food, water, and gas money. You are pathetic.
Our legislature in WA already requires a buyer/broker agreement. This is a good thing as it clarifies the duties and responsibilities of all parties and will stop the pirating of buyers by other agents.
It’s a shame that NAR did not do their job in explaining that commisions are always negotiated with clients, that now buyers will either go into the purchase unrepresented by a professional or have to contribute a fee or commision themselves instead of both professional’s commisions coming out of proceeds of sellers. This is not an improvement in any way, simply adds to the division of those that can pay for professional assistance and those that will have to go without in a detailed and expensive purchase.
The NAR needs to be phased out completely as it is a superfluous money grubbing target for more lawsuits. Real Estate Agents should not be forced to pay dues to what is little more than a political activist group operating like a union, bathing in cash and doing nothing for the public and shilling for the government bureaucracy. For example, tens of millions of Americans are fleeing blue cites and states chock full of bloated, corrupt governments, outrageous taxes, crime, drugs, violence and of course, affordable housing. So what does the NAR do? Go full bore with the current government to force affordable housing on everyone so they can’t escape as well as nationalizing zoning. The NAR has become nefarious to Americans.
Yes, just look at the lists of politicians who get RPAC funds…
I have been a Realtor and broker in Texas for over 32 years. Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) listing agreements explain very well what the commission is, who it paid to and commission amount. Sellers know very well about sales commission.
Under current VA lending rules, buyers who are veterans and using VA loan programs, are really taking a hard, hard hit! All associations need to press this detail into the public awareness! It doesn’t seem to be happening.
I think one of the interesting things here is that NAR is just an organization that we all belong to freely. They do not make the laws of our states, at least not in California.
I have sold real estate for 49 years, full time. Real estate commissions have been negotiated for all those years. The commission appears in a written contract and is clearly explained and agreed to by all parties. it does not go up as the transaction continues to progress, it may go down but I have yet to see one increase. Do agents earn more dollars sometimes, yes! because prices go up, not the percentage. There are disreputable people in all businesses, as an agent you chose who you work for. Nar is making a rule that drops disadvantaged buyers from the market. They can’t afford to pay a commission and insurance. Lets talk insurance companies Redlining in California. Lets talk gouging there! We as agents need to wake up and drop NAR.
The Government has a need to fix something that is not broken. If the consuming public wanted a different structure, they would have taken advantage of discount brokerage, FSBO, flat fee listing services, ibuyers, wholesalers, etc.
I am a broker and the statement of the commercial broker complaining about the commissions is unfair and if he felt that way, why did he work in this industry. There are thousands of professionals who work very hard in this industry, do care for their clients who do become friends and family throughout the year because you support, assist and stay with them when they purchase a property, or they rent one. When the buyers purchase a property, they do not pay a commission, when they sell, they can pay the commission and that is fair to both sides. Also, throughout my over 23+ years of experience, seller always negotiate the percentage they want to pay when listing their properties. It is not proper to say that they don’t have a say on what is done with their property at time of selling it. This is a profession, and we don’t have a salary, we work really hard and honestly to make a sale or rent so we can, as many other industries, make a living. Not different than any other job that entitles sales.