August 17, 2024 Buyer Broker Agreements & NO MLS Compensation Posts. In case you haven’t heard, the NAR lawsuit has resulted in the following changes, effective August 17, 2024, and here’s how it plays out for the home buyers and the listings for sellers.
FOR SELLERS: According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) can no longer offer compensation. In the last 22 years that I’ve been in the business, the MLS listing would read Broker Co-op and Broker Co-op 2.5 or whatever % was listed. Effective August 17, 2024, this practice is prohibited. However, sellers can continue to offer buyers closing cost concessions.
FOR BUYERS: Again in the over 2 decades that I have been in the industry, there is a contract California Real Estate Association C.A.R. form titled Buyer Broker Agreement, which is used for real estate agents representing buyers, and has always been available as a CAR form but not it’s mandatory use until now.
BUYER REPRESENTATION AND BROKER COMPENSATION AGREEMENT: C.A.R. from BRBC (12/22) Pages 1-3. This is not a new form; however, making it mandatory and enforceable is new, and the effective date is August 17, 2024. It specifically lays out the written responsibilities and expectations for both the agent and the buyer of the signed agreement, which includes the negotiated compensation for that representation. This explicitly states the salary as a percentage or dollar amount. The key takeaway is that compensation is specific and not open-ended; it prohibits the participating buyer from receiving compensation that exceeds the amount or percentage agreed to and conspicuously states that commissions are negotiable and not set by law.
Before making the C.A.R., BRBC mandatory, it was typically a given that the seller would pay the commission to the selling (buyers) agent, and that percentage compensation was posted on the MLS. In that scenario, and from what I’ve seen, it does affect motivation, for the higher the percentage of compensation, the higher the motivation for the buyer’s agent to bring in a buyer—to me, not posting the sellers willing to pay a commission level the playing field. Listing and Selling (Buyers) Agents will have to negotiate the details. Still, those buyer’s agent compensation details also affect those negotiations as indicated by the Buyer’s Broker Compensation Agreements.
Now that the burden has shifted from the seller to the buyer, and with the mandatory use of the Buyer Broker Agreement, the buyer has to negotiate and agree to an amount to be paid to the buyer’s real estate agent for the services rendered. To me, this makes it a financial challenge for the buyers, especially for first-time home buyers who barely have enough to cover closing costs, and to add a buyer’s agent compensation fee on top is a buyer’s burden. However, it can still work; we have to be fair and creative, and please continue to read on.
In this new compensation arena, the agent representing either party will have to be in compliance, but if they are creative thinkers, they can overcome these requirements, get the offer accepted, and close the deal.
With 22 years in the transaction trenches, my creative negotiating skills have closed 99% of my transactions, and that 1 % differential belongs to a lender that failed to fund. You will need someone skillful, discernable, fair, practical, and knowledgeable about negotiating the contract gauntlet.
MY CLIENTS SAY IT BEST:
— Sergey L., First Time Home Buyer/First Time Buyer Short Sale
This is a review of Mary Ann Cadorna. My wife and I were very lucky to meet Mary Ann and have her as our agent when we were buying a house this year. We are the first time home buyers and were very concerned about whole process and different details we were not aware about. We were buying the house on short sale and this kind of transaction is usually more complex than regular one. In our case the buying process was even more complicated but Mary Ann meticulously prepared all documents protecting our interest on each step and there were a lot of steps because conditions changed several times. Finally, we bought the great house on good price and we love it very much. We are very grateful to Mary Ann for that. Some people think that realtor’s job is something very simple but in our case Mary Ann spent a lot of time and energy to complete the transaction and deserved every penny of her commission. I would recommend Mary Ann to anybody who is looking for highly professional, honest and ethical real estate agent.
By Mary Ann Cadorna for www.BeniciaHomesMaryAnn.com
REFERENCE:
NAR Settlement FAQs
https://www.nar.realtor/the-facts/nar-settlement-faqs
Share Updated July 15, 2024
If you are a first-time homebuyer or a move-up buyer don’t hesitate to reach out and contact me, for I have access to all the properties listed for sale. More importantly, you can find out more about me on my link below to Sincerity Realty.
https://sincerityrealty.com/agents/mary-ann-cadorna/
My clients say it best see video and testimonial links below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUPAaAxVAo8
https://sincerityrealty.com/testimonials/
MLS Listings go to www.SincereityRealty.com and click the Property Search Link
Mary Ann Cadorna DRE 01345274 is a licensed Realtor and Real Estate Broker-Owner for the state of California. Should you have a real estate need, feel free to contact her directly at 628-888-9078. Mary Ann Cadorna is the winner of The Real Estate Professionals Five Star Real Estate Agent Award for 2024, and earned 5 Stars across the internet, A+ Rated with the Better Business Bureau, and received a Premier Award from City of SF, for conducting her business with integrity in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Thank you,
Mary Ann
