WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — If you're getting ready to buy or sell a home, there are some changes that go into effect Saturday, Aug. 17 that will impact you.
Up until now, sellers, on average, have paid 5% to 6% commission. But now, a buyer's agent must talk about and negotiate their compensation expectations upfront.
"It establishes transparency and puts that negotiability at the forefront of the transaction," said local realtor Abbey Adair. "What buyer's agents are really going to have to do is they're really going to have to show their value."
This is part of the $418 million settlement announced back in March by the National Association of Realtors. The buyer's agent will now have to have a written agreement with the home buyer before touring a property together.
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Although this type of negotiating is nothing new, the NAR agreed to make these changes in order to resolve multiple class action lawsuits brought on behalf of sellers.
"The goal is to be able to have that buyer's agent negotiate on your behalf to get it to come from the seller, so it doesn't have to come out of the buyer's pocket," said Adair.
There are already 18 states that require a written compensation agreement, but Florida is not one of them.
"It will be new for people here and something we will have to get used to," said local real estate agent Stephanie Grant. "There’s a lot of uncertainty, but we are going to get through it. It’s just going to take working through some kinks."
Although these changes will have an impact, the negotiation part remains the same.
“It's important to know that everything is negotiable, and it always has been negotiable," said both Adair and Grant.
For the future of the real estate job industry, Adair added, "I think that it's going to separate the weak from the strong. And I think that the agents who are able to present their value are going to be the ones that will succeed."