Good news for consumers looking to buy or sell a home in today’s real estate market.

The National Association of Realtors recently announced the adoption of changes to its guidance for local Multiple Listing Service broker marketplaces that reinforce greater transparency for consumers. Keep reading to learn more on how this can help buyers, sellers, brokers, and agents moving forward.

New Changes

The changes ensure disclosure of compensation offered to buyer agents, ensure listings are not excluded from search results based on the amount of compensation offered to buyer agents and reinforce that buyer brokers do not represent their services as free. The NAR Board of Directors adopted the changes to take effect on Jan. 1, 2022.

“Grounded in our commitment to act in the best interests of buyers and sellers, we regularly review and update our guidance for local broker marketplaces to continue to advance efficient, equitable, and transparent practices,” said NAR President Charlie Oppler in a news release. “These latest changes more explicitly state what is already the spirit and intent of the NAR Code of Ethics and local broker marketplace guidance regarding consumer transparency and broker participation.”

Pro-consumer changes adopted include:

  • Reinforce that local marketplace participants do not represent brokerage services as free. While Realtors always have been required to advertise their services accurately and truthfully, this change creates a bright-line rule on the use of the word “free” that is easy to follow and enforce.
  • Ensure disclosure of compensation offered to buyer agents. The change bolsters transparency and Realtors’ existing duties and practices to talk with their clients about what services they provide and how they are compensated.
  • Ensure listings aren’t excluded from search results based on the amount of compensation offered to buyer agents. This changes the wording to reiterate Realtors’ existing duty to inform clients about all relevant properties meeting their criteria.

COntantly Evolving

“This is another example of NAR constantly evolving to ensure pro-consumer, pro-competitive marketplaces for buyers and sellers, and brokers,” Oppler continued in the news release. “NAR is proud to be affiliated with the hundreds of local broker marketplaces around the country and will continue to tirelessly pursue changes that improve the real estate experience for all Americans.”

About NAR

The National Association of Realtors is considered to be one of America’s largest trade associations, representing more than 1.5 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

Source: NAR