What else is there to talk about in the Real Estate world right now but the NAR Lawsuit Settlement. As a company in Minnesota, we’ve been proactive on training and educating our real estate professionals. Here are my thoughts as a Broker!

I am embarrassed for our industry by some of the social media postings I have seen by agents. I expect inaccurate headlines and stories by the media. But to hear agents who have no clue and feel the need to post their inaccurate and unfounded opinions about the lawsuit is not good for our image and reputation. 

How will this change what you do today?

• You will not be able to offer cooperative compensation on MLS. Where we will be posting compensation is still TBD, we are preparing our Broker and agent websites to offer our coop compensation there
• Buyers will have to be under a representation contract to view a listed home on the MLS. Yea! About time!
• Sellers do not have to offer a coop compensation to a buyer’s broker. They don’t today and since 1991 they could offer as low as $1
• Buyers may be obligated to pay their buyers broker compensation out of their pocket. You may now have to interview for a buyer’s agent position as you do for a seller’s agent position. Let the strong survive!

How can you win in this changing landscape? 

• Define your value proposition. What do you do and offer that is YOUnique just to you? Why should buyers/sellers choose you? Define it and share it with the world
• Design and build the best buyer’s presentation you can. You are interviewing for a job. Bring all the bullets
• Design your services offered and the commission, hourly rate, flat fee (or all the above) for these services

Will we lose agents? Yes I expect we will. But if rates lower as expected, sales will go up and new agents will jump in again. Possibly offsetting the agents we lose. Purifying our industry and bringing more professionalism back in is my dream. 

I built a workbook for our agents to navigate the why and how of NAR Lawsuit Settlement 2.0. It is chock full of why the lawsuit was brought, what the verdict was in favor of the plaintiffs and the great things NAR has done for consumers over the years. The workbook features FAQ’s scripts, answers to clients concerns and homework to start creating the next steps. 

If you would like me to send you a copy of the workbook, text me at 612-749-8404 or email me at paul.ekstrom@rogchoice.com!

Remember: Shifts are good for our industry. It is all in how you prepare for the shift if your market share increases or not.