The National Association of Realtors (NAR) will be the subject of a Justice Department reopening case focusing on home sales commissions.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia District overturned a lower court ruling from 2023 over the Justice Department's request for more information from NAR. This ruling gives the Department of Justice the go-ahead to investigate the matter further.
The Justice Department will reopen the case
The Department of Justice has filed amicus briefs and declarations of interest that “The United States enforces federal antitrust laws and has a significant interest in preventing anticompetitive conduct in the real estate industry. Over the past two decades, the United States has investigated and challenged various rules and practices of the National Association of Realtors (“NAR”) and regional multiple listing services.”
This reopening of the case is another major body blow for the NAR after the most powerful group of real estate agents agreed to pay nearly half a billion in a March 15 settlement agreement.
NAR will withdraw the settlement, which “subject to court approval, makes clear that NAR continues to deny any wrongdoing related to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) cooperative compensation model rule that was introduced in the 1990s in response to calls from consumer protection attorneys for buyer representation. Under the terms of the settlement, NAR would pay $418 million over approximately four years.”
Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Department's Antitrust Division would comment on the D.C. court's decision. He said that “real estate commissions in the United States far exceed those in any other developed economy, and this decision restores the Antitrust Division's ability to investigate potentially illegal conduct by NAR that may contribute to this problem.”
“The Antitrust Division is committed to fighting to lower the cost of buying and selling a home. I would like to congratulate the staff of the Antitrust Division and our colleagues in the department for achieving this important result.”
NAR Interim CEO Nykia Wright said “NAR is firmly focused on the future and on leading this industry forward. We are committed to innovation and defining the next steps that will allow us to continue to deliver unparalleled value to American members and consumers.”
NAR will hope the Justice Department's findings will be unambiguous and not add to recent fines the entity has received as part of federal pressure on the real estate group.
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