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US: NAR asks judge to toss antitrust suits

By  |  August 15, 2019

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has asked a federal judge to dismiss two class-action lawsuits lawsuits that claim that NAR’s compensation policies violate antitrust laws.

NAR’s policy requires all member brokers to charge blanket, non-negotiable, buyer-side commission fees when listing a home on a multiple listing service (MLS), according MP Mag.

The lawsuits, Moehrl v. National Association of Realtors and Sitzer v. National Association of Realtors, claim that NAR’s current payment rules prevent buyers’ agents from negotiating their own commissions – which “would likely be less,” real estate attorney Adam Swanson told Forbes.

Moehrl alleges that NAR’s payment rules encourage agents to steer buyers toward higher-cost listings as well as listings exclusive to multiple-listing services – both of which the suit claims are “anti-competitive” and cost buyers money.

Full Content: MPA MAG

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