As
real
estate
agents
adjust
to
sweeping
changes
brought
by
the
commission
lawsuit
settlement,
a

new
report
from
discount
brokerage

Clever

Real
Estate
reveals
one
thing
hasn’t
shifted:
Americans
still
overwhelmingly
trust
full-service
agents
to
sell
their
homes. 

Nearly
three-quarters
(73%)
of
recent
home
sellers
say
agents
are
the
best
way
to
sell,
with
77%
opting
for
traditional
full-service
agents—outpacing
all
other
methods,
including
FSBO
and

iBuyers,
by
a
wide
margin.

Clever’s
finding
was
aggregated
by
a
survey
of
1,000
Americans
who
have
sold
a
home
in
the
past
five
years.
Of
the
73%
who
said
they
preferred
using
agents,
67%
believe

traditional
real
estate
agents
are
still
the
best
option
and
6%
favor
discount
agents.

Of
the
surveyed
pool,
42%
have
sold
since
late
2022
as
rising

mortgage
rates
cooled
the

post-pandemic
market.
The
majority
of
recent
home
sellers
overwhelmingly
prefer
traditional
full-service
real
estate
agents,
with
77%
choosing
this
method
for
their
sale
—
nearly
eight
times
more
than
those
who
opted
for
a

‘For
Sale
By
Owner’
(FSBO)
transaction
(10%). 

Not
only
is
this
method
popular,
but
it’s
also
well-regarded;
76%
of
sellers
who
worked
with
an
agent
felt
their
services
were

worth
the
cost. That’s
despite
a
recent
research
report
from
the

Atlanta
Fed
that
found
the
vast
majority
of
real
estate
agents

achieve
similar
price
outcomes.
Although
there
are
agents
who
consistently
outperform
on
price
relative
to
others,
they
are
very
rare,
Atlanta
Fed
researchers
found.

The
Clever
survey
comes
out
as
agents
and
brokerages
adjust
to

seismic
changes
in
real
estate,
namely
the

National
Association
of
Realtors
(NAR)

commission
lawsuit
and
related

business
practice
changes,
as
well
as
several
down
years
for

existing
home
sales. 

In
August,
directly
after
the
NAR
settlement
went
into
effect
in
most
markets,
Redfin
reported
that
the
typical
U.S.
home
seller
paid
a

2.55%
commission
to
the
real
estate
agent
hired
by
their
buyer,
down
from
an
average
of
2.62%
in
January.
At
the
end
of
October,
the
narrative
changed;
Redfin
reported
that
commissions
paid
to
real
estate
agents
representing
buyers

remained
essentially
unchanged. Some
agents
and
brokers
told
HousingWire
that
their
buy-side
commission
splits
have
increased
since
the
announcement
of
the
settlement.

The
changes
haven’t
materially
had
an
impact
so
far
on

NAR
membership
or
projections
of
2025
membership.
NAR
Treasurer
Greg
Hrabcak

assured
members
during
the
NAR
NXT
conference
that
the
organization
remains
on
solid
footing,
with
no
planned
dues
increases
and
a
maintained
reserve
level.

Hrabcak
credited
budget
reductions
across
NAR
for
minimal
impact
on
services
and
a
“disciplined
approach”
to
fulfilling
settlement
obligations.
Membership
numbers
also
remain
strong,
with
1.526
million
reported
in
October
—
the
fourth-highest
ever
—
and
a
forecasted
1.4
million
members
in
2025,
at
8%
smaller
decline
than
many
had
expected.

Corporate
cash
buyer,
iBuyer
Distrust

Only
3%
hired
discount
agents,
5%
sold
to
cash
buyer
companies,
and
just
2%
used

iBuyers
like

Opendoor
or

Offerpad. 

Recent
sellers
have
a
much
less
favorable
view
of
cash
buyer
companies,
with
38%
considering
them
the
worst
way
to
sell.
About
35%
of
those
who
sold
to
cash
buyers
and
33%
of
iBuyer
users
would
choose
a
different
method
if
they
could
do
it
over.
Almost
two-thirds
of
respondents
(61%)
go
as
far
as
calling
cash
buyer
companies
“scams.” 

Some
sellers
(65%)
touted
that
their
cash
buyer
experience
led
to
them
closing
within
a
month
and
31%
sold
without
listing
their
home. 

Cash
buyer
companies
appeal
to
sellers
with
property
issues,
the
report
pointed
out,
as
54%
avoid
expenses
like
repairs
or
staging.
While
74%
would
consider
this
option,
motivations
differ:
36%
prioritize
the
highest
offer,
8%
value
speed,
and
27%
see
it
as
a
last
resort.

Nearly
1
in
4
sellers
(24%)
view
the
polarizing
FSBO
method
as
the
worst
way
to
sell
a
home.
While
46%
believe
FSBO
is
the
most
profitable
and
51%
see
it
as
the
least
expensive
option,
it
comes
with
significant
challenges.
Two-thirds
(66%)
say
it’s
the
hardest
method,
and
55%
call
it
the
slowest. 

“[RealTrends]
found
[in
polling]
that
well
over
a
third
of
all
sellers
considered
using
for
sale
by
owner
before
they
went
with
an
agent,”

Steve
Murray,
the
founder
of RealTrends and
a HousingWire consultant,
said
in
September.
“Why
would
they
do
this?
It
turns
out
that
people
perceive
that
using
an
agent
to
deal
with
the
complexity
and
possibility
of
making
a
stupid
mistake
is
better
than
if
they
did
it
themselves.”

Per
the
Clever
survey,
traditional
real
estate
agents
are
considered
the
easiest
(58%)
and
often
the
fastest
(40%)
way
to
sell,
despite
being
seen
as
the
most
expensive
by
69%
of
sellers.

Despite
their
popularity,
real
estate
agents
face
some
criticism:
36%
of
sellers
feel
pressured
to
accept
lowball
offers,
12%
report
agent
mistakes
during
the
sale,
and
13%
found
their
real
estate
agent
more
of
a
hassle
than
a
help. 

While
traditional
and
discount
agents
offer
similar
services,
the
difference
between
them
matters
significantly
to
sellers.
About
76%
would
consider
a
traditional
real
estate
agent
for
their
next
sale,
compared
to
just
25%
for
a
discount
agent.

However,
60%
of
sellers
are
open
to
trading
some
traditional
real
estate
agent
services
for
cost
savings.
Many
are
willing
to
forgo
hosting
open
houses
(26%),
pricing
strategy
and
market
analysis
(13%),
or
negotiation
support
(11%).
Still,
concerns
about
marketing
support
linger,
with
71%
believing
discount
brokers
provide
less
than
traditional
agents,
though
this
varies
by
individual
agent.

Despite
these
perceptions,
most
sellers
who’ve
used
both
would
recommend
them:
83%
for
traditional
agents
and
56%
for
discount
brokers.

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