Snakes.
Vultures.
Con
artists.
Liars.
These
are
all
untrue
and
offensive
words
that
come
up
when
searching
“Realtors”
or
“Real
estate
agents.”
And
before
getting
my

real
estate
license
in
2009,
I
had
the
same
opinion,
too.

But
even
with
all
the
negative
nouns
used
to
describe
some
real
estate
agents,
the
majority
of
real
estate
agents
are
professional
and
valuable.
The

National
Association
of
Realtors
has
provided
these
facts:

• 86%
  of
  buyers
  purchased
  their
  home
  through
  a
  real
  estate
  agent
  or
  broker.
• 89%
  of
  buyers
  would
  use
  their
  agent
  again
  or
  recommend
  their
  agent
  to
  others
• 51%
  of
  buyers
  found
  their
  home
  on
  the
  internet,
  while
  29%
  of
  buyers
  found
  their
  home
  through
  an
  agent
• FSBOs
  accounted
  for
  10%
  of
  home
  sales
  in
  2021
  with
  the
  most
  difficult
  task
  listed
  by
  them
  was
  getting
  the
  right
  price
  (16%).

The
recent multi-billion-dollar
lawsuit outcome
is
both
a
complete
game
changer,
yet
changes
nothing
at
all.
The
main
takeaways
from
the
case:
(1)
compensation
offers
will
no
longer
be
shown
on
the
MLS.
Listing
agents
may
no
longer
offer
co-broker

commissions/compensation
to
buyer
agents

on
the
MLS
but
may
still
negotiate
commissions/compensation
between
them
privately
and
(2)
written
agreements
for
MLS
participants
acting
for
buyers.

My
take
on
the
case

First
and
foremost,
this
case
may
cause
many

real
estate
agents
to
bail
from
the
industry,
but
with
NAR
reporting
over
3
million
people
having
a
real
estate
license
(due
to
an
extremely
low
barrier
to
entry),
is
that
necessarily
a
bad
thing?

Most
buyers
find
their
homes
without
a
real
estate
agent,
but
they
still
feel
the
need
to
buy
their
home
with
one
because
they
prefer
to
have
a
professional
run
comps
(especially
in
non-disclosure
states),
offer
information
to
help
set
the

home
price,
negotiate,
have
a
strategy
in
place
for
getting
the
home
(for
example,
in
cases
of
a
bidding
war),
guide
them
through
the
process
of
the
transaction,
and
so
on.
I’ve
had
clients
who
have
family
members
as
real
estate
agents
and
still
decide
to
work
with
me
because
they
understand
the
value
and
knowledge
I
provide.

There
will
always
be
people
who
don’t
see
the
value
in
a
real
estate
agent
because
there
are
so
many
people
with
a
license
who
don’t
know
anything
about
real
estate.

“Bad
real
estate
agents”
are
the
people
who
sadly
get
the
most
recognition
by
their
lack
of
knowledge
and
abilities
and
bring
the
industry
and
its
reputation
down
as
a
whole.
With
that
said,
I
don’t
spend
time
arguing
with
those
who
don’t
value
what
I
do
for
a
living,
because
so
many
people
do
value
my
expertise
and
guidance.

My
advice
to
real
estate
agents

Don’t
spend
time
and
effort
with
people
who
don’t
respect
and
appreciate
your
craft
–
especially
when
you’re
great
at
what
you
do.
Instead,
focus
on
people
who do want
to
work
with
you
versus
debating
with
the
ones
who
don’t.
While
this
seems
obvious,
I
hear
time
and
time
again
how
agents
are
trying
to
“convince”
people
to
work
with
them.
Based
on
NAR’s
stats,
there
are
quite
a
few
people
who
value
us
as
long
as
we
provide

value
to
them.

Next,
the
discussion
of
real
estate
agent

commissions
has
been
longstanding.
To
set
the
record
straight:
There
has
never
been
a
“set/standard”
commission.

Agents/Brokerages
have
fees
and/or
commission
structures.
A
seller
and
agent/brokerage
either
agrees
to
the
terms
and
compensation
or
they
don’t. 

When
I
go
to

listing
appointments
a
seller
asks
what
my
commission
is.
I
state
it
is
“X”
and
the
seller
either
agrees
or
disagrees.
They
may
try
to
negotiate,
and
we
either
come
to
an
agreement
together
or
we
don’t.
If
they
do
not
want
to
pay
my
fee,
they
are
entitled
and
open
to
work
with
anyone
else,
including
listing
it
on
their
own.

If
I
want
to
work
with
a
high-profile
experienced
lawyer,
they
are
generally
more
expensive
than
someone
just
out
of
law
school.
While
someone
right
out
of
school
may
still
be
great,
I’d
rather
take
my
chances
and
pay
to
work
with
someone
who
has
years
of
experience
and
knowledge
behind
them.
Both
lawyers
will
get
hired;
one
is
just
more
expensive
than
the
other.
How
is
this
any
different
when
hiring
a
real
estate
agent
who
handles
one
of
the
most
expensive
purchases
the
majority
of
people
will
ever
make
in
their
lifetime? 

Will
sellers
pay
less?

For
sellers
thinking
that
the
lawsuit
outcome
will
now
allow
them
to
pay
less
of
a
commission,
that’s
not
entirely
accurate.
Everything
in

real
estate
is
negotiable—including
who
is
paying
commissions.
So
even
if
a
listing
agent/seller
is
stating
they
are
not
paying
cooperating
brokers,
a
buyer
could
still
make
their
offer
contingent
on
a
seller
paying
their
real
estate
agent,
which
I
expect
to
see
happen.

A
second
layer
to
the
listing
agreement
and
commission
structure
is
the
compensation
to
a
cooperating
broker
(aka
buyer
agent).
It
seems
the
consumer
media
is
not
explaining
how
our
commission
structures
work
and
consumers
are
confused.
When
I
take
on
a
listing
we
agree
to
“x”
commission.
“We”
includes
myself
as
the
real
estate
agent
and
the
seller.
We
also
agree
that
from
that
commission
I
am
offering
a
co-broker
compensation.
There’s
no
further
or
additional
compensation
being
paid
by
the
seller
to
a
buyer’s
agent.
The
commission
is
the
commission.
If
there’s
no
buyer
agent,
I
get
paid
the
commission
and
if
there
is
a
buyer
agent,
I
pay
them
compensation
(which
again,
the
seller
agreed
on
from
the
get
go).
For
years,
we’ve
had
discount
brokerages,
MLS
flat-fee
listing
companies
and
the
option
to
list
FSBO. Plain
and
simple,
there
have
always
been
options.

Buyer
representation
agreements
shouldn’t
scare
anyone.
Full
transparency
shouldn’t
scare
anyone.
But
working
for
free
should.

The
reality
is,
most
buyers
are
aware
that
real
estate
agents
are
getting
paid
(generally
from
the
seller).
While
the
terms
of
the
Buyer
Agreement
are
still
developing,
this
form
will
state
what
role
the
real
estate
agent
is
playing
in
the
transaction,
with
who
they
are
working
with,
how
much
they
are
getting
paid,
and
who
is
paying
them.
The
benefit
is
this
agreement
can
protect
real
estate
agents
with
their
buyers
so
that
another
agent
can’t
swoop
in
and
try
to
steal
the
deal—whether
it
be
the
listing
agent
themselves
or
another
person
posing
as
the
buyer
agent
(sadly
we
all
know
that
happens).

The
negative
of
buyer
agreements
is,
if
a
co-broker
commission/compensation
isn’t
getting
paid
out,
it
would
be
assumed
that
a
buyer
would
pay
their
real
estate
agent
directly.
Will
buyers
pay
their
real
estate
agents
to
work
for
them? It’s
time
for
the
good
real
estate
agents
to
shine
by
showing
value and
yes,
I
do
think
buyers
will—to
a
certain
degree. The
question
remains—what
is
fair
to
real
estate
agents
who’ve
been
assisting
their
buyer
for
months
and
potentially
years
to
find
them
a
home
only
to
then
learn
a
seller
is
not
paying
a
commission
and
a
Buyer
is
not
willing
to
pay
directly? How
is
it
right
that
these
hardworking
real
estate
agents
work
for
free
and
not
be
protected
in
some
form?

Who
will
Buyer
Agreements
potentially
hurt
the
most?

Those
who
spend
money
paying
for
buyer
leads.
I
believe
it’s
become
more
difficult
for
buyers
to
understand
who
the
listing
agent
of
a
property
is.
They
search
internet
sites
and
find
a
real
estate
agent
who
they
believe
is
the
listing
agent
only
to
find
out
in
the
driveway
of
the
listing
that
they
are
not.
They
angry
when
they
pay
a
real
estate
agent
to
only
meet
them
at
a
door
and
provide
no
further
value.
These
buyers
are
also
livid
over
the
fact
that
they
could
have
potentially
saved
some
of
that
commission
money
themselves
as
their
intention
was
always
to
contact
and
work
directly
with
the
listing
agent
from
the
beginning. These
are
the
people
googling
“real
estate
agents
are
vultures”
and
this
is
understandable. 

Now,
with
Buyer
Representation
forms
being
in
the
mix,
there
will
be
full
transparency,
making
it
a
requirement
to
be
extremely
clear
on
a
real
estate
agent’s
role,
how
they
get
paid
and
who’s
responsible
for
paying
them.
What
is
the
solution
for
these
agents
who
rely
and
depend
entirely
on
paying
for
buyer
leads
to
have
a
real
estate
business? Go
back
to
old
school
traditions
and
build
relationships
with
people. Require
they
sit
down
and
meet
you
first
before
you
immediately
showing
them
a
listing.
Set
the
standard
as
a
professional
and
explain
how
the
process
works
including
your
role
as
representing
the
buyer
and
needing
the
necessary
paperwork
to
proceed.

Some
buyers
may
feel
they
could
hire
a
real
estate
attorney
to
handle
their
side
and
be
represented.
This
is
true
but
can
cost
thousands
of
dollars
and
may
not
include
the
same
knowledge
and
expertise
a
real
estate
agent
has,
which
can
include
getting
you
the
best
price
and
terms
for
your
home.

With
all
this
said,
nothing
may
change
at
all.
With
so
many
people
wanting
and
preferring
representation
(based
on
NAR
stats)
things
may
continue
as
they
always
have
with
sellers
still
paying
“x”
commission
and
a
listing
agent
still
offering
a
co-broker
compensation.
A
buyer
agent
will
now
just
have
documentation
showing
they
are
“officially”
working
with
their
buyer
and
fully
disclosing
their
role
and
their
compensation. 

The
bottom
line—now
is
the
time
for
great
agents
to
show
their
true
value
and
shine,
and
for
the
real
estate
industry
as
a
whole
to
level
up.

Sam
DeBianchi
LaViola
is
the
founder
of

DeBianchi
Real
Estate
and
the
first
woman
to
star
on
Bravo’s
hit
TV
show
‘Million
Dollar
Listing.’

This
column
does
not
necessarily
reflect
the
opinion
of
HousingWire’s
editorial
department
and
its
owners.

To
contact
the
author
of
this
story:
Sam
DeBianchi
at


[email protected]

To
contact
the
editor
responsible
for
this
story:
Tracey
Velt
at


[email protected]

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