GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) – On August 17th policy changes are coming to people looking to buy and sell a home, as well as agents commissions.
The real estate industry is changing some of its practices and many people, including homebuyers and sellers, may not be aware of what’s in store.
“The news entails a buyer is now required to have some sort of agreement with their realtor before they start looking at homes. That’s one portion of the settlement and the other portion of it is that home sellers can no longer offer compensation to a buyer realtor in the MLS” President-Elect Gacar, Lisa Baltozer added.
This affects the buyers, to know how the market is changing. They will be responsible for paying for their agents. Sellers can negotiate the fees to both parties.
Still, agents can’t advertise for buyers’ agent’s commissions on the MLS
Some real estate agents favor the new changes, like Debra Martin-Back who is the broker of Exit Realty Producers.
“I think it’s a great thing for the industry and now it’s going to put us at a new level. Nobody works for free, nobody goes out there without telling you what they are charging. Now we are just doing it upfront and we are not relying on the seller and agents to pay us which has happened in the past. Whatever was in the MLS is what we got paid” Martin-Back added.
Others are hopeful agents will follow the rules and explain all the information to their clients upfront.
Florida realtor Zome De Las Estrellas said,
“I am a little annoyed by it because it’s a little more complicated but I’m not worried about it. I think my biggest concern would be just hoping that other agents are doing their part to explain the rules”.
Realtors say this changes the game when buying or selling a home. It’s a learning curve that everyone is learning together.
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