Debra Kamin

It's nice to be here again. Good to see you.

It's nice to be here again. Good to see you.

The expectations were sky high. The words that were being used by economists and analysts in the industry, earth-shattering, watershed, landmark, the greatest change to the real estate industry since the New Deal. Things that were really... pinning hopes that this was going to shake up a stagnant housing market and offer real relief to consumers in the U.S. who desperately need it.

The expectations were sky high. The words that were being used by economists and analysts in the industry, earth-shattering, watershed, landmark, the greatest change to the real estate industry since the New Deal. Things that were really... pinning hopes that this was going to shake up a stagnant housing market and offer real relief to consumers in the U.S. who desperately need it.

And a lot of that was pinned to the idea that rules were going to be followed to the letter, and they were not. So here we are a year later, and things have shifted a tiny bit, but we're talking about a drizzle, not a watershed. Just take us back to the settlement.

And a lot of that was pinned to the idea that rules were going to be followed to the letter, and they were not. So here we are a year later, and things have shifted a tiny bit, but we're talking about a drizzle, not a watershed. Just take us back to the settlement.

So to take you back to the settlement, we actually have to go back a little bit further to October of 2023, when the National Association of Realtors, which is the trade organization that really oversees the real estate industry, they are the largest trade group in the United States. They are hugely powerful.

So to take you back to the settlement, we actually have to go back a little bit further to October of 2023, when the National Association of Realtors, which is the trade organization that really oversees the real estate industry, they are the largest trade group in the United States. They are hugely powerful.

They have a ton of money and a really massive amount of power and influence because of their lobbying arm.

They have a ton of money and a really massive amount of power and influence because of their lobbying arm.

The word realtor, yes. It is a trademark of NAR. So you can only use it if you are a member of this group. And they have a lot of members, 1.5 million. They have more members than there are houses for sale in the U.S. So we're talking a very big, very powerful group. They were sued by a group of home sellers in Missouri.

The word realtor, yes. It is a trademark of NAR. So you can only use it if you are a member of this group. And they have a lot of members, 1.5 million. They have more members than there are houses for sale in the U.S. So we're talking a very big, very powerful group. They were sued by a group of home sellers in Missouri.

The idea behind the lawsuit was that their rules had essentially fixed prices on real estate commissions, inflated them, and made it so that real estate commissions were higher than they should have been. They did not expect to lose this lawsuit, but they did lose this lawsuit. And a jury agreed that they were fixing prices on real estate commissions.

The idea behind the lawsuit was that their rules had essentially fixed prices on real estate commissions, inflated them, and made it so that real estate commissions were higher than they should have been. They did not expect to lose this lawsuit, but they did lose this lawsuit. And a jury agreed that they were fixing prices on real estate commissions.

Yeah, the dreaded 6%. It comes out of your pocket if you're selling. And anyone who's ever bought or sold a house knows that when you sit down with your agent, it's overwhelming, it's confusing, and it gets wonky. No one really asks, how are these commissions paid? It's just kind of there. Right.

Yeah, the dreaded 6%. It comes out of your pocket if you're selling. And anyone who's ever bought or sold a house knows that when you sit down with your agent, it's overwhelming, it's confusing, and it gets wonky. No one really asks, how are these commissions paid? It's just kind of there. Right.

And you also have enough things to worry about that you don't get into the weeds about how these commissions are paid. But for real estate agents, for realtors, this is how they make their living. This is very important. It's literally their bread and butter. And this settlement was meant to shake up the system of how those commissions are determined and how they're paid. Right.

And you also have enough things to worry about that you don't get into the weeds about how these commissions are paid. But for real estate agents, for realtors, this is how they make their living. This is very important. It's literally their bread and butter. And this settlement was meant to shake up the system of how those commissions are determined and how they're paid. Right.

We are wandering the desert now. Absolutely. Most importantly, it was meant to say, this is the way it's been done for a long time. The way it's been done has actually...

We are wandering the desert now. Absolutely. Most importantly, it was meant to say, this is the way it's been done for a long time. The way it's been done has actually...