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Wed 20 Nov 2019 4:19PM

11/20/19: 3pm EST NAR webinar to explain controversial new MLS Policy

BW Bill Wendel Public Seen by 24

NAR is offering a nationwide webinar at 3pm TODAY to explain their controversial new MLS policy.  As Rob Hahn, a lawyer and industry pundit, warns this is an existential threat to small real estate brokers and solo-entreprenuers, particularly buyer agents:

https://twitter.com/RealEstateCafe/status/1194655552954961920?s=20

Anyone want to watch the webinar together offline in Boston, gathering about 2:30pm today, or online if we can figure out how to do that today or in the fture if a rebroadcast is possible?

http://bit.ly/MLSPolicy_WebiNAR_112019


Discuss impact on real estate ecosystem & housing market:

By sanctioning private listings, NAR's policy also makes the shadow market worse while inducing buyers into a conflict of interest, see comments by NAR's chief economist Lawrence Yun, both 12 days ago at the Realtors annual conference and article 5 years ago by CNBC's Diana Olick:

https://twitter.com/RealEstateCafe/status/1196947013146988550?s=20

What impact will the policy have on Boston's inventory-starved housing market, as well as your own?

https://twitter.com/RealEstateCafe/status/1197147822530990080?s=20

Invite comments below or on Tweet threads above. If fellow real estate consumers would like to discuss the policy and it's implications more privately, email [email protected] to request admission to @RealEstateCafe's virtual roundtable.

Feel free to share this post, invite others to follow #RE2020.

Bill Wendel

617-661-4046

TW

Tom Wemett Wed 20 Nov 2019 4:47PM

One of the issues I see has to do with such franchises as Help U Sell and Assist 2 Sell. I had a Help U Sell franchise in Rochester, NY many years ago. We put out a weekly publication showing all the homes we had listed. At one point it amounted to 40 or 50 homes. The seller paid us a fixed listing fee and only if the seller wanted to pay a buyer agent fee did it get listed in the MLS. With this new policy, as we were publicly marketing the listings we had, we would end up forcing sellers to pay a buyer agent fee on every listing. I saw an article by someone from Assist 2 Sell who basically said the policy will put them out of business. I assume they would sue before going out of business, but it points out an even bigger flaw with the policy. Tom W.

Tom Wemett - Broker/Owner
Homebuyer Advisors LLC

True Loyal Agents - Homebuyer Protectors
Exclusive Buyer Agents

MA, FL and NY

978-248-9898 - home office

518-524-8875 - tom cell

A More Rewarding, Different
Home Buying Experience

Check it out:

www.peace-of-mind-home-buying.com ( https://peace-of-mind-home-buying.com )

BW

Bill Wendel Wed 20 Nov 2019 4:56PM

Valid point, @Tom Wemett, from two stakeholder perspectives -- DSIY (Do-Some-Of-It-Yourself) homesellers and alternative real estate business models.

If real estate commissions are divorced, so buyer & seller pay their agents independently, would that solve the problem you describe? Or what about simply offering a $1 cobroke fee under existing MLS regs?

TW

Tom Wemett Wed 20 Nov 2019 5:02PM

Yes, decoupling commissions would mean that if a buyer wanted to make an offer on an Assist 2 Sell listing the buyer would have to make arrangements for their buyer agent to be paid. The Assist 2 Sell agency would offer co-operation but not compensation. The buyer might pay the buyer agent our of their pocket or make the buyer agent fee part of the purchase contract built into the price and mortgage. Of course it will also stop the listing agencies from playing games with the compensation splits like what I'm experiencing in Central MA and experienced in the Albany, NY area when I was there. Tom W.

Tom Wemett - Broker/Owner
Homebuyer Advisors LLC

True Loyal Agents - Homebuyer Protectors
Exclusive Buyer Agents

MA, FL and NY

978-248-9898 - home office

518-524-8875 - tom cell

A More Rewarding, Different
Home Buying Experience

Check it out:

www.peace-of-mind-home-buying.com ( https://peace-of-mind-home-buying.com )

BW

Bill Wendel Wed 20 Nov 2019 6:01PM

Sounds good. Glad you raise your experience with "listing agencies from playing games with the compensation splits." One of the statements posted on Inman's Facebook group before the NAR vote asked "What's wrong with a listing agency asking sellers for a 10 Day pre-MLS marketing period to offer homebuyers 1% off the commission if they buy in-house?

If NAR's new policy sanctions private listings, is the 1% saving an inducement to engage in the agency fraud depicted below?

BW

Bill Wendel Wed 20 Nov 2019 9:35PM

Key point from this afternoon's livestream, did anyone watch?  Click thru tweet below to see existing solicitation to get "exclusive access" to listings before they're shared on the MLS: 



The webinar was recorded and will be available soon on:
http://Realtor.org/ClearCooperation

CS

Corey Scholtka Thu 21 Nov 2019 7:10PM

Bill, the above link has "Registration" but does one need to register to see the archived webinar video?

BW

Bill Wendel Tue 3 Dec 2019 1:08PM

Hi Corey, I was able to access the uploaded file simply by clicking on the registration link above. What happens when you do?