Judge: Lawsuit OK to continue accusing Realtors Association, brokers of conspiracy to force home sellers to pay more

A Chicago federal judge has refused to foreclose a nationwide class action lawsuit accusing the National Association of Realtors and some of the country’s largest real estate brokerages of conspiring to improperly lock in commission rates for real estate brokers and agents, costing homebuyers thousands more than they otherwise might pay if they were allowed to more effectively negotiate the pay earned by their agents. On Oct. 2, U.S. District Judge Andrea R. Wood denied the attempt by the NAR and its corporate co-defendants to dismiss the antitrust action. The judge said the plaintiffs in the case had done enough so far to support their allegations of a real estate broker “pricing system in which the seller is essentially locked into a buyer-broker commission rate upfront that neither the buyer nor the seller have the incentive or ability to negotiate.” “Each Plaintiff was a home seller required to pay a commission