Real estate agencies in the U.S. are facing a class action lawsuit from home sellers over commission fees

Men work at the construction site of a luxury apartment complex in downtown Los Angeles, California, March 17, 2015. REUTERS / Lucy Nicholson

The acquisition of the license

March 29 (Reuters) - A federal judge in Chicago ruled on Wednesday that home sellers accusing the National Association of Realtors and a group of real estate agencies of colluding to inflate commission rates can move forward as a class action lawsuit. U.S. District Judge Andrea Wood's ruling grants class action status to past home sellers seeking more than $13 billion in compensation and creates a separate class of current and future sellers who want an injunction against future violations of U.S. antitrust laws.

The plaintiffs are seven home sellers. The judge's ruling states that membership in each class "can be expected to be in the hundreds, minimum." The classification means that plaintiffs can bring broad claims against the National Association of Realtors, RE / MAX LLC (RMAX.N), Long & Foster Inc, and other corporate defendants instead of filing separate claims for substantive relief.

In a statement, the National Association of Realtors said it was "disappointed" with the decision and defended the industry's listing practices. The lawsuit challenges the requirement that sellers make "single unilateral fee offers" to buyers' brokers when a home is listed for sale through a multiple listing service. Sellers say such a system puts pressure on sellers to offer high commissions to attract buyer brokers.

Mantill Williams of the National Association of Realtors said the practice "saves time and money for sellers by having so many buyer brokers participating in the local market, thereby creating more buyers for sellers." A spokesperson for RE/MAX said the company does not comment on pending litigation. Long & F

The class seeking monetary compensation

The class seeking monetary compensation includes certain home sellers who paid a commission between March 2015 and December 2020 in states such as Texas, Florida, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina and Colorado, court documents show.

The case of Moehrl et al v. National Association of Realtors et al, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, No. 1:19-cv-01610.