Class action settlement
National Association of REALTORS
About this settlement
Real estate brokers conspired to inflate commissions, raising home prices
Summary
Homebuyers sued the National Association of REALTORS and roughly 30 residential real estate brokerage companies, alleging the defendants created and enforced anticompetitive rules that kept broker commissions artificially elevated in violation of the Sherman Act and state antitrust and consumer fraud laws. The complaint claims this conspiracy inflated home prices and degraded the quality of buyer-broker services for consumers nationwide. The defendants deny wrongdoing and no court has decided who is right, but the parties agreed to settle to avoid further litigation. The defendants will pay a combined $120,334,500 into a Global Settlement Fund, distributed to Settlement Class Members on a pro rata basis after fees and costs, and paid out in multiple installments over several years. Defendants also agreed to maintain or extend certain business practice changes set out in the Settlement Agreements.
Who qualifies
All persons who purchased a home listed on a Multiple Listing Service (MLS) anywhere in the United States where a commission was paid to any brokerage in connection with the transaction during the applicable Class Periods. The Class Periods vary by state and by defendant, with the earliest starting January 25, 2006 (Puerto Rico) and most running from dates between 2015 and 2019 through June 25, 2026. Eligibility is based on home purchases only, so merely having sold a home does not qualify, and class members of the Burnett, Gibson, Keel, or Hooper home seller settlements are excluded as to that settling defendant. Also excluded are persons who validly opt out, the Parties' counsel, the Special Master for Mediation, and the Court and its staff and their immediate families. The class includes purchases on any MLS regardless of NAR affiliation.
Suits does not handle payments or process claims. Payments are issued by the claim administrator and typically take 3-6 months.