The commission lawsuits are a wakeup call for real estate, new Inman contributor Mathew Speer writes. Now is the time to raise your standards and truly embrace transparency.
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The National Association of Realtors (NAR) settlement and other ongoing lawsuits against the real estate industry is a powerful wakeup call for brokerages and agents to rethink how they conduct business. As both professionals and consumers of real estate, agents have a unique opportunity — and responsibility — to evolve their practices for the greater good.
On the last four properties I listed, I embraced full transparency by pre-inspecting the homes, sharing property documents upfront, and allowing buyers to view all received offers.
This approach empowered buyers to purchase with confidence, demonstrating that a higher operating standard and transparency can simplify transactions and create a better way for everyone to buy and sell homes.
The settlement against the real estate industry is a wakeup call for brokerages and agents to rethink how we conduct business.
As both professionals and consumers, we have a unique opportunity — and responsibility — to evolve our practices for the greater good. The key to this evolution lies in restructuring our industry around a consumer-centric business model and committing to full transparency in real estate transactions.
Isn’t there a better way?
Before the lawsuit, I had been seeking a better way for consumers to transact real estate by examining my own practices: How can I be the real estate professional I would want to work with?
From the many commission lawsuits filed, it’s clear that many buyers and sellers are dissatisfied with the current process.
This dissatisfaction prompted me to analyze each transaction from both the buyer’s and seller’s perspectives, striving to simplify the process and prudently reduce costs. After years of research and experimentation, I realized that the solution is straightforward and could significantly enhance the industry’s reputation. More on this later.
Since the lawsuit, I’ve seen little change in how brokerages, coaches, or agents approach their business.
Most have merely focused on getting buyer agency agreements signed at the onset of a working relationship and not advertising co-op commissions on the MLS — essentially doing the bare minimum.
But this is a prime opportunity to restructure how we fundamentally help consumers transact real estate.
Two objectives
When we list a property for sale, we have two key objectives: to earn the seller’s trust and to convince a buyer to purchase the property. So why aren’t we raising our standards in how we market properties and prioritizing what buyers need to feel confident in their purchase?
Our goal should be to empower buyers with all the information they need upfront, building trust and simplifying the transaction process for both parties.
Currently, agents aren’t required to understand the properties they’re selling thoroughly. Some do take the time to gain a deep understanding and market the property with a higher standard, but others treat it merely as a transaction, missing the opportunity to build lifelong relationships that come from truly serving their clients.
This gap in knowledge often leads to distrust, turning transactions into adversarial negotiations that require independent representation for each party. However, by adopting a more informed and transparent approach, we can create a better way forward.
Instead of guarding the methods that I’ve had great success with, I believe in sharing them for the greater good — much like the open-source approach in tech.
In the last four properties I listed, I embraced full transparency by conducting pre-inspections, sharing all relevant documents upfront, and allowing buyers to view key details of all offers.
This approach empowered buyers to purchase with confidence, proving that higher standards and transparency can simplify transactions and create a better experience for everyone.
In the past
Gone are the days when listing agents could simply put a property on the market and rely on others to sell it. That’s a slow and costly process. If a seller hires you to sell their property, take pride in your work by empowering buyers to buy directly. Sell with transparency and integrity.
It’s time for agents to raise their standards and guide sellers to be the kind of sellers they would want to buy from. The market is shifting, and consumers are tired of the outdated ways of buying and selling. This is our chance to elevate our business, embrace a consumer-centered approach, and give the industry the update it desperately needs.
Mathew Speer is an agent at Local Real Estate Advisors in Denver, Colorado. Connect with him on Instagram or LinkedIn.
