Plaintiffs claimed fixed commissions suppressed competition in home sales.
This week a federal jury in Kansas City, Missouri, found that the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and other real estate brokerages conspired to artificially increase realtor commissions for home sales.
The class action lawsuit included sellers of over 260,000 homes in Kansas, Missouri, and Illinois between 2015 and 2022. The plaintiffs claimed that the companies worked together to fix broker commissions lower to reduce competition in the area.
The jury held the brokerages liable for $1.78 billion in damages. If U.S. antitrust laws are applied in this case, the damages could triple to more than $5.3 billion. The defendants are looking to appeal the decision.
The Justice Department has requested that a federal appeals court in Washington revive an antitrust investigation into the National Association of Realtors.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For U.S. appellate judges as they consider the appeal by the real estate brokers.
- For Justice Department officials as they pursue antitrust investigations of the brokerage groups.
Sources: Reuters, Axios
