How to Leverage the NAR Changes for Better Results

The recent NAR settlement isn't just news; it's a massive financial opportunity for both sides of the transaction. For Sellers: The most powerful way to leverage these changes is by using a licensed attorney to negotiate the buyer agent's commission down. Standard real estate agents are restricted to boilerplate forms and cannot legally draft custom counter-offers. As a Broker-Attorney team, we use custom legal addendums to 'decouple' the price of your home from the buyer agent's commission request. By separating these two negotiations, we force the buyer's agent to prioritize their client's desire to buy the home over their own fee. Once the buyer is locked in on the price, their agent will almost always reduce their commission rather than kill the deal. For Buyers: You can also use these changes to your advantage. You can hire a buyer's agent for a flat fee or lower percentage, but still request a traditional 3% buyer agent fee in your offer to the seller. Because many standard listing agents lack the custom legal language to properly counter this, the 3% may be accepted. Once under contract, that 'extra' flat amount can be negotiated as a credit towards your closing costs, a purchase price reduction, or even new appliances (subject to your lender's approval). This creates a second point of negotiation that an attorney-led team can intelligently leverage for you, using custom forms and language that standard realtors simply do not possess.