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Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors Guides Home Buyers & Sellers Through Significant Changes Following Settlement with The National Association of REALTORS®
As a result of a $418 million class action lawsuit settlement involving the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), new nationwide changes to Multiple Listing Services (MLS) must be completed by August 17 and updates to the OneKey MLS® will occur as of August 8, 2024. The Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors reminds members, real estate professionals and consumers on what these changes, which may influence how consumers negotiate and provide compensation to their buyer or seller agents and brokers, mean for their homebuying and selling experiences.
“At HGAR we believe in being pro-active and informing our members and the public about how these new MLS rules will impact their home buying and selling procedures,” said Lynda Fernandez, HGAR CEO. “Consumers need to be fully aware of their options when choosing a listing agent to sell their home or working with a buyer’s agent when searching for a home. The key takeaway is that commission compensations are always negotiable.”
FOR HOME SELLERS
The new rules mean sellers still have the choice of offering compensation to buyer brokers, which can serve as a way of marketing the home or making the listing more attractive to buyers. Agents must also disclose in writing and obtain approval for any payment or offer of payment that the listing agent will make to another agent or broker who is acting for the buyers. The amount or percentage of payment must also be specified in writing.
If the seller does choose to approve an offer of compensation for the buyer’s agent, the listing agent cannot include it on the MLS. However, sellers can still offer buyer concessions (for example closing costs) on the MLS. Compensation to the listing agent remains fully negotiable.
FOR HOME BUYERS
On the buying side, home seekers will need a written agreement with their agent before touring a home. Buyers can negotiate the terms of the agreement, which must include a written disclosure from the agent or broker stating that fees and commissions are fully negotiable and not set by law. The homebuyer and agent must also sign an agreement about the specific amount or percentage of compensation that the buyer’s agent will receive. Written agreements apply to both in-person and live virtual home tours.
The buyer agreement limits (caps) the amount the buyer agent can receive to the amount stated in the buyer agreement. If a potential homeowner is just speaking with an agent and at an open house or asking about services, the buyer does not need a written agreement.
If the seller agrees to compensate the buyer’s agent, the offer cannot be shared on an MLS. Buyers can still accept concessions from the seller, such as offers to pay closing costs.
HGAR members may access the new, required agreements beginning August 6, 2024, at hgar.com. Additional resources are available to guide members via the HGAR website and member portal.
“Purchasing a home is one of the most important financial decisions most Americans will make,” added Ms. Fernandez. “HGAR prides itself in that our realtors are a trusted source of advice and stand ready to help navigate the home buying or selling journey and help consumers to make the best choices.”
Rockland County Passes Law Requiring Warning Labels to Be Posted Where Firearms Are Sold
The Rockland County Legislature voted unanimously Tuesday to require warning labels to be posted wherever firearms are sold in the county.
The labels warn that access to a firearm in the home significantly increases the risk of suicide, homicide, and death during domestic disputes as well as the risk of accidental deaths of children or others. It also includes contact information for the National Suicide Hotline.
The warning would also be given to people seeking gun licenses in Rockland.
Several weeks ago, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued a landmark Surgeon General’s Advisory on Firearm Violence, declaring firearm violence in America to be a public health crisis, and issuing an advisory outlining the devastating and far-reaching consequences that firearm violence poses to the health and well-being of the country.
According to the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, 53 percent of gun deaths in New York are suicides and more than 27 percent of all suicide deaths in New York involve firearms. An average of 457 people die by gun-related suicide each year. In addition, from 2016-2020, 156 children under 18 were killed with a gun in New York.
According to the Center for Gun Violence at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health: 48,117 people in the USA died by firearms in 2022, an average of one death every 11 minutes. Over 26,993 people died by firearm suicide, 19,592 died by firearm homicide, and 472 by unintentional gun injury.
Rockland County follows Westchester County and Albany County in passing similar measures.
JLL Tapped To Sell Three-building Industrial Portfolio in Valley Cottage
The owner of nearly 262,000 square feet of warehouse and light industrial space just north of Bergen County is seeking a buyer for the portfolio, in a newly announced offering by JLL, as reported by RealEstate NJ.
According to the brokerage team, which is based in Morristown, the three buildings are located at 616 and 618 Corporate Way and 711 Executive Blvd. in Valley Cottage. The portfolio includes 149,790 square feet of traditional warehouse space with up to 30-foot clear ceiling heights and a combined 17 dock doors across two buildings, plus 112,160 square feet of shallow-bay space with 20-foot clear ceiling heights and 20 drive-in doors.
JLL’s Jose Cruz, Marc Duval, Jordan Avanzato, Nicholas Stefans, Jason Lundy and Conor Walsh are spearheading the assignment, with the firm’s Max Custer and James Panczykowski available for financing and leasing support, respectively.
Suites within the portfolio range from 2,720 to 42,075 square feet, JLL. A combined 17 companies occupy the buildings, which are 97 percent leased, with uses including logistics, storage, sales, showrooms, servicing and health care, offering a hedge against macroeconomic headwinds with less than 1.5 percent of total inventory for shallow-bay space under construction.
JLL added that the average tenant tenure across the portfolio is 10.8 years, showcasing the occupier base’s commitment to the location. Notably, 616 Corporate Way and 711 Executive Blvd. have a blended weighted average lease term of just over three years with in-place rents currently 40 percent below market.
The three facilities occupy a combined 23.21 acres.
