As of mid-2026, the National Association of Realtors commission settlement remains in a holding pattern: the practice changes it required took effect nationwide on August 17, 2024, but more than $1 billion in settlement money is frozen in escrow while the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals reviews objections to the deal.1Real Estate Commission Litigation. NAR Settlement Status2Real Estate News. Appellants Have Their Final Say About Commissions Settlements A ruling is expected by late spring or early summer of 2026. Until it comes down, no class member gets paid.
Why the Money Is Still Frozen
Judge Stephen Bough granted final approval of NAR’s $418 million settlement on November 26, 2024.3HousingWire. NAR Commission Lawsuit Settlement Approved Within weeks, objectors filed appeals to the Eighth Circuit, and those appeals continue to hold up distribution across all of the related settlements.1Real Estate Commission Litigation. NAR Settlement Status
The most prominent objector is Tanya Monestier, a law professor at the University at Buffalo. Her 136-page objection argued the deal offered insufficient consumer protections and excessive attorney fees, and challenged the named plaintiffs’ standing on certain claims. Judge Bough overruled her and denied her motion to intervene; she appealed (Eighth Circuit No. 24-3585).4CourtListener. Sitzer v. National Association of Realtors Docket5University at Buffalo. Monestier NAR Settlement Other appellants include homebuyer James Mullis, who argued that the settlement improperly forces buyers to release claims factually distinct from sellers’ claims, and Spring Way Center, which called the payouts “pennies-on-the-dollar.”6Bloomberg Law. Huge Realtor Settlement Appeals Get Probed for Fairness, Scope
A three-judge panel of Judges Lavenski Smith, Ralph Erickson, and Jonathan Kobes heard 90 minutes of oral argument on January 14, 2026, in St. Louis.2Real Estate News. Appellants Have Their Final Say About Commissions Settlements The appellants attacked the settlement amounts as inadequate and the class as too broad. Counsel for NAR and the plaintiffs called the deal one of the largest antitrust settlements in history, calibrated to avoid pushing brokerages into insolvency.6Bloomberg Law. Huge Realtor Settlement Appeals Get Probed for Fairness, Scope
If the Eighth Circuit upholds the settlements, class members who filed timely claims will begin receiving payments. If it vacates them, the parties may be forced back to the negotiating table.7HousingWire. Appeal Hearing Threatens NAR Settlement, Raising Industry Uncertainty
The Rules That Are Already in Effect
The practice changes are not contingent on the appeals. They took effect on August 17, 2024, and continue to govern how real estate deals work across the country.
Listing agents and sellers can no longer advertise buyer-agent compensation on any Multiple Listing Service. Compensation fields have been removed from MLS platforms entirely. Sellers and their agents can still offer compensation through other channels, but any such offer must be a specific dollar amount or percentage rather than an open-ended promise.8National Association of Realtors. NAR Settlement FAQs
Any agent working with a buyer through an NAR-affiliated MLS must sign a written agreement with that buyer before touring a home. The agreement has to spell out the exact compensation the agent will receive, and the agent cannot collect more than the agreed amount from any source.8National Association of Realtors. NAR Settlement FAQs
Both listing agreements and buyer-broker agreements must now include a prominent disclosure stating that commissions are not set by law and are fully negotiable. NAR also barred agents from filtering or sorting listings based on whether or how much commission is being offered, a practice known as steering.8National Association of Realtors. NAR Settlement FAQs
Who Settled and For How Much
The October 2023 verdict in Burnett v. NAR, which awarded nearly $1.8 billion to a class of Missouri home sellers, triggered a cascade of settlements in Burnett and related cases including Moehrl v. NAR and Gibson v. NAR.9Real Estate News. Jury Sides With Home Sellers in Commissions Trial10Real Estate Commission Litigation. Real Estate Broker Commission Settlements The combined value now exceeds $1 billion.
- NAR: $418 million, approved November 26, 2024.3HousingWire. NAR Commission Lawsuit Settlement Approved
- HomeServices of America (Berkshire Hathaway): $250 million, approved November 26, 2024, covering 51 brands, roughly 70,000 agents, and more than 300 franchisees.11Cohen Milstein. Berkshire Hathaways Real Estate Firm to Pay 250 Million
- Anywhere Real Estate, RE/MAX, and Keller Williams: $208.5 million combined in Burnett, approved May 9, 2024. RE/MAX’s share was $55 million and Keller Williams settled for $70 million.12PR Newswire. Class Action Settlements Totaling 208.5 Million13SEC Archives. RE/MAX SEC Filing
- Gibson defendants (Compass, Redfin, Douglas Elliman, and others): about $110.6 million across nine brokerages, approved November 4, 2024. Compass paid $57.5 million, Redfin $9.25 million, and Douglas Elliman $7.75 million (plus up to $10 million in contingent payments).14Real Estate Commission Litigation. Gibson Settlement Details
- Later rounds (Gibson3/Keel2): $42 million with William Raveis, Hanna Holdings, Windermere, EXIT Realty, and others, approved February 5, 2026.15Cohen Milstein. Moehrl v. National Association of Realtors
None of the settling defendants admitted liability.12PR Newswire. Class Action Settlements Totaling 208.5 Million
The Claims Deadline Has Passed
Eligibility required selling a home listed on an MLS in the United States and paying a commission to a real estate brokerage during the covered period, which began April 29, 2015.16ClassAction.org. Real Estate Broker Commissions Settlement Claims were administered by JND Legal Administration. The filing deadline was May 9, 2025, and has passed.17Real Estate Commission Litigation. NAR Settlement Dates Per-person payouts will depend on the number of valid claims after deduction of attorney fees, expenses, and administration costs. If you missed the deadline, there is no reopening mechanism in the current settlement structure.
The Homebuyer Front: Tuccori and Batton
The Burnett and Gibson cases were brought by home sellers. A separate wave of litigation from home buyers is now producing its own settlements. In October 2025, several related buyer-side cases were consolidated into Tuccori et al. v. At World Properties et al. in the Northern District of Illinois, which includes an opt-in mechanism allowing brokerages and associations to resolve buyer claims through that framework.18Real Estate News. NAR, Elliman Opt Into Tuccori Homebuyer Settlement
On April 11, 2026, NAR announced it was opting into Tuccori, agreeing to pay $52.25 million over several years. The deal requires continued compliance with the practice changes from Burnett but adds no new rules.19National Association of Realtors. NAR Reaches Agreement to Resolve Nationwide Homebuyer Claims Douglas Elliman signaled its intent to opt in around the same time.18Real Estate News. NAR, Elliman Opt Into Tuccori Homebuyer Settlement Tuccori received preliminary approval on March 12, 2026, with a fairness hearing on opt-in settlements expected in the following months.20Real Estate News. Batton Plaintiffs File Appeal After Anywhere Opt-In Deal
Plaintiffs in the parallel Batton buyer case have objected, arguing that defendants are using Tuccori to sidestep their litigation. In early April 2026, the Batton plaintiffs appealed to the Seventh Circuit after a district court denied their motion to block Anywhere Real Estate from participating in the Tuccori framework.20Real Estate News. Batton Plaintiffs File Appeal After Anywhere Opt-In Deal Judge LaShonda Hunt has stayed discovery in Batton pending the outcome of the Tuccori approval process, with a joint status update due June 2, 2026.21HousingWire. HomeServices Tuccori Batton Stay Within Batton itself, Keller Williams agreed to a $20 million settlement in early March 2026 and RE/MAX agreed to $8.5 million, with both deals awaiting court approval.22South Florida Agent Magazine. RE/MAX Batton Antitrust Lawsuit
The DOJ and the MLS PIN Settlement
The Department of Justice has not formally intervened in the Burnett settlement, though a DOJ attorney publicly called it “an improvement” while maintaining that commission offers should not be made anywhere, including off-MLS.23Ohio State Bar Association. NAR Settlement Brings New Changes to Buying and Selling Real Estate24RISMedia. MLS PIN Final Approval25Real Estate News. MLS PIN Deal Approved After Long-Fought Battle With DOJ
A separate 2024 federal appeals court ruling confirmed the DOJ can continue its broader antitrust probe of NAR, notwithstanding a 2020 agreement the department had reached and then reopened.23Ohio State Bar Association. NAR Settlement Brings New Changes to Buying and Selling Real Estate
What Commissions Actually Look Like Now
Two years in, commissions have moved less than many expected. A Redfin analysis put the average buyer’s agent commission at 2.4% in the first quarter of 2025, versus 2.36% in the third quarter of 2024 (when the rules took effect) and 2.43% in the first quarter of 2024.26The MortgagePoint. Measuring the Impact of NAR Settlements on Agent Commissions A June 2025 Clever Real Estate report found total average commissions (buyer’s and seller’s agents combined) rose slightly to 5.44% in 2025, from a five-year low of 5.32% in 2024.27Yahoo Finance. Agent Commissions Edge Higher 2025
There is movement at the margins. Redfin agents reported that while most sellers still pay the buyer’s agent, more are offering 2% rather than the traditional 2.5% to 3%. A spring 2025 survey found that about 37% of recent sellers negotiated or attempted to negotiate commissions, with 27% of recent buyers doing the same.26The MortgagePoint. Measuring the Impact of NAR Settlements on Agent Commissions Rates vary by state, running as high as 6.03% in Michigan and as low as 4.92% in New Jersey.27Yahoo Finance. Agent Commissions Edge Higher 2025 The Consumer Federation of America and the National Urban League, in reports covered in April 2026, flagged what they called a “worrisome growth in pocket listings” since the rules changed.28RESPA News. NAR Settlement Updates
What to Watch Next
The next major event is the Eighth Circuit’s ruling, expected in mid-to-late 2026. That decision will determine whether more than $1 billion in settlement funds actually reaches the class members who filed claims by the May 2025 deadline, or whether the deals have to be renegotiated. In parallel, the Tuccori fairness hearing and the Seventh Circuit’s handling of the Batton appeal will shape how buyer-side claims are resolved. The practice changes from August 2024 are not tied to any of these outcomes and will stay in place.