GREENSBORO, N.C. — Are you planning to buy or sell a house this year? The National Association of Realtors lawsuit settlement went into effect on Aug. 17 and brought some changes to the North Carolina housing market with it.
Fran Johnson with Keller Williams Realty told 2 Wants to Know what changes to expect when entering the housing market.
She said compensation for the buyer's agent cannot be more than what was agreed to in the buyer agency agreement. She also said a written buyer agreement is required before showing a property.
You can ask the seller for concessions, which can be used to pay the buyer’s cost including the agent fee except on a VA loan where this is not allowed.
On the seller's side, coop compensation by the seller is now prohibited in the Multiple Listing Service, or MLS, with limitations on how it's marketed. The compensation offered by the seller must be communicated or discovered outside of MLS or their third-party affiliates.
Some aspects of buying and selling in the housing market, however, have not changed.
For example, compensation is still fully negotiable by buyers and sellers, but the compensation must be disclosed.
In other states, you may be able to include buyer agent compensation in the purchase offer but not in North Carolina. Compensation can still be negotiated with the seller on a separate form but cannot be included in the offer to purchase between the buyer and seller.
Additionally, the buyer is still responsible for their agent's compensation, and an open house conversation with the host does not require a written agreement.
This change comes at a pivotal moment -- right before election season.
According to an Elon University survey, North Carolinians listed the housing crisis as an important factor in their vote.
Eight hundred registered voters were asked to participate in the survey.
Eighty-nine percent of the state's voters reported local housing prices in their area were higher than two years ago. Seventy-one percent said they could not afford to buy or rent a place like their current home if they were on the market today.
Affordable housing is also a concern for Guilford County, according to the County's Planning and Development Committee.
The Committee is updating Guilford County's Comprehensive Plan, a roadmap for what the next 15 years will look like in the county.
The county said affordable housing is a top priority in the Comprehensive Plan. Residents can read the plan and fill out a survey with their thoughts on the Comprehensive Plan. The survey will close on August 31.