The Weekly Dirt: How NAR’s policy shifts are playing out in South Florida

New rules affecting how buyer’s agents will be compensated went into effect this weekend. 

South Florida agents and brokers said the biggest challenge will be getting buyers on board. 

Effective Saturday, Multiple Listing Services nationwide eliminated the entry field for offers of compensation to the buyer’s broker — the result of a settlement reached in March on a class action lawsuit brought against a handful of brokerages and the National Association of Realtors. 

This means that to find out what a seller is offering to pay the buyer’s agent, if anything, the two agents need to communicate somewhere else besides the MLS. You could argue this reduces transparency, forcing buyers or their agents to pick up the phone and call the listing agent. 

Agents are also now required to have written agreements with buyers before offering tours of a home. What those agreements entail will depend on how the buyer and their agent plan to work together. This move could help protect the buyer’s agent who has been screwed by a client who bypassed them in a deal. 

Though brokerages have spent months preparing their agents, and anticipating a drop or adjustment in revenue as the policy shifts are enacted, some buyers and sellers are just catching on and trying to use the changes to their advantage. Sellers are looking to pay less, and buyers don’t want to have to pay their agents at all. 

The brokers I spoke with all think this will push some agents out of real estate. The part-time realtors, those who handle deals for their friends and family or who have other jobs, are nervous. 

Explaining to buyers why they need to sign an agreement with their agent regarding compensation is “a much more difficult conversation to have,” said Whitney Dutton of Native Realty.

“We’re probably going to see a lot of agents who won’t understand how to explain their value.” 

What we’re thinking about: Oren and Tal Alexander believe they can rebrand their beleaguered firm, even amid an FBI investigation into rape allegations, and as a number of lawsuits filed against the brothers make their way through the court system. We’re still investigating the story. Send me a note at kk@therealdeal.com if you have any information.

CLOSING TIME 

Residential: Marta Gutierrez, the widow of a construction mogul, sold her waterfront home at 200 Harbor Drive in Key Biscayne for $19.5 million. Harbor Drive Properties LLC purchased the three-bedroom, three-bathroom house, which spans 2,600 square feet. It was built in 1972 on nearly half an acre. 

Commercial: Billionaire Larry Ellison paid $277.4 million for the 310-unit oceanfront Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa in Manalapan. The Lewis family sold the 8-acre compound at 100 South Ocean Boulevard to the Oracle co-founder. 

NEW TO THE MARKET 

Developer Joe Farrell listed the oceanfront mansion at 1140 South Ocean Boulevard in Manalapan for $95 million. The 13-bedroom estate, which is under construction, is on the market with Margit Brandt of Premier Estate Properties. Farrell acquired the 1.6-acre property for $32.5 million in January. It’s expected to be completed in the fall of 2025. 

A thing we’ve learned 

A warehouse in Atlanta is storing some of the artifacts recovered from the Titanic, including a handbag made from alligator skin, tiny buttons and small vials of perfume, according to the BBC.  

Elsewhere in Florida 

• Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration is calling for an investigation into former University of Florida President Ben Sasse’s spending of university funds, after the Independent Florida Alligator reported that Sasse’s office spent more than triple what his predecessor’s did. Sasse gave high-paying consulting contracts and lucrative positions to his allies, according to an investigation by the student newspaper. 
• Three South Beach restaurants are closing their doors for good, adding to the number of South Florida restaurant closures in recent months. These include Yard House and Chotto Matte, both on Lincoln Road. Chotto Matte said it plans to reopen, Miami New Times reports. 
• Reports that Republicans outnumber Democrats in Florida by 1 million registered voters are a little misleading. The data cited, aggregated by Fresh Take Florida, only includes voters who have recently voted or communicated with a local elections official, the Tampa Bay Times reports.