New real estate rules threatened to upend homebuying for Americans. Here’s what experts say has changed

Last summer, rule changes from the National Association of Realtors, the powerful real estate trade organization, threatened to upend the way Americans buy and sell homes. Some experts predicted the 6% commission, the unofficial fee for buying or selling a home, would be finished.

Last summer, rule changes from the National Association of Realtors, the powerful real estate trade organization, threatened to upend the way Americans buy and sell homes. Some experts predicted the 6% commission, the unofficial fee for buying or selling a home, would be finished. Now, six months later, as the 2025 spring homebuying season kicks off and the turbulence caused by the new rules has faded, real estate professionals say the actual effects have been muted. “Paperwork has changed, and I think some really good things have happened in the way most of us discuss commissions upfront with our buyers and sellers,” said Brita Kleingartner, a Realtor in Los Angeles. “But I don’t think that business has changed in any way.” With mortgage rates hovering around 7% for the last six months and average home prices across the US continuing to rise, the new rules, which took effect in August, had spurred hope that commissions paid to real estate professionals would plunge, making homebuying and selling less expensive for average Americans. Last year, TD Cowen Insights estimated that the new rules could cause fees paid to Realtors to fall by 25% to 50%. Instead, commissions have remained largely unchanged since August, according to a study released this month by real estate platform Redfin. For relatively lower-priced homes that sold for under $500,000, Redfin found that the average commission has increased since the rules took effect. Representatives from NAR did not provide a comment when asked about the settlement.