We have had a robust Spring market this year as inventory has continued to increase from historic lows.

This has brought out many buyers, which means that most homes sell very quickly and prices remains high. That said, we are beginning to see more price reductions on active listings. This tells me that buyers are balking at homes that are not priced effectively or poorly prepared for market.

For a detailed analysis, you can check out Compass's East Bay Market Report here.

By now you have likely heard about the class action lawsuit against the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and the settlement that followed. You may be wondering what it all means.

The essential issue at the core of the lawsuit is that buyers do not have a chance to negotiate the commission paid to their agent. Currently, the buyer's agent's commission is determined by an agreement between the seller and the their agent through an offer to pay any agent that brings a buyer a percentage of the agreed upon commission. "Tying" agents' commissions in this way was seen as anticompetitive.

As part of the settlement the, NAR agreed to untie commissions by removing the field detailing the offer of compensation to the buyer agents from the multiple listing service (MLS). The MLS is how agents share homes for sale and communicate many of the details necessary to sell that home. An offer of compensation in the MLS was binding and enforceable.

With this gone from the MLS starting August 17th, buyers and their agents will need to discuss and negotiate fees before they begin working together. The state of California is likely to make it mandatory that buyers sign an agreement with their agent spelling out how much they will pay and how they will do so.

Many buyer's will most likely ask the seller to pay their agent's commission through a credit towards closing costs because, as of right now, buyers cannot finance commissions, so the money will need to come out of the funds available for the downpayment. Less money to leverage will greatly reduce the amount buyers can offer, so sellers will likely agree to the credit in order to get the desired amount for their home.

This makes things a little more complicated, but from my perspective, it brings a greater level of transparency to the home buying process. Buyers will understand clearly what services their agents provide and what the cost will be. I'm all for it.