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Homie, a once-rising fixed-fee brokerage that has since struggled with layoffs, has filed an antitrust lawsuit against the National Association of Realtors and other industry players, saying they “conspired” to block innovation and resist low commissions Listed.
The lawsuit was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Utah, where Homie is headquartered. In many ways, the lawsuit’s claims mirror those made in other recent antitrust lawsuits: It contends that NAR and other organizations violated the Sherman Antitrust Act and other laws; it challenges NAR’s now-defunct participation rules , a rule that requires listing brokers to pay buyer’s agents a commission for submitting listings to the real estate broker-affiliated MLS; and requires compensation for unspecified losses. Rules of engagement are at the heart of many other real estate antitrust litigations.
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Language is similar to other situations as well.
“The anticipated wave of disruptive innovation and entry into the residential real estate brokerage market has not occurred because Defendants conspired to prevent it,” the complaint in the case states. “Defendants have used their control of MLSs to impose rules nationwide that set the stage for new competitors. “
The lawsuit also claims that Homie is subject to “express and tacit boycotts,” which involve real estate businesses “steering buyers away” from the company’s listings. The complaint also includes a transcript of an alleged text message in which an agent discussed not showing Homie listings because it only offered buyer’s agents a 1.5% commission.
Homie allegedly received similar messages through the local MLS.
“If you increase the commission, I will bring my buyers. If not, I won’t,” one of the messages reads, according to the complaint.
“[R]Another person allegedly asked for the commission to be increased to 3%.
In addition to NAR, the lawsuit names several other defendants: Anywhere, HomeServices of America, RE/MAX, Keller Williams and the Wasatch Front Regional Multiple Listing Service, which operates the popular UtahRealEstate.com website.
News of the new lawsuit was first reported by HousingWire.
Asked for comment, a Homie spokesperson directed Inman to a statement on the company’s website, which described the lawsuit as “exposing” an “injustice.”
“Our fight is not just for savings, but for every home buyer and seller who has to endure a system that puts profits over people,” the statement added.
Asked about the lawsuit, a NAR spokesperson said in a statement to Inman that the organization’s “goals are to advance the local real estate market, provide fair and equitable real estate information and promote competition while enabling real estate agents to Serving clients through the home buying and selling process.” We will respond to these allegations in court.
Chris Kelly, executive vice president of HomeServices, said, “While we cannot comment on the specific details of the recently filed complaints, the suggestion that competition within the real estate industry is being stifled is simply unfounded.”
“The industry has experienced significant growth over the past decade as the dynamics of the competitive landscape have changed,” Kelly continued. “For example, among the top 10 closed-party brokerages in 2013, only 3 will still be in the top 10 by 2023. It is worth noting that 7 of the top 10 brokerages in 2023 were still in the top 10 years ago. Not included in this group. New brokerages, models and platforms have emerged over the past decade, such as iBuying.
Keller Williams and Anywhere declined to comment.
In addition to alleging conspiracy, Homie’s complaint states that NAR’s explicit cooperation policy is “exclusive.” NAR introduced the policy in 2019 in an attempt to crack down on pocket listings, which are homes that are for sale but are not listed on the MLS. The policy was controversial from the beginning and still faces criticism today.
For its part, Homie argued in the complaint that the Clear Partnership “tends to prevent the creation of a competing listing network that could challenge the dominance of the NAR-affiliated MLS system.”
Regarding the rules of engagement, the complaint contends that the defendants “understood and intended” the policy would result in a shift to properties with higher commissions. The complaint refers to the policy as the “Buyer Broker Indemnity Rule.”
The lawsuit comes at a tumultuous time for Homie. The company was once one of the most prominent flat-fee brokerages in the United States, with hundreds of employees. In 2021, the company announced plans to hire 1,000 buyer’s agents.
However, Homie ultimately went through multiple rounds of layoffs and announced earlier this year that it would convert its agents into contractors. The company had no CEO at the time. A spokesperson said Homie was undergoing a “transformation” and would continue to be run by only a “small number” of W2 employees.
Antitrust lawsuits filed by Homie dominated the real estate industry last year. Many of these lawsuits are filed by consumers who object to the way sellers and buyer’s agents traditionally share commissions. The situation resulted in a jury verdict last fall against NAR and the master franchisees, who subsequently proposed a series of major settlements.
NAR announced its own settlement in March. The settlement includes a $418 million payment and various new rules. The rules take effect Saturday.
While Homie’s lawsuit is similar in many ways to previous cases, it is also atypical in that it was filed by a company rather than a home seller or home buyer.
The lawsuit ultimately describes the brokerage industry as a “stagnant industry” and says Homie took legal action to “recover losses suffered by competitors who were excluded as a result of Defendants’ conduct.”
Homie also argued in the complaint that if not for the defendants’ actions, the company would have taken market share from real estate companies. Instead, the complaint alleges, both consumers and companies suffered losses.
Read Homie’s full complaint here (please refresh if you can’t view it):
Update: This article was updated after publication to include comments from all parties involved in the lawsuit and additional details from the complaint.
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