Almost two years ago, Keller Williams resolved the home seller commission lawsuits, and now they have reached a settlement with the Batton homebuyer commission lawsuit plaintiffs. The company made the announcement of the settlement agreement on Monday.
As part of the nationwide settlement, Keller Williams will pay $20 million. The specific terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but the company confirmed that there would be no new changes to their business practices.
Under the terms of the settlement, all KWRI franchisees, agents, and teams are released from antitrust claims related to residential real estate purchases listed on an MLS during the relevant time period. The start date of this period varies depending on the location, ranging from January 25, 2006, in Puerto Rico to January 25, 2019, in Texas.
Keller Williams is the first of the Batton defendants to settle the lawsuit. In an email sent to Keller Williams leaders and U.S.-based agents, CEO Chris Czarnecki stated that the goal of the settlement was to eliminate uncertainty for franchisees and agents.
Other defendants in the Batton 1 lawsuit include Anywhere Real Estate, REMAX, and the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
In 2023, following the Sitzer/Burnett home seller commission lawsuit, the Batton plaintiffs filed a second lawsuit, Batton 2, against Compass, eXp World Holdings, Redfin, Weichert Realtors, United Real Estate, Howard Hanna, and Douglas Elliman. While some defendants have been dismissed, they are involved in similar lawsuits with identical claims.
The Batton 1 lawsuit, filed in January 2021 by Judah Leeder and later amended in July 2022, alleges that NAR’s policies have led to inflated agent commissions and higher home prices for buyers.
While Keller Williams is the first brokerage to settle in the Batton lawsuits, other brokerages have settled the Cwynar homebuyer commission lawsuit, including Real Brokerage, @properties, Baird & Warner, Real Estate One, Silvercreek Realty Group, Equity Real Estate, NextHome, Realty Executives, Shorewest, Side, Engel & Volkers Americas, and Engel & Volkers GMBH.
Keller Williams spokesperson Darryl Frost expressed satisfaction with the nationwide settlement in an emailed statement.
The settlement is subject to court approval and potential objections and appeals. Keller Williams previously settled the home seller commission lawsuit with the Sitzer/Burnett plaintiffs in February 2024 for $70 million.
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