A federal jury in Missouri has ruled that the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and several real estate companies conspired to artificially inflate brokerage commissions, resulting in a $1.8 billion damages award. The defendants in the case include Keller Williams, Berkshire Hathaway's HomeService of America, and two of its subsidiaries. The verdict, which came after a two-week trial in federal court in Kansas City, is expected to be tripled under U.S. antitrust law, bringing the total damages to more than $5 billion.

The plaintiffs, who are the sellers of hundreds of thousands of homes in Missouri, Illinois, and Kansas between 2015 and 2012, claimed that the association and other defendants colluded to drive up the commission sellers pay to brokers representing home buyers. The lead attorney for the plaintiffs, Michael Ketchmark, stated that "the NAR has used its market power to get a stranglehold grip on home ownership" and that it costs "two to three times as much to sell a house in the United States as it does in other industrialized countries."

Two other brokerages, Re/Max and Anywhere Real Estate, previously settled with the plaintiffs, paying a combined $138.5 million and agreeing to no longer require agents to belong to the NAR. However, HomeServices expressed disappointment with the ruling and vowed to appeal, stating that it could make it harder for buyers to navigate the real estate market and force them to forgo professional help during complex transactions.

Keller Williams also stated that it would consider its options, including an appeal, while the NAR vowed to appeal the liability finding and requested a reduction in the damages awarded by the jury. The ruling has already had an impact on the stock market, with shares of real estate companies, including Zillow and Redfin, experiencing significant drops.

The verdict has the potential to reshape the real estate industry in the United States, as it could lower the cost of moving homes by reducing commissions. Under the current NAR rule, home sellers are required to pay commissions to the agents representing the buyers. However, under the new ruling, sellers would no longer be obligated to pay their buyers' agents, and agents would have the freedom to set their own commission rates, which could be significantly reduced.

The NAR, Keller Williams, Anywhere (formerly Realogy), Re/Max, and HomeServices were all on trial in an antitrust suit brought by nearly half a million Missouri home sellers. The ruling not only requires the defendants to pay damages, but it also has the potential to triple those damages. The NAR, which is the largest professional organization in the United States, has plans to appeal the verdict, but it remains uncertain how the ruling will ultimately affect the industry and commission rates.

Real estate agents across the United States pay dues to the NAR to call themselves Realtors and align themselves with the organization's policies. However, the ruling threatens to diminish the organization's influence further, potentially leading many agents to abandon their memberships. While the case is expected to take several more years to reach a final resolution, the ruling may prompt further investigations into how real estate transactions are handled in the United States. Other lawsuits are also imminent, with lawyers for the defendants immediately filing another class-action suit in Missouri, claiming that the practice of sellers paying sales commissions to buyers' agents violates antitrust laws and naming the NAR and other major brokerages as defendants.