Real Estate Commission Explained: What Changed After the 2024 NAR Settlement

Published by Cash Flow Deals · Last updated 2026-08-03 · Reviewed by Camilo Palacio, Licensed Florida Real Estate Professional (License #3280644, REALTOR®), affiliated with Silver Door Realty, LLC (License #CQ1064903) · 4 min read

Real estate commissions are negotiable, not fixed, and that has been federally confirmed since the NAR Sitzer/Burnett settlement took effect on August 17, 2024. With Cash Flow Deals, you choose between the Fast Cash Offer, where we buy your house as-is and close, and the Premium Cash Offer, where a pre-approved FHA or conventional buyer we already have, ready to go, pays more and buys directly from you. On Premium, we are paid as a separate line item on the closing statement. The number is agreed before any work starts, and it changes only if you agree. The one exception: if something structural surfaces that was not visible or disclosed before we signed — foundation issues, hidden moisture, old wiring, cast-iron drain failure — we re-cost it and bring the number back to you. You decide. You can walk away. We disclose what we know at offer time so this almost never happens.

Factor	Traditional Listing	Cash Flow Deals
Timeline	Commission negotiations with a listing agent happen upfront, and buyer-agent compensation is now negotiated separately under the 2024 NAR settlement rules.	Premium Cash Offer: Cash Flow Deals is paid as a separate line item on the closing statement, with no percentage tied to negotiation length or final sale price. Fast Cash Offer: no listing commission to Cash Flow Deals.
Repairs	Repair credits can get tangled with commission math when both sides negotiate price and repairs in the same conversation.	You choose the Fast Cash Offer, where we buy your house as-is and close, or the Premium Cash Offer, where a pre-approved FHA or conventional buyer we already have, ready to go, pays more and buys directly from you. The number is agreed before any work starts, and it changes only if you agree. The one exception: if something structural surfaces that was not visible or disclosed before we signed — foundation issues, hidden moisture, old wiring, cast-iron drain failure — we re-cost it and bring the number back to you. You decide. You can walk away. We disclose what we know at offer time so this almost never happens.
Fees / Costs	Commission is negotiable, split between listing and buyer's agents as agreed in a written buyer agreement, since MLS no longer publishes buyer-agent compensation.	CFD's fee is a flat line item on the closing statement, not a percentage of price, arranged through Silver Door Realty.

What the 2024 NAR Settlement Actually Changed

In March 2024, the National Association of REALTORS settled the Sitzer/Burnett class-action lawsuit, which had argued that home sellers were effectively forced to pay inflated buyer's-agent commissions through MLS rules. The settlement's practice changes took effect on August 17, 2024. Two changes matter most to a seller: MLS listings can no longer publish an offer of buyer-agent compensation, and a buyer's agent must sign a written buyer agreement with their client before showing homes, spelling out how that agent gets paid. Commission has always technically been negotiable in real estate, but this settlement forced the negotiation into the open instead of leaving it as an unwritten MLS default.

Why Commission Was Never Actually Fixed, Even Before 2024

No law ever set real estate commission at a specific percentage nationally or in Florida. What changed in practice was how that number got communicated: before the settlement, a seller's agent commonly posted a buyer-agent commission offer directly on the MLS listing, which functioned like an informal default even though it was technically negotiable the whole time. After August 17, 2024, that MLS field is gone, so the buyer's agent's pay now gets negotiated directly with the buyer in a written agreement, separate from what the seller agrees to pay their own listing agent.

What This Means for a Florida Seller Right Now

A Florida seller listing a house today negotiates commission directly with their own listing agent, and that number is no longer automatically shared with buyer's agents through the MLS. Some sellers still choose to offer buyer-agent compensation as a concession to attract more showings, since buyers now often need to fund their own agent's fee directly if the seller does not. Every part of that math, the listing side and the buyer side, is a negotiation now, not a percentage a seller has to accept because it is what everyone else on the MLS was doing.

Cash Flow Deals' Process: A Separate Line Item Instead of a Commission Negotiation

With Cash Flow Deals, you choose between the Fast Cash Offer, where we buy your house as-is and close, and the Premium Cash Offer, where a pre-approved FHA or conventional buyer we already have, ready to go, pays more and buys directly from you. 1. Request your written offers: Cash Flow Deals reviews your property and walks you through both offers so you can compare what you would receive. The number is agreed before any work starts, and it changes only if you agree. The one exception: if something structural surfaces that was not visible or disclosed before we signed — foundation issues, hidden moisture, old wiring, cast-iron drain failure — we re-cost it and bring the number back to you. You decide. You can walk away. We disclose what we know at offer time so this almost never happens. 2. Review your written agreement: on Premium, you sign with us at the agreed number and give us permission to bring in a buyer in our place. Your home may be listed through Silver Door Realty, a licensed Florida brokerage, with a licensed agent and scheduled showings. 3. Cash Flow Deals brings a buyer from the pre-approved FHA or conventional buyers we already have, ready to go. We cover repair costs, and we figure out a way, so nothing comes out of your pocket. On Premium, only what the buyer's lender requires gets fixed, with repair costs settled from the sale proceeds from our share. On Fast Cash, we buy your house as-is, with no repairs for you to make. The buyer's agent's compensation is negotiated separately under the post-settlement rules; on Premium, commissions and closing costs come from our share of the sale proceeds. 4. On Premium, your buyer signs a new contract directly with you, title transfers once from you to that buyer, and their lender funds the purchase. We are paid last from what is left, as a separate line item on the closing statement. If the buyer's loan falls through, that is our problem, not yours, and you can still choose between the Fast Cash Offer at its own number and the Premium Cash Offer if financing can proceed.

Why This Question Keeps Coming Up

Real estate commission and Realtor fee questions draw close to 4,000 searches a month even after the settlement has been in effect for two years, which shows sellers are still working out what a fair number looks like now that MLS no longer publishes a default. The honest answer is that there is no single right percentage anymore, if there ever really was one. What matters for a seller is getting a specific number in writing, whether that is a negotiated commission with a listing agent or a flat fee arranged through a brokerage partner, before assuming any number is standard.

Common questions

Is real estate commission illegal now after the NAR settlement?

No. Commission itself is not illegal or banned. What changed is that MLS listings can no longer publish a buyer-agent compensation offer, and a buyer's agent must have a signed written agreement with their client before showing homes. Commission remains fully negotiable.

Do I still have to pay the buyer's agent as the seller?

Not automatically. Since August 17, 2024, buyer-agent compensation is negotiated in the buyer's own written agreement with their agent, not defaulted through the MLS. A seller can choose to offer to cover some or all of it as a negotiating point, but nothing requires it.

What is a typical commission percentage in Florida now?

There is no fixed or typical percentage set by law. Every commission is a private negotiation between a seller and their listing agent, and separately between a buyer and their agent, so the right number depends on the specific deal and market.

How is Cash Flow Deals' fee different from a commission?

It is not a percentage of the sale price. On the Premium Cash Offer, Cash Flow Deals is paid as a separate line item on the closing statement rather than a markup on price. On the Fast Cash Offer, there is no listing commission to Cash Flow Deals.