The National Association of Realtors (NAR) is calling for two policy changes to be implemented by Saturday, August 17th.

San Luis Obispo County Realtor Christa Lowry explained the two changes taking place.

“The first change is that buyers will not be able to walk into a home without a written and signed buyer representation agreement with their buyer agent,” Lowry said.

That agreement negotiates a percentage of the sale that the buyer will pay their agent. Prior to this rule, buyers could choose not to pay a commission to the buyer.

“They had the option not to, but it was the default that they did,” Lowry said.

She added that while this new change requires the buyer to pay a commission to the buyer’s agent, that commission fee is agreed upon by both parties.

“It’s a negotiable amount. That’s the most important thing to know,” Lowry said.

The second amendment prevents a listing agent from disclosing an agent’s commission or concession on the Multiple Listing Service. Instead, buyers must contact the listing agent directly about commission or concession fees.

“Buyers used to call an agent and say, ‘Hey, I’d like to see five properties.’ There (was) no written agreement There (was) no talk of commission or concession,” Lowry said. “Now they have to sit down and have that conversation with a buyer’s agent.”

Jenny Heinzen works as a broker for Vineyard Professional Real Estate, a luxury real estate agency in Paso Robles.

She said most of these changes involve restructuring the business.

“It’s just kind of working out the paperwork,” Heinzen said.

But she said first-time buyers could be affected by the changes.

“A lot of times first-time buyers are longing for payment and if those first-time buyers are asked to pay their buyer’s agent commission, it affects their down payment opportunities,” she said.

Heinzen noted that these costs can be avoided by structuring contracts in a different way.

“Our goal with our listings and most of the agents within the county is to be compensated by the seller,” Heinzen said.

She said that for those new to buying a home or looking for help navigating these changes, finding the right agent is important.

“It’s going to be really important to work with good, experienced agents who sell the types of properties that you want to buy or sell,” Heinzen said. “Find a good agent and a good agent will train you.”