New homebuying rules come as residents deal with changing housing market

Home buying may be a little cheaper for some after the Fed lowered interest rates, but that's the easy part. Going through the retail process has actually gotten a little bit confusing for some after new rules went into effect last month. Our Larry Miller is adding clarity so you're better informed before you reach the negotiation table. You still have parking on this side of the street. Samuel Moore is no stranger to the shifting landscape in the housing market. He's bought homes before. Because I know you like to cook a lot. Right. But never in a changing real estate market like this. Even though I had heard about some of the changes, I wasn't quite sure what they meant for a buyer like myself. Moore represents what many buyers are grappling with right now. In August, the National Association of Realtors implemented new rules as part of a $418 million settlement agreement. The group was sued by some homeowners who claimed the longtime practice of having to pay agent's commission led to inflated fees. So here's the breakdown. Prior to the rules change, when you purchased a house, the seller would cover their agent and the buyer's agent commission. That's no longer the case. Now the buyer might have to pay their agent a commission if their agent isn't able to negotiate any concessions. Also, agents can no longer discuss splitting commissions on the multiple listing service or MLS, a platform used by real estate professionals. So Larry, you asked me about the MLS, multiple listing service. So today we are looking at properties in Bethesda, Maryland. There's no longer stating what compensation a seller may or may not be offering. Now, with it not being there, if a buyer is inquiring, the realtor would then contact the listing agent and ask. The rule change has caused some angst and confusion among those looking to sell and buy homes. But mortgage lender Barry Wilhite says there are workarounds. Where the seller is not initially offering any type of compensation for your agent, then we can have a different conversation to see how we can get your agent paid and you into this house. And that's the benefit of having good counsel. Moore said he's done his part to prepare for the process, cleaned up his credit, saved his money. Now he's relying on his agent, Russ Carter, to figure out how to get him into his future property. It definitely can be more of a challenge for folks that are coming from a low to moderate income household, because it's an extra point of negotiation. As you can see, the interior of the unit has been renovated. Oh, it sure has. Resized lighting. Up until this point, we have not had many problems where we were not able to negotiate for either some concessions to the buyer or for those concessions to be directly paid for the buyer-agent compensation. Five-burner range. Of course, quartz countertop. As for now, it appears these changes by the National Association of Realtors has made the process more transparent for everyone involved. Larry Miller, WUSA 9.