(Today is a slight detour from my regular local market update and All Things Delray. Below I write about an idea that just won’t go away, and not sure it ever will. Sometimes it’s fun writing about touchy subjects).
Here’s something nobody talks about when they declare the real estate agent dead. It has to do with real estate commissions that are here to stay:
The For Sale By Owner (FSBO) rate just hit an all-time low.
In 1985, 21% of American home sellers skipped the agent and sold their own home. Last year, that number dropped to 5% — a record low, according to NAR’s 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers. Meanwhile, a record 91% of sellers hired a professional real estate agent.
This happened after four decades of tools designed to make agents optional.
Let’s look at the track record:
The government tried. In the 1970s, the Department of Justice (DOJ) pursued antitrust actions against MLS fee schedules, calling them price-fixing. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found real estate commissions clustering at 6–7% in market after market – and pushed hard to break it up. Didn’t work.
Discount brokers tried. Help-U-Sell launched its flat-fee model in 1976. Assist2Sell followed in the ’80s. ZipRealty came in the ’90s riding the internet wave. Trelora spent over a decade in Denver building a case against percentage-based real estate commissions. All either failed outright or exist today as niche players.
Redfin really tried. They’re one of the most-visited real estate websites in the country. Massive venture capital backing. Built its entire brand on lower real estate commissions and consumer rebates. In 2022 it ended the rebate model – its brokerage market share never exceeded 1% of U.S. home sales. Rocket Companies acquired Redfin one year ago today.
The courts tried. The Sitzer/Burnett lawsuit and the 2024 NAR settlement were supposed to trigger a price war. Two years later, buyer agent real estate commissions are flat or up.
And throughout all of it, consumers keep choosing to hire agents and pay for their services.
There’s a reason. NAR’s own data shows agent-assisted homes sold for a median of $425,000 in 2025, while FSBO homes sold for $360,000 – a $65,000 gap. Sellers who tried to avoid real estate commissions frequently netted less than sellers who paid them. According to NAR, nearly 50% of FSBO sellers described the process as stressful enough to bring them to tears.
Next on the list is how AI will disrupt and thin-out the real estate agent population. That’s possible, but with the added efficiencies AI can bring to agents, there will be more competition. We may see less agents doing 2, 3, 5x more business than they’ve ever done.
The desire to eliminate the real estate agent has been real. What’s also been real – consistently, for 50 years – is when the stakes are highest, people want a professional in their corner. And sellers understand if they want to sell, they need an army helping them achieve their goals, and are willing to pay real estate commissions to do so.
That’s not changing anytime soon.
(Main Photo Above: An inside look at the new and elegant Double Knot restaurant in Sundy Village)
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*** July 4th Delray Beach style. Join tens of thousands of others on the Best Beach in Florida.
*** My latest condo listing in the CityWalk community in Pineapple Grove. Brand new HVAC system, fresh and new interior paint, and a new dishwasher. HOA building upgrades. Oh, and across the street from Akira Back – how bad can that be?
*** Recent price reduction on this Pineapple Grove Condo unit may be of interest. Clean, great condition, impact windows, washer/dryer inside, 2 gyms, saunas. Sounds like tropical paradise (P.S. The seller is willing to pay real estate commissions)
*** Recently I wrote about how realistic expectations will help, not hurt, sellers and buyers in today’s real estate market
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*** South Florida Inventory is BELOW 2019 ***
Last week’s supply was 51,794
Today’s supply is 51,715
*** Supply is DOWN 47 of the last 60 weeks ***
