MADISON,
N.J., Oct. 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Anywhere
Real Estate Inc. (NYSE: HOUS) ("Anywhere"), a global leader in
residential real estate (formerly known as Realogy Holdings Corp.),
today announced the terms of a settlement agreement the Company has
entered into to settle all claims asserted against Anywhere in the
Burnett and Moehrl antitrust class action litigation. Under the
terms of the proposed nationwide settlement, which is subject to
both preliminary and final court approval, Anywhere has agreed to
provide monetary relief of $83.5
million, substantially in line with the Company's financial
planning as well as injunctive relief. The Company does not expect
the terms of the proposed settlement to have a material impact on
its results of operations, liquidity, or cash flows.
![Anywhere RE Logo (PRNewsfoto/Realogy Holdings Corp.) Anywhere RE Logo (PRNewsfoto/Realogy Holdings Corp.)](https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1672050/Anywhere_Logo.jpg)
The proposed settlement resolves, on a nationwide basis, all
claims asserted against Anywhere in the Burnett and Moehrl cases
and releases the Company, all subsidiaries, brands, affiliated
agents, and franchisees. The proposed settlement is not an
admission of liability, nor does it concede or validate any of the
claims asserted against Anywhere.
Under the terms of the proposed settlement, Anywhere has agreed
to deposit into the settlement fund (i) $10
million within 14 business days after preliminary court
approval is granted; (ii) $20 million
within 14 business days after the court approval of fees and
costs, which is typically granted with final approval; and (iii)
the remaining balance within 21 business days after final court
approval and all appellate rights are exhausted.
While the Company does not control the timeline, a hearing for
preliminary approval of the settlement is expected to occur in
November 2023 with final court
approval expected in mid-2024.
"I am pleased that Anywhere has reached a nationwide settlement
with the plaintiffs in the Burnett and Moehrl cases," said
Ryan Schneider, Anywhere
chief executive officer and president. "We believe this is the
right course of action to remove future uncertainty and ongoing
legal expense, serving the best interests of the company, our
affiliated agents and franchisees, and shareholders, and enabling
Anywhere to focus on moving real estate to what's next."
"The proposed settlement provides releases for our owned
brokerage operations and agents as well as our franchisees and
their affiliated agents, a priority for Anywhere in resolving these
claims," said Sue Yannaccone,
chief executive officer and president, Anywhere Brands and Anywhere
Advisors.
The proposed settlement includes injunctive relief requiring
practice changes in Anywhere Advisors, the Company's owned
brokerage operations, which includes Coldwell Banker Realty,
Corcoran, and Sotheby's International Realty, for a period of five
years following final court approval. Anywhere has also agreed to
recommend and encourage these same practice changes to its
independently owned and operated franchise network across the
Better Homes and Gardens® Real Estate, CENTURY 21®, Coldwell
Banker®, Corcoran®, ERA®, and Sotheby's International Realty®
brands. The practice changes are consistent with positions for
which Anywhere has previously indicated support in the
industry.
"Anywhere has been adopting or calling on the industry to adopt
many of the settlement's proposed practice changes, which promote
more transparency and simplification for both consumers and real
estate agents," continued Yannaccone. "As an industry
leader, Anywhere strongly believes in the value of both buyer and
seller agents to help consumers successfully navigate one of life's
most expensive and impactful transactions, and that consumers will
make the choice to pay for their valuable service without mandatory
rules. We remain fully committed to supporting all agents as they
expertly serve their clients."
First, in the injunctive relief, Anywhere has agreed to make
three practice changes consistent with rule changes that the
National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) made in its 2020 settlement
with the Department of Justice (DOJ), which the DOJ subsequently
revoked:
- Anywhere will prohibit company owned brokerages and their
affiliated agents from claiming buyer agent services are free.
- Anywhere will require company owned brokerages and their
affiliated agents to include the listing broker's offer of
compensation for prospective buyers' agents as soon as possible in
each active listing, consistent with MLS rules and/or
capabilities of third-party website operators.
- Anywhere will prohibit company owned brokerages and their
affiliated agents from using any technology (or manual methods) to
sort listings by offers of compensation, unless requested by the
client.
Second, Anywhere has agreed to advise and remind company owned
brokerages, franchisees, and affiliated agents that the Company has
no rule requiring offers of compensation. Anywhere continues to see
the economic benefits that offers of compensation bring to both
sellers and buyers and the importance of making sure that both
buyers and sellers have access to the professional services that
agents provide.
"It is in the economic best interests of both buyers and sellers
to work with experienced trusted advisors," said Yannaccone.
"We strongly believe in sellers making offers of compensation to
buyers' agents to bring more eligible buyers to a listing, which
increases the likelihood of a successful transaction. Certain MLSs
that have already removed the mandatory requirement or eliminated a
minimum amount have helped facilitate seller choice in those
markets as well as provide for continued access to both buyer and
seller agent services."
Third, Anywhere has agreed to several other practice
changes:
- Anywhere will not require company owned brokerages,
franchisees, or affiliated agents to belong to the National
Association of REALTORS® (NAR) or follow the NAR Code of Ethics or
MLS Handbook.
- Anywhere will require company owned brokerages and their agents
to clearly disclose to clients that commissions are not set by law
and are fully negotiable.
- Anywhere will eliminate any minimum client commission
requirements that company owned brokerages may have.
Finally, Anywhere has agreed to develop training materials for
company owned brokerages, franchisees, and affiliated agents that
support all the practice changes outlined in the injunctive
relief.
About Anywhere Real Estate Inc.
Anywhere Real Estate
Inc. (NYSE: HOUS) is moving the real estate industry to what's
next. A leader of integrated residential real estate services,
Anywhere includes franchise, brokerage, relocation, and title and
settlement businesses, as well as mortgage and title insurance
underwriter joint ventures, supporting approximately 1.2 million
home transactions in 2022. The diverse Anywhere brand portfolio
includes some of the most recognized names in real estate: Better
Homes and Gardens® Real Estate, CENTURY 21®, Coldwell Banker®,
Coldwell Banker Commercial®, Corcoran®, ERA®, and Sotheby's
International Realty®. Using innovative technology, data and
marketing products, high-quality lead generation programs, and
best-in-class learning and support services, Anywhere fuels the
productivity of its approximately 190,800 independent sales agents
in the U.S. and approximately 141,400 independent sales agents in
117 other countries and territories, helping them build stronger
businesses and best serve today's consumers. Recognized for twelve
consecutive years as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies,
Anywhere has also been designated a Great Place to Work five years
in a row, named one of America's Most Innovative Companies 2023 by
Fortune, and honored on the Forbes list of World's Best Employers
2022.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the
meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking
statements can be identified by words such as: "believes",
"expects", "anticipates", "intends", "projects", "estimates",
"potential" and "plans" and similar expressions or future or
conditional verbs such as "will", "should", "would", "may" and
"could" and similar references to future periods. Examples of
forward-looking statements include, among others, statements we
make regarding our antitrust class action litigation and the
proposed settlement, including preliminary and final court approval
of the settlement, the amount and timing of payments pursuant to
the settlement and the impact of such payments on the Company's
results of operations, liquidity and cash flows; changes to the
business practices of and the impact that such changes may have on
the business or results of operations of the Company.
Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor
assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on
our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the
future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections,
anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future
conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the
future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and
changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of
which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial
condition may differ materially from those indicated in the
forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any
of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could
cause our actual results and financial condition to differ
materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements
include, among others, the following: no assurance of preliminary
or final court approval of the settlement related to our antitrust
class action litigation; industry structure changes that disrupt
the functioning of the residential real estate market; the impact
of evolving competitive and consumer dynamics, including that the
Company's share of the commission income generated by homesale
transactions may continue to shift to affiliated independent sales
agents or otherwise erode due to market factors, our ability to
compete against traditional and non-traditional competitors and
meaningful decreases in the average broker commission rate; adverse
developments or outcomes in current or future litigation, in
particular the incurrence of liabilities that are in excess of
amounts accrued or payments that may be made in connection with
pending litigation; disruption in the residential real estate
brokerage industry related to listing aggregator market power and
concentration; our failure or alleged failure to
comply with laws, regulations and regulatory interpretations and
any changes or stricter interpretations of any of the foregoing;
and such other factors as discussed in the risks set forth under
the headings "Forward-Looking Statements," "Summary of Risk
Factors," "Risk Factors" and "Legal Proceedings" in our filings
with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our
Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2023 and June
30, 2023 and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year
ended December 31, 2022, and our
other filings made from time to time, in connection with
considering any forward-looking statements that may be made by us
and our businesses generally.
Any forward-looking statement made by us in this press release
is based only on information currently available to us and speaks
only as of the date on which it is made. We undertake no obligation
to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether written
or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of
new information, future developments or otherwise.
Investor Contacts:
Alicia Swift
(973) 407-4669
alicia.swift@anywhere.re
Tim Swanson
(973) 407-2612
tim.swanson@anywhere.re
Media Contacts:
Trey Sarten
973) 407-2162
trey.sarten@anywhere.re
Gabriella Chiera
(973) 407-5236
gabriella.chiera@anywhere.re
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SOURCE Anywhere Real Estate Inc.