Redfin to pay $9.25 million to settle commissions cases 

Redfin is the latest company to reach a settlement in the buyer agent commission lawsuits.

In an 8-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the company announced it will pay $9.25 million into a settlement fund within 30 days of a preliminary agreement. The deal was reached on Friday, May 3, according to the May 6 filing.

Redfin had been named as a defendant in multiple lawsuits filed on the heels of the Sitzer/Burnett verdict:

• The recently consolidated Gibson/Umpa case

• The Phillips case, filed in Georgia

• The Freedlund case, filed in California

• The Boykin and Whaley cases, filed in Nevada, which were consolidated under Whaley in March

• The Batton 2 case, which was filed in Illinois by a homebuyer, not a seller

Redfin got pulled into the class action litigation despite publicly cutting ties with the National Association of Realtors in October and offering lower commission rates. That was reflected in a statement Redfin sent to Real Estate News:

"As the only U.S. brokerage that has saved consumers more than $1.5 billion in fees, Redfin never belonged in this litigation, and we're glad to have settled it. We always have been, and always will be, advocates for transparency and saving consumers money, directly selling homes to buyers to bring down fees, and broadly publishing commission data so consumers understand how much they are paying."

Settlement tally: With Redfin settling, the pool of money in the commissions cases is now up to more than $960 million. Here are the brokerages and organizations that have announced settlements as of May 6:

• National Association of Realtors: $418 million

• HomeServices of America: $250 million

• Anywhere Real Estate: $83.5 million

• RE/MAX: $55 million

• Keller Williams: $70 million

• Compass: $57.5 million

• Real Brokerage: $9.25 million

• Realty ONE, @properties: Damage total not announced yet

• Douglas Elliman: Up to $17.75 million

• Redfin: $9.25 million