Tag: realtor

Orillia man gets life in prison for killing Collingwood realtor

‘Every murder is by definition a crime of great violence, but the assault on Miss Kriston was particularly vicious,’ said judge who sentenced John Collins today

Warning: The following story contains details of domestic violence and murder that some readers may find disturbing.

John Collins has been handed a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for 16 years.

Orillia resident Collins pleaded guilty in December to second-degree murder in the death of Kinga ‘Kay’ Kriston, a real estate agent found dead in her Collingwood home on June 10, 2022. He was sentenced in a Barrie courtroom on Jan. 9 by Madam Justice Michelle Fuerst.

“Every murder is by definition a crime of great violence, but the assault on Miss Kriston was particularly vicious,” said Fuerst in her decision to read out to the court. “She was attacked in her own bed, in her own home, a place that should have been one of safety and refuge from harm.”

A statement of facts agreed upon by Collins’ defense lawyers, David O’Connor and Brenda Lawson, and the Crown attorneys, Lynne Saunders and Jenna Dafoe, laid out what the prosecution referred to as “a brutal murder of the gravest

Real estate brokers weigh in at the end of commission rules

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Real Estate industry is changing. The National Association of Realtors announced on March 15 an anti-trust settlement of $418 million that’s ending rules on commission.

What You Need To Know

The National Association of Realtors announced on March 15 an anti-trust settlement of $418 million

Until now, home sellers often paid about 6% of the sale price toward a fee that would be split between their own agent and the buyer’s agent

The new plan can leave realtor pay up in the air, depending on the contract

Sunny Alexander is the Owner and Broker for Red Sash Reality and one of more than one million members of the NAR is ready to adapt.

“Change is good,” he said. “It’s going to be rough learning the new normal.”

Alexander has been in the industry for nearly 20 years. He started his journey in Tennessee after serving in the Army. For the last six years, she’s shown homes in Tampa Bay.

She says she’s the voice of reason for her customers and tries to guide them to the best decisions.

“They either need to sell a house or they need to buy a house,” she said. “So

Realtors grappling with changes to how commissions are paid

The real estate market is headed for a big shakeup because of changes to the way agents are compensated in property transactions.

While many professional services like attorneys or accountants charge by the hour, real estate agents work for a commission as a percentage of the money exchanged in a transaction. Agents only get paid when the deal closes.

In residential home sales, the total commission paid by the seller is typically 6% of the sale price. This amount is split as a “co-op” between the broker representing the seller and the broker representing the buyer and is advertised on the MLS as so. Agents then receive a portion of the commission split among the brokers.

The plaintiffs of the lawsuit successfully argued that they should not be responsible for paying the buyer’s broker’s commission.

As a result of recent antitrust lawsuits, the National Association of Realtors has agreed to settle by paying $418 million in damages and is eliminating its rules on the standard six percent sales commission model, pending court approval.

The lawsuit asserted that it was unfair for MLS to require real estate brokers to advertise payment to the buyer agent’s commission from the sale of their

How major real estate changes could impact homebuyers

For decades, the standard for paying buyer and seller agents in real estate transactions has been between 5-6% of the home’s sale price, split between the two agents. This summer, that structure could change as a result of the National Association of Realtors’ recent settlement, which could see buyers and sellers become more responsible for paying their own agents rather than making the sellers cover both fees.

One real estate professional believes this is good for the marketplace, making it more transparent.

“[The] NAR agreeing to cut our commissions and sellers can’t offer a buyer agent co-broke is not true,” said RJ Long, the managing partner for Coldwell Banker Prime Properties. “[Neither] NAR nor the [multiple listing services] set commissions. Our local boards do not set commissions. Therefore, they don’t have the authority to cut the commissions, the brokers do; we have that right.”

According to Long, there isn’t a fixed percentage.

“We never got to a 6%; it’s one of the biggest misconceptions in the industry right now is that we are so fixed,” he said.

As part of a settlement announced Friday, the NAR agreed to make some policy changes in order to resolve multiple class-action lawsuits brought