Florida brokerage the latest to settle in commissions case
The Keyes Company has reached an agreement in the Gibson lawsuit as the settlement fund nears $1 billion.
A large real estate firm in Florida has reached a deal with home sellers in a buyer agent commissions lawsuit.
According to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, The Keyes Company and Illustrated Properties agreed to settle all claims with the plaintiffs in the Gibson/Umpa class action case.
The brokerage was one of roughly 90 companies not included in the NAR deal because its sales volume exceeded the $2 billion threshold. According to the 2023 Real Estate Almanac, The Keyes Company | Illustrated Properties achieved more than $7.5 billion in sales volume in 2022.
The company is a family-owned brokerage led by CEO Mike Pappas, with his daughter Christina Pappas serving as president.
Which case is this? The Gibson lawsuit was the first of the commissions copycats, filed immediately after the jury reached its verdict in the landmark Sitzer/Burnett trial. The class includes all home sellers who used a listing agent associated with one of the seven brokerage companies named as defendants between October 2019 and October 2023.
The case was later combined with Umpa, another lawsuit filed in the same court.
Settlement details: The filing did not disclose how much Keyes will pay, but it did say the plaintiffs intend to file documents for preliminary approval. Before this deal was announced, the settlement fund across the Sitzer/Burnett, Moehrl and Gibson cases was already more than $980 million.
The Keyes Company is the largest independent brokerage in Florida with more than 4,000 agents, according to its website. Illustrated Properties has offices mostly concentrated in the West Palm Beach area of the state.
As of Sept. 3, NAR and 14 brokerage companies have publicly announced settlements.
Finalized, but under appeal:
Anywhere Real Estate: $83.5 million
Keller Williams: $70 million
RE/MAX: $55 million
Briefs from those appealing are due Sept. 25.
Preliminarily approved or recently announced:
National Association of Realtors: $418 million
HomeServices of America: $250 million
Compass: $57.5 million
Real Brokerage: $9.25 million
Realty One: $5 million
HomeSmart: $4.7 million
@properties: $6.65 million
Douglas Elliman: Up to $17.75 million
Redfin: $9.25 million
Engel & Völkers: $6.9 million.
United Real Estate: $3.75 million
The Keyes Company: Not immediately disclosed
Final approval of the NAR and HomeServices deals — the two largest settlements, accounting for more than two-thirds of the total fund to date — is scheduled for Nov. 26.
The remaining brokerages — apart from Keyes — will have a final approval hearing on October 31; the hearing for Keyes will be determined after its agreement receives preliminary approval.