NAR, Elliman opt into Tuccori homebuyer settlement 

The National Association of Realtors has joined an Illinois-based commissions lawsuit settlement brought by homebuyers, potentially closing the book on litigation that has dogged the organization for more than five years.

NAR announced on April 10 that it is opting into the Tuccori settlement and will pay $52.25 million into a global fund over the next few years — that's in addition to the $418 million the organization is paying to settle commissions-related litigation brought by homesellers, including those in the Sitzer/Burnett and Gibson cases. 

The agreement does not mandate any additional policy or practice changes, according to a news release from NAR. 

Luxury brokerage Douglas Elliman — which was involved in a class-action lawsuit brought by Florida homebuyer James Lutz — also alerted the court of its intention to opt into the Tuccori settlement.

What the NAR deal covers: NAR's settlement in Tuccori is broader than the agreement previously reached with homesellers, covering a host of other organizations. Those include state and local Realtor associations, as well as both Realtor-owned and non-Realtor-owned MLSs. It also covers real estate brokerages with a Realtor as principal that have not previously settled, or that have been named in similar litigation and meet specific criteria.

Because NAR is not a defendant in Tuccori, the settlement is intended to be a release of claims from other commission lawsuits brought by homebuyers — including the Batton case, which is also based in Illinois and names NAR as a defendant.

The decision to opt into the Tuccori settlement was part of a more deliberate and strategic legal approach to dealing with the commissions lawsuits, according to Jon Waclawski, NAR general counsel.

"We sought this settlement to secure meaningful protections for our members and the industry. We moved decisively to resolve these claims in a way that avoids significant potential liability and positions NAR more effectively going forward, ensuring our members can continue unlocking the American Dream for generations to come," Waclawski said in the news release.

Elliman joins other brokerages in settling: In a court document filed on Thursday, Douglas Elliman said it had also reached a deal with the Tuccori plaintiffs, making it the latest of several brokerages to opt into the settlement. The firm noted that plaintiffs in that lawsuit would be moving for preliminary approval of the settlement after the opt-in period expires on April 13, 2026. The filing did not disclose the amount Elliman agreed to pay.

The Tuccori case was originally filed in Jan. 2024, naming At World Properties as the sole defendant. Several related cases were merged with Tuccori in October, and as part of the settlement agreement reached with the newly added defendants, the court approved an opt-in clause that allowed brokerages facing litigation in similar cases to settle via Tuccori instead.

Challenges ahead? A number of firms in recent months have opted to join the Tuccori settlement to satisfy claims brought in other class-action homebuyer lawsuits — but some of those defendants have faced pushback from the plaintiffs in their original cases.

In its Apr. 9 filing, Elliman made an effort to preempt such objections. The brokerage noted that the Lutz plaintiffs are moving to try and block defendants from joining the Tuccori settlement, but  asserted that its settlement agreement with the Tuccori plaintiffs was valid.

As for NAR, while the organization is hoping this will conclude litigation surrounding its alleged role in inflating agent commission fees, getting final approval from the court may not be straightforward. 

The Batton plaintiffs have been aggressively trying to stop other defendants from opting into the Tuccori deal. In February, the plaintiffs filed a preliminary injunction against Anywhere Real Estate after it announced it was joining the Tuccori settlement. A district court denied that motion, but the plaintiffs have now filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit regarding the matter.

Where the Batton case stands: Batton was first filed in 2021, and activity in the case picked up in the first few months of 2026 when Keller Williams became the first defendant to settle with Batton plaintiffs in February for $20 million. A few weeks later, REMAX announced it was settling in the case for $8.5 million.

Other firms settling in Tuccori: In addition to Anywhere and Elliman, The Real Brokerage joined the Tuccori settlement in January, and The Keyes Company and Illustrated Properties, as well as Vanguard Properties, opted into the settlement in February. 

Meanwhile, Hanna Holdings is also seeking to join the Tuccori settlement, agreeing to pay $8.25 million into the settlement fund. But, like Anywhere, Hanna faces resistance from plaintiffs in a separate homebuyer lawsuit known as Davis. The plaintiffs in that case filed a preliminary injunction seeking to block the opt-in.