More Advocacy Against Forcing Property Owners to Pay All Broker Fees

It was my pleasure to represent SPOA and Boston Pads last month when I spoke to Sharman Sacchetti from WCVB ABC Channel 5 News about a wide range of key real estate issues, including but not limited to: the current real time vacancy rate, the high demand for housing in Boston, low supply, and how 30 percent of rental housing providers currently cover some or all of the broker fees. After the New York City Council recently mandated that owners pay all broker fees, the debate has returned to Boston.

As mentioned in the December 2024 edition of Small Property Owners News, which covered my interview with NBC 10 News Boston about this issue, the root cause of the broker fee dilemma will not be addressed by shifting the financial burden to property owners. Small rental property owners, in particular, will be harmed by this and they will be forced to raise their rents to cover this additional expense, among other high expenses that come with property ownership.

We should instead look to alleviate pressures on both renters and owners by offering flexible and gradual payment options for broker fees, rather than demanding full payment upfront, while promoting zoning reform to incentivize the creation of additional supply, which is what's needed to bring costs down in the long-term.

WCVB Channel 5 ABC Boston- Demetrios Salpoglou talks Broker´s Fees

by Demetrios Salpoglou