Berkshire Hathaway’s real estate firm to pay $250 million to settle real estate commission lawsuits

By ALEX VEIGA
AP Business Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A real estate company owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has agreed to pay $250 million to settle lawsuits nationwide. The lawsuits claimed that longstanding practices by real estate brokerages forced U.S. homeowners to pay artificially inflated broker commissions when they sold their homes. HomeServices of America said Friday that the proposed settlement would shield its 51 brands, nearly 70,000 real estate agents and over 300 franchisees from similar litigation. The real estate company had been a major holdout after several other big brokerage operators agreed to settle. Including HomeServices’ proposed payout, the real estate industry has now agreed to pay more than $943 million to make the lawsuits go away.