Key facts
- Only 17% of Americans rate real estate agents' honesty and ethical standards as high or very high, according to a December 2025 Gallup survey.
- Homes owned by agents sold for about 3.7% more and stayed on the market about 9.5 days longer than comparable homes agents sold for clients, a study found.
- Listings offering buyer agents a lower commission were 5% less likely to sell and took 12% longer to sell, according to another study.
- In Arizona, a salesperson license requires 90 hours of prelicensing education, compared to 1,500 hours for a cosmetologist.
- The Sitzer/Burnett case settlement required written buyer agreements and removed offers of compensation from the MLS.
Americans' perception of real estate agents' honesty has remained largely unchanged for nearly five decades, with a recent Gallup survey showing only 17% rating the profession highly. This persistent trust gap, according to a licensed broker and CEO of a transaction platform, is rooted in the industry's commission-based compensation structure rather than individual agent conduct.
Gallup's polling since 1977 has consistently placed real estate agents in the 'average' category for ethical standards, with ratings fluctuating between 13% and 25% before falling back to 17% in December 2025. This stability in public perception, despite numerous regulatory changes and legal challenges, suggests a deeper structural issue.
Economists have found that the incentive system, where agents are paid a percentage of the sale price only upon closing, can lead to predictable behaviors. Studies indicate that homes sold by agents for clients tend to sell for less and take longer to sell compared to homes owned by agents themselves. Furthermore, research suggests that buyer agents may steer clients towards listings offering higher commissions, contributing to the uniformity of commission rates.
The author argues that the low training requirements for real estate agents, compared to professions like cosmetology, coupled with the payment structure and the fact that many agents close few transactions annually, create a situation where consumer caution is a rational response.
Recent legal actions, such as the Sitzer/Burnett case which resulted in nearly $1.8 billion in damages and led to changes like written buyer agreements and the removal of commission offers from MLS, have brought public scrutiny to the industry's compensation model. Despite these changes, preliminary data suggests average buyer agent commissions have slightly increased post-settlement, indicating that structural evolution may be necessary to rebuild public trust.