Pennsylvania Couple Gets Trapped in 1-Year Buyer-Agent Contract With 4% Fee

1 articles · Updated · Business Insider · Jul 22

Kirsten Ganas and Austin McCarley say they cannot leave a buyer-broker agreement signed at a first home tour without paying an early termination charge or risking thousands in commission if they buy before January 2027.
The contract bound them exclusively to one brokerage for a year, set a 4% commission plus a $995 fee, and even required payment if they leased a home during the term.
Their dispute grew after Ganas tried to drop agent Dan Waterhouse over slow responses and distance from their target market; broker Rita Sumney refused a free release and instead offered another in-house agent or a referral arrangement.
The case highlights fallout from a 2024 National Association of Realtors settlement that now generally requires written buyer agreements before tours, a transparency measure critics say can also lock consumers into dense, unfavorable terms.
Nearly two years on, consumer advocates say many buyers still do not grasp these contracts, while most sellers continue covering buyer-agent commissions, limiting the broader fee shake-up the settlement was meant to spur.