LAS VEGAS (KTNV) – If you want to view a home for sale in the Las Vegas Valley, you now need a written contract with a real estate agent.

The reason for this is a set of new rules for the buying and selling process that come into force this week.

These new rules could make buying a home in the Las Vegas Valley more difficult

Home sellers have traditionally offered a flat commission to the buyer’s agent when putting their home on the market, but that will no longer be allowed as several changes to U.S. real estate industry practices are set to take effect, the Associated Press reports.

A buyer can still try to negotiate such an offer with the seller, but if the seller refuses, the buyer is left with the cost of his or her agent’s services.

The US real estate association National Association of Realtors is behind the policy changes. They are based on a $418 million settlement that the association reached earlier this year in a class action lawsuit in a US state. The lawsuit alleged that homeowners in the US were forced to pay artificially inflated broker commissions when selling their homes.

And as we outlined above, potential buyers now have to have a contract with an agent to even view a home for sale.

“It’s just confusing for some people, especially because it requires so much explanation,” says Kris Cesena, a Las Vegas resident whose home has been on the market for nearly three months.

David Lee, a local real estate agent and owner of Painted Desert Realty, said the changes probably won’t have much of an impact in the end, but the homebuying process will now involve more steps.

“It’s not going to slow anything down, really not,” he said. “New steps will have to be taken, but for an experienced broker who has the situation under control, it won’t be a big problem.”

The new rules apply to brokers and agents who represent clients seeking to buy or sell a home listed on a multiple listing service (MLS) affiliated with the National Association of Realtors.

They can be reduced to two main changes:

• Package offers for compensation on behalf of sellers to buyers’ agents will no longer be included in listings posted on the MLS (but they may still be made through other means).
• And home buyers must sign detailed representation agreements when hiring a real estate agent.

If you still have questions, we asked Lee to summarize the changes. Here’s how he explained it:

Las Vegas real estate agent David Lee explains the new rules for buying and selling homes

It remains to be seen whether the policy revision will result in lower broker commissions or fewer sellers choosing not to offer to cover the buyer’s broker fees.

Here in Las Vegas, the average price for an existing home is now nearly $480,000 (near an all-time high).