US housing market faces biggest shakeup in years – here’s what we know

Consumer advocates are praising the settlement as a step toward transparency in the home-buying marketplace. Photograph: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images

A major shift in how Americans buy homes could come this summer after a powerful real estate group settled an antitrust lawsuit, agreeing to change a rule that dictates how real estate agents are compensated.

If the settlement is approved by a judge, the rule change will start in mid-July, leaving the real estate industry scrambling over what the future of buying or selling a home will look like.