Real estate agents are an unhappy bunch these days, mainly because of money.

According to the surprisingly candid results of a survey delving into agents’ psyche by the Redfin brokerage firm, half expect their fees to fall in the coming months. Also, 1 in 7 agents changed companies last year, largely in search of a larger share of the commission split with their brokers. Of those agents, 1 in 5 are planning to switch again this year.

They’re also dissatisfied with their main trade association, the National Association of Realtors, mostly because of its 2024 settlement of several class-action lawsuits that challenged the way agents are paid. Now, many agents are having to deal with clients who want to negotiate their fees.

“That settlement rewrote the playbook on how agent fees are communicated and negotiated among consumers and agents,” writes Jason Aleem, chief of real estate services at Redfin.

The survey covers a relatively small sample: Only 500 agents participated. But the results are telling, nonetheless. For example, prior to the NAR settlements, buyers rarely, if ever, asked how their agents were paid and how much.

Typically, buy-side agents split the commission 50-50 with the selling agent. But because the selling agent set the fee, buyers could not bargain. Now, the charges have been separated, giving buyers the leverage they never had to negotiate. And according to the survey, 18% of agents are experiencing “far more” bargainers, with 36% seeing “slightly more.”

As a result, 43% of the agents polled have already seen their commissions decline, and 51% expect them to fall this year.

Agents aren’t exactly thrilled with another NAR change, this one adopted to permit sellers to allow their listings to be held out of their local multiple listing services for a to-be-determined period. The shift in policy was all but forced upon NAR by a few brokers who want to keep their listings in-house so they can book the entire commission.

But nearly 9 out of 10 agents in this survey said all listings should be marketed on the MLS. And 3 out of 4 said withholding a listing from the MLS is rarely in the best interest of the seller.

Agents are buffeted by the same out-of-their-purview events that buyers and sellers face. For instance, almost all of the 500 agents polled said affordability is the major challenge they face -- not just for now, but for the next five years. The lack of inventory ranks second.

Coming in at the third-most important concern, though, is declining commissions. All the other challenges agents face were also pocketbook issues: more commission-related lawsuits, erosion of the MLS as the chief marketplace for listings, and competition from discount brokers, among others.

Agents' chief complaint about their chosen field is that their incomes are unpredictable. Still, they're an optimistic crew: Half think sales will increase this year, and a third believe sales will remain the same.

Worth noting, however, is that the poll was taken prior to the White House’s throwdown on tariffs. (It seems no place is safe: Even an island inhabited only by penguins was nailed with a 10% tariff.) But even prior to that, 1 in 4 agents did not have a positive outlook when it came to the economy.

While almost 1 in 3 agents earned $100,000 or more last year, 2 out of 5 made $50,000 or less. And 1 in 3 had to take a second job to make ends meet.

That’s perhaps one reason that half of agents are unlikely to recommend a career in real estate sales to others.

“It’s unsurprising that after two years of record low sales, agents are less likely to recommend real estate as a career,” wrote Aleem. “But it’s important to highlight why agents love their job.”

Fair enough: Nearly 9 out of 10 agents cite the independent nature of their work -- setting their own schedules, for example, and making their own decisions.

But along with the unpredictable nature of their incomes, they dislike finding new customers, dealing with other agents who are rude or unprofessional, being constantly on call and dealing with unreasonable and/or abusive clients.

Aleem says he finds the fact that half of agents would not recommend the field as “at once concerning and encouraging.”

He says the business needs to figure out how to make real estate a sustainable and fulfilling career, while also getting comfortable with the fact that some agents just aren’t committed to the right things. And if the latter is the case, he adds, then it’s “OK for them to leave.”

Perhaps you’ve heard the term “greenwashing,” which refers to the practice of falsely claiming a product is environmentally sound.

Now comes Green Mirage: a mortgage-relief scam identified as a particularly concerning threat by the Federal Communications Commission. The deceptive calling campaign is sweeping the country, costing homeowners hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The scheme works like this: Scammers ring up unsuspecting homeowners, posing as representatives from their mortgage company or loan servicer (the company that collects monthly payments and pays the relevant taxes and insurance). The scammers threaten foreclosure unless the homeowners agree to make specific, immediate payments.

Often, the people targeted had already sought relief from their real lenders, and were expecting a return call -- making these phony pitches seem more plausible.

If you get such a call, don’t fall for it. Hang up and call your lender or servicer right away. And use the company’s publicly available number, not the one the caller provides, which is probably illegitimate.

According to the FCC, the Green Mirage operatives often know all the details about your mortgage -- your name, address, loan number and even what you still owe. They spoof the caller ID of your actual lender to convince you that they're on the up-and-up.

The scammers will tell you to make these "emergency" payments in a different manner than usual -- most commonly, the FCC says, by money order to a third party. If you fall for the act and pay them, your real lender will never see that money because the payments are directed to another scammer, often a fake attorney who uploads the funds to a Walmart Green Dot MoneyCard.

Using "sophisticated social engineering techniques," the FCC says, Green Mirage scammers have impersonated more than 400 mortgage-related institutions, causing hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses to deceived homeowners. Many victims only find out they’ve been hoodwinked when their real lender initiates foreclosure proceedings.

The FCC is so concerned about the scam that it issued an advisory to "remind voice service providers of their role in protecting consumers by aggressively combatting the scourge of illegal spoofed calls." The agency also notified domestic and international law enforcement groups, as well as mortgage business stakeholders, of the threat.

“We will not stop investigating and exposing such schemes ... to protect the integrity of our communications networks,” said the FCC's Acting Enforcement Bureau Chief Peter Hyun in a statement.

Bottom line: If someone calls you and pressures you to make a payment, your antennae should wiggle -- especially if the caller doesn't want the money to go through the usual channels. And of course, never share your personal or financial information over the phone.

Meanwhile, fraud has also found the rental sector in a big way. Indeed, says fraud detection firm Snappt, it is evolving more rapidly than apartment managers can keep up with.

Fraudsters employ a wide range of tactics to get into an apartment. Once they're in, they fail to pay rent, living free for months until they're evicted -- only to move on to another property and run the con again.

“Property managers frequently encounter sophisticated schemes designed to slip through the cracks,” reads a recent Snappt report. “From falsified pay stubs to meticulously altered bank statements, fraudsters’ tactics are evolving faster than ever.”

Many scammers manipulate documents -- say, by editing their proof-of-income forms or filling in online templates that can replicate popular payroll providers. Sometimes, they use stolen personal information to create fake IDs and impersonate someone else.

But on top of these tactics, Snappt reports an uptick in fake documents being generated entirely from scratch. Using generative tools like FraudGPT, con artists can create realistic, but fake, papers.

These clever dodges can have a severe financial impact on property managers. Evicting someone costs roughly $7,500, and that’s on top of lost rental income. Overall, Snappt reports that the average amount of bad debt per property manager due to fraudulent applications is just over $1 million.

Nearly 3 out of 4 property managers surveyed told the company that applicant fraud is just as prevalent this year as it was last year. Despite this, nearly half still verify potential renters' IDs manually -- and 2% don’t verify them at all.

Finally, here's one more scam to watch out for. A neighbor in a community near mine was surprised when a For Sale sign popped up on the lot next door. She thought it was odd, because the owner had always said he had no intention of selling, so she called him to ask about it.

The owner said no, the place wasn’t for sale, and he immediately called the company whose sign was in the yard. Embarrassed, an agent arrived in minutes to remove the sign. As it turns out, the company had taken the listing over the phone from a woman who'd provided “a good deal of financial information.”

My neighbor’s advice: Because title theft is a big issue, owners should check their properties -- especially vacant houses and lots -- to make sure they aren’t being marketed illegally. Look them up regularly on Zillow or other national websites.

Survey after survey has shown that seniors have a strong desire to remain in their homes until they pass. But some will eventually experience a life event that will alter their thinking.

Maybe they won’t be able to maintain their abodes like they used to, either fiscally or physically. Perhaps a spouse will become incapacitated to the point where he or she won’t be able to reside there anymore. Or maybe they’ll simply come to the realization that they no longer need all that space.

Whatever the reason, most real estate agents are ill-equipped to handle seniors’ move-down needs, says Nikki Buckelew, who trains agents on how to serve those relocating later in life at the Seniors Real Estate Institute.

Buckelew says there’s already a huge demand for agents “who have a heart for seniors” and appreciate the unique characteristics they present. And the need for realty pros specializing in the mature market is “going to increase exponentially.”

In a recent telephone interview, I asked the Oklahoma-based trainer to step back from her normal role of teaching agents how to work with older clients and consider what it's like to change places from the senior’s perspective. Her responses were telling.

For starters, Buckelew says seniors should not rush into making such a life-altering decision. A little planning goes a long way.

Of course, if you experience a health event, you may not have much time at all to decide how and where you want to live. “That’s when it becomes a crisis,” the trainer/agent says. “Some of my most difficult clients can’t manage on their own and have to move. It’s nobody’s fault. They are just the victims of circumstance.”

These “reactives,” as she calls them, often end up having their housing choices made for them by others -- maybe a family member but maybe not. On the other hand, the “proactives” start planning ahead of time so they can make changes on their own time. Not only do these seniors “usually have a better outcome,” Buckelew says, but “their families are grateful for it.”

At the “absolute very least,” seniors need to consider all their options. “I encourage people to do their research about what’s available,” she says. “The options are different when you can manage on your own than when the circumstances dictate your situation.”

Fortunately, the alternatives are numerous. Do you want to move to a smaller place, perhaps a smaller one-level single-family house, a townhouse (with an elevator?) or a condominium apartment? Do you want to live in a regular community, a master-planned property with plenty of amenities, a 55-plus project where only folks your own age reside or an assisted living property? Do you want to rent or buy?

Then there’s the question of location. Near your grown children and their kids? In a warmer climate or in one that has all four seasons? Closer to your friends who have moved away already? Closer to a place with better health care options? Or remain in the same location where you’ve spent your entire life?

“Choosing where to live is another big decision seniors struggle to make,” Buckelew says.

You can do your own research, obviously. Visit the places you might be considering. Many outfits in resort locations offer “play-and-stay” options where you can live free or at a reduced rent for a few days so you can check out their properties. Also take a tour of several assisted living properties and receive a free meal in the process.

You also can seek the opinions of others. But would you rather listen to those who have some sort of bias or seek the guidance of someone who can be objective?

“We approach it from the perspective of what’s best for the people in front of us,” the trainer says of the hundreds of agents who have earned the Certified Senior Housing Professional designation from her institute.

(Some members of the National Association of Realtors also have taken advanced classes to earn the Seniors Real Estate Specialist designation. Tangentially, there also are agents who are designated as Certified Senior Advisors from the Society of Certified Senior Advisors.)

It’s never too early to start paring down your stuff, either. That way, when and if it comes time to move, you’ll have less to do. But don’t think you have to go through everything in the house. Just a few things here and there will help ease the process later.

You can ask the kids if they want something. But they’re likely to say they don’t want anything until you actually move. Then, they’ll change their tune. You can have yard sales or donate your excess belongings. But yard sales are sometimes dangerous, so you might have to pay for donation pickup.

Better to find a move-management company specializing in seniors that can streamline the entire process.

Among other things, these professionals will help you focus on which items you wish to keep, schedule movers and help you pack your belongings and unpack them at your new home. They’ll also clean out the old place, make whatever repairs that may be necessary and turn it over to an agent who will list it for sale.

Such companies come at a price, but Buckelew says they’re worth every penny. Indeed, they do a lot of the hard labor. So in the end, she says, they may actually save people money.