Question: Is a buyers' rebate legal?

TREC rules state that a buyers' agent may rebate a portion of his/her commission to the buyer so long as that rebate is disclosed on the HUD-1 form. Failure to disclose a payment to the buyer on the settlement statement can constitute a “false statement to the lender,” which is a federal crime. Generally speaking, a licensee may rebate a portion of his/her commission to a party in a real estate transaction. Note that if a licensee offers a rebate to a party that the licensee does not represent, the licensee must obtain the consent of the party represented by the licensee prior to making the payment.