I'm looking at a CD from a title company that shows a seller-paid "referral fee" payable to Rehomeconnect.com. Is anyone familiar with this site or has anyone handled this particular type of fee? When I see referral fees on a consumer loan subject to RESPA , I get a little crazy! The title company says it's actually part of the realtor's commission, paid to this company for finding prospective buyers in their market area. Instead of showing the realtor's full commission, they have netted it out and separately itemized it on the CD. I feel like this is wrong from a income tax standpoint, but that is not my main question. Would this type of referral fee be permissible under RESPA? If it is permissible, should the fee be labeled as real estate commission? The website does indicate they are licensed brokers. Lastly, if this is okay, should we list this company and all the contact information on page 5 of the CD? Again, this is a seller-paid item. I welcome your comments.

If the seller is paying the fee and it does not involve the loan transaction, it is not a Section 8 issue. They can pay fees to whoever they want.

Thanks, Randy. You're a life-saver again today!