AN ACT to amend and reenact section 40-11-04.2 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to the transfer of real property by exclusive and nonexclusive listing agreements.

69th Legislative Assembly (2025-26) Introduced by Michelle Axtman and 8 co-sponsors

Allows cities to use brokers for city-owned property through exclusive or nonexclusive listings, with competitive selection, fee caps, and required disclosure.

Filed with Secretary Of State 03/31

Purpose / intent

The bill updates the statutory process by which a city in North Dakota may engage licensed real estate brokers to sell city‑owned real property. It creates an alternative to the existing sale procedure (section 40‑11‑04.1) that is intended to increase transparency, permit use of listing agreements (exclusive and nonexclusive), and require consideration of broker selection factors and compensation impacts.

Key provisions

Alternative procedure: Governing body of a city may adopt a resolution (as an alternative to § 40‑11‑04.1) to identify city real property proposed for sale and establish sale parameters.

Resolution contents: The resolution must describe the property, provide a maximum rate of fee/compensation/commission, and state that the city reserves the right to reject any offers deemed insufficient.

Publication requirement: After adoption, the resolution must be published on the city’s website for at least 14 days (if the city maintains a website) before engaging brokers.

Broker engagement: Cities may engage licensed real estate brokers under:

nonexclusive listing agreements; or
an exclusive listing agreement only if the broker is selected through a competitive process.

Criteria for exclusive listing proposals: A broker’s proposal for an exclusive listing must address:

the broker’s experience;
experience selling similar property;
the proposed marketing strategy; and
the proposed rate of fee/compensation/commission.

Buyer’s broker compensation: In negotiating a purchase agreement, a city may agree to pay compensation to a buyer’s real estate broker. When negotiating listing agreements, the city must consider the financial impact of paying buyer‑broker compensation on total fees payable by the city.

Who is affected

City governing bodies and municipal staff (policy, procurement, and property disposal processes).

Licensed real estate brokers and buyer’s brokers (proposal requirements, competitive selection).

Potential purchasers of city property (may see different listing/marketing approaches).

Taxpayers and municipal budgets (commissions and buyer‑broker compensation are to be controlled/considered).

Procedural / timeline notes

The resolution must be posted on a city website for at least 14 days prior to engaging brokers (if a website exists).

The bill appears through the Sixty‑ninth Legislative Assembly record: committee amendments were adopted; enrollment documents show unanimous recorded votes in both chambers (House and Senate). According to available filings, the enrolled bill was transmitted for executive action and filed with the Secretary of State on 03/31/2025.

Potential impacts

Administrative: modest additional steps (website posting, competitive selection procedure) for city property disposals.

Fiscal: could reduce city costs by capping maximum commission rates and requiring consideration of buyer‑broker payments; any fiscal effect is likely local and depends on implementation.

Market/practice: encourages competitive selection for exclusive listings and greater transparency in how cities sell property; may change how brokers structure proposals and compensation.

Bill