One day after Compass’s deadline for MLSs to change rules or get sued, another listing service is defying the mega-brokerage, with Texas-based Unlock MLS alleging Compass mischaracterizes its rules—and has also privately praised those same policies before threatening litigation. In a letter from Ellen Sessions, a lawyer representing Unlock, addressed to Compass and dated Oct.…
CRMLS is not waiting around for a promised lawsuit from Compass over its listing policies, filing its own federal lawsuit against the mega-brokerage late last night as a fight over exclusive inventory and listing control has once again spilled into federal court. In the 36-page complaint, CRMLS asked a federal judge in New York to…
Above, United Real Estate CEO Dan Duffy at RISMedia’s CEO & Leadership Exchange. Photo by AJ Canaria. WASHINGTON, D.C.—United Real Estate’s outspoken CEO Dan Duffy, in a keynote address kicking off RISMedia’s 38th Annual CEO & Leadership Exchange, offered some pointed criticism of NAR and its progress executing a turnaround from the commission lawsuit saga,…
A new bill in New Jersey seeks to protect homebuyers’ privacy by removing interior listing photos from public MLS feeds after a home is sold. The bill, introduced in the New Jersey State Assembly earlier this month, requires real estate brokers to provide an image removal request form to homebuyers before the date of sale…
Real estate’s Multiple Listing Service (MLS) was built on a century of shared data and mutual trust among brokers. Now, a panel of industry executives says that trust between agents and consumers is fraying as more properties get pulled into private listing networks. And, increasingly, panelists warn trust and cooperation between rival brokerages is wearing…
As the war over private listings intensifies, Zillow and Compass (among others) are using dueling data reports and starkly different methodologies to make their respective cases in the courtroom—and in the court of public opinion. On July 24, Compass reported that pre-marketed homes that started as Private Exclusives or Coming Soons sold for 4.6% more…
The battle over private listings is playing out nearly everywhere—from statehouses and courthouses to brokerage offices and Wall Street boardrooms. As opponents and supporters of the practice make their cases, the debate looks vastly different depending on the venue. But one tool that is nearly always effective is data. And as the practice draws more…
Zillow research released in May found that home sellers lost a combined $1.49 billion to same-agent dual agency and $1.36 billion to off-MLS listings between 2023 and 2025, based on an analysis of more than 15 million transactions. Two sources with no role in the study—a Chicago broker/owner and a real estate economist—reviewed the findings…
A federal congressional committee sent letters to Compass CEO Robert Reffkin and MRED CEO Rebecca Jensen in relation to their partnership, scrutinizing the relationship between the nation’s largest brokerage and the Chicago-based MLS that is already at the center of a federal lawsuit. The letters were penned by a subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee…
In yet another major escalation in its effort to re-shape the foundations of real estate, Compass filed a cascade of state-level ethics complaints Tuesday through 30 Realtor associations, at least 50 MLSs and real estate regulators across 26 states, targeting Zillow and focusing on allegedly misleading property designations on listings. A source with direct knowledge…
| Older Posts |