A little over a week after Zillow sought to clarify its discussions with Chicago-based Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) over restrictions on private listings, the MLS appears to be digging in, as this week MRED CEO Rebecca Jensen sent an emotional open letter to members defending its private listing network against a “one-size-fits-all model.” With…
FirstTeam® has announced that it has joined Zillow Preview, the portal’s new way to bring pre-market home listings into the open, earlier in the listing process. As part of the platform, Zillow stated that FirstTeam®’s 2,300 sales agents in California, Arizona, Idaho, and Washington can now publicly pre-market their listings on Zillow and Trulia before…
“I can prove anything by statistics except the truth.” That witticism, attributed to 19th century British orator and statesman George Canning, highlights something that remains extremely relevant today in the information age. While we have nearly unlimited access to data and analysis, they aren’t always—or perhaps often—leading us closer to the answers we seek. Case…
The issue of private listing networks is not confined to real estate policy; it has also caught the attention of lawmakers nationwide. Several states, including Washington, Illinois, Wisconsin and Connecticut, have passed or considered laws that mandate real estate listings be publicly accessible, a potential limitation on the exclusivity offered by private networks. Now, New…
In a matter of weeks this quarter, all the major brokerages partnered with portals to pre-market their listings. Compass routed its pre-market listings to Redfin; Zillow formed its own coalition—with Keller Williams, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, RE/MAX, United Real Estate and Side—as it launched Zillow Preview. And eXp Realty announced a “Coming Soon” partnership with Realtor.com®,…
Compass is big—historically big. That is something that no one in the industry is disputing. After its acquisition of Anywhere and all that company’s brands, Compass International Holdings (a new parent company overseeing all these new subsidiaries) oversees somewhere in the range of 80,000 agents, who collectively closed half a million transactions last year. What…
“Premarket listings.” It’s the new industry catchphrase, thankfully replacing “commission lawsuits,” but, alas, it comes with its own controversy. The practice of promoting a property to potential buyers and agents before being listed on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) has also made its way into the courtroom, most prominently via a tussle between Compass and…
The legal battle between Northwest MLS (NWMLS) and Compass escalated this past week as NWMLS filed counterclaims in federal court, accusing the nation’s largest residential brokerage of violating Washington’s Consumer Protection Act, fraudulent misrepresentation and tortious interference—charges Compass swiftly dismissed as retaliation by a “monopolist” protecting its own turf. The counterclaims, filed April 2 in…
There is a lot of noise in the real estate industry right now. Clear Cooperation. Private listings. Lawsuits. And now a growing push toward exclusive “Coming Soon” and preview platforms. Let me be clear about where HomeSmart stands. Until shown otherwise, we believe listings should be broadly accessible, not restricted to any one platform or…
Compass continues to make headlines this week as Compass International Holdings has announced the appointment of Rory Golod—previous co-leader of Compass’s brokerage business and chief of staff for CEO Robert Reffkin—to the new role of president of Growth. As the company moves forward, restructuring and setting a new path after its massive merger with Anywhere…
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