Bright MLS, covering a huge swath of territory across the Mid-Atlantic coast region, is currently the largest multiple listing service in the country. Being the largest often means that the decisions it makes will set the bar for smaller players—particularly in a time of rapid change and uncertainty. This week, Bright announced significant updates to…
CHICAGO—The CEOs of Compass and Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) each testified Thursday, July 2 that Zillow executives threatened them directly over their companies’ resistance to its listing access standards, with MRED CEO Rebecca Jensen recounting a Zillow executive’s warning that she could expect her “phone to be dumped” and all of her “text messages…
Above: the Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse in Chicago. CHICAGO—Zillow Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Hofmann testified Wednesday afternoon that a permanent loss of Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED)’s listing feed could trigger what he called a “downward spiral” for Zillow’s business, as testimony continued in the preliminary injunction hearing between Zillow, MRED and Compass.…
Private listings and networks remain a hot-button issue in real estate, one where sharp lines are being drawn—with MLSs playing a critical role. Recently, Compass announced a partnership with Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) to bring that MLS’s private listing network nationwide. Other MLSs, such as Tennessee’s Realtracs, have also gone national, even if the…
Above, left to right: Zillow CEO Jeremy Wacksman, MRED CEO Rebecca Jensen and Compass International Holdings CEO Robert Reffkin Against the backdrop of a nationwide fight over listing access, data control and marketing strategies, Chicago has become a flashpoint, with MLS Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) recently cutting Zillow off from its listing feeds, ostensibly…
The high-profile, industry-shaking battle between mega-brokerage Compass and dominant portal Zillow is back in the courtroom, as Zillow is asking a court to block a major MLS from cutting off its listing feed, claiming that Compass is engaging in an “illegal conspiracy” to promote its private listing and undermine Zillow. The 52-page lawsuit, which Zillow…
Above: CRMLS CEO Art Carter Back in 2020, the Clear Cooperation Policy (CCP)—compelling agents to submit properties to the MLS within one day of public marketing—recieved immediate pushback. But the headlines mostly centered on the reactions of ostensible outsiders, including listing startups that filed lawsuits and antitrust law enforcement that flagged the policy as potentially…
Compass remains in headlines this week as CEO Robert Reffkin addressed the industry’s “shifting stance on phased marketing” in the company’s recent Q1 2026 earnings call, as the brokerage touts new synergies and business growth from its recent acquisitions. Speaking to investors, Reffkin said that he and other Compass executives are “pleased to see several…
Chicago-based MLS Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) maintains a private listing network, which it has consistently defended even against pressure from other industry power players such as Zillow. Now, MRED’s private listing network is expanding outside Illinois, following an announcement on April 24 that the MLS is partnering with Compass to take its whole platform…
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…
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