Homes for sale could become harder to find
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Illustration: Maura Losch/Axios
This tough housing market could soon get even trickier to navigate.
Why it matters: Some real estate companies want to list homes on private networks, fueling fears that buyers might struggle to access them.
How it works: Right now, most homes for sale are widely viewable online and on multiple listing services (MLS), the databases brokers use.
- A few brokerages are pushing for more leeway to privately share listings with their agents and clients before advertising them publicly on the MLS.
- The National Association of Realtors is considering a rule change this month that could allow it, per HousingWire.
What they're saying: Sellers should have "a choice of where, when, and how to advertise their home for sale," Robert Reffkin, CEO of Compass, one of the largest U.S. brokerages, tells Axios.
- Private listing advocates like Reffkin say the status quo hurts home values by making sellers reveal details such as price drops and time on the market.
Reality check: Other real estate experts and consumer advocates warn that moving listings to private networks could limit buyers' access to an already short supply of homes.
- It may also prevent sellers from getting top dollar, Stephen Brobeck, senior fellow at the Consumer Policy Center, tells Axios.
- Listing on the MLS gives "sellers exposure to a wide range of buyers and [provides] buyers access to a wide range of properties," Brobeck says.
Between the lines: Homes sold outside the MLS typically went for nearly $5,000 less than those listed on the MLS, per a Zillow study analyzing sales over the past two years.
- Off-MLS listings often include ultra-luxury and celebrity properties, plus houses sold directly by owners or builders.
- Zillow's research excludes new builds and home sales above $10 million, among other caveats.
What we're hearing: "The marketplace is transparent. Private listing networks are the opposite of that," Zillow CEO Jeremy Wacksman tells Axios.
- "They are brokerages looking to keep listings out of the public so that you have to work with that brokerage to get access to them," he says.
The other side: Compass cites research showing that homes "pre-marketed" with a Compass agent before hitting the MLS sold for almost 3% more on average.
The bottom line: The clash over private listings comes after the National Association of Realtors reached a major legal settlement last year.
- That's shaking up the industry and inviting scrutiny of its rules — which could have big implications for consumers.
