C
ompass, a leading brokerage, is calling on rival brokerages and MLSs to agree not to alter or monetize its private listings. The company aims to put "false accusations" to rest regarding its exclusive listing inventory. To achieve this, Compass has announced that it will share its approximately 6,000 private exclusives with competing brokerages and all MLSs, provided certain conditions are met.

    The first condition is that the recipient brokerage or MLS agrees not to alter or monetize the homeowners' listings in any way, keeping the listing agent front and center. This means no selling of listing data to third parties, but rather allowing non-Compass buyer agents to be compensated for their services. The second condition requires brokerages and MLSs to ensure that agents won't face fines or bans for sharing listings with them.

    Compass' 3-phase marketing strategy has sparked controversy among other brokerages, home search portals, and MLSs, who see its efforts as detrimental to consumers, agents, and the integrity of home sale data. The company claims its private exclusives push is about "seller choice" and consumer demand for more control over their listings. However, rumors have circulated that Compass plans to monetize its own private exclusive listings or charge non-Compass agents to access these listings.

    By announcing its new conditions, Compass aims to put these false accusations to rest. The company is currently engaged in a number of legal disputes over private listings, including an antitrust suit against Zillow. Compass' new offer appears to be aimed at MLSs and portals who have penalized or ostracized the brokerage and its private exclusives initiative.

    Compass argues that Zillow's ban on off-market listings and the Consumer Protection Committee's (CCP) fines for sharing listings outside of their platforms are not rules against off-market listings, but rather against sharing listings outside of their respective platforms. The company claims that portals focused on profits over consumers, saying "the purpose of a homeowner's listing is to sell their home, not to generate money for MLSs and portals."