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hares of online real‑estate portals fell sharply on Monday after Google revealed a test that places home‑for‑sale ads directly at the top of search results, potentially siphoning traffic from third‑party sites. Zillow Group led the slide, with its stock down 10.8% in early trade, marking the steepest decline since March 2024 and the lowest close since late May 2025. CoStar Group (owner of Homes.com) dropped about 7.8%, approaching its lowest close since July 2022, while Rocket Companies, which acquired Redfin earlier this year, fell 4.7%, heading toward its weakest close since November.
The sell‑off followed reports that Google is embedding listings within search results rather than redirecting users to external portals. Real‑estate strategist Mike DelPrete highlighted the move on his blog, noting that the feature includes property details, tour requests and agent‑contact links—core functions of portal business models. The test appears limited to mobile devices and a handful of markets.
Barron’s reproduced the effect on a mobile browser: searching “homes for sale in Austin” produced a carousel at the top of the page with photos, prices, addresses and key specs such as bedrooms, bathrooms and square footage. The feature was absent in other locations, such as Boise, underscoring its experimental nature. Clicking a listing opens a page with more details, a tour‑request option and a link to a local agent, whom Google selects from top‑rated local agents who typically respond within hours.
Analysts weigh the potential impact on Zillow. The format is built with ComeHome, which pulls MLS data rather than agent feeds, positioning it as a possible rival to Zillow’s Premier Agent program. Robert Mollins of Gorden Haskett called the test a negative for Zillow but argued it would not immediately erode the company’s dominant market share or its projected mid‑teens revenue growth and margin expansion in 2026. Goldman Sachs retained a neutral rating and a $78 price target, noting that most of Zillow’s traffic comes directly from its own sites and apps, not Google search.
