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hopping for homes online has become a more exclusive experience, with the hottest new listings hidden behind velvet ropes. To gain access to these coveted properties, you need to know someone who works with a top real estate agent or brokerage.
The traditional open market approach, where agents share listings widely through local databases known as multiple listing services (MLS), is giving way to a more clubby system. Agents are increasingly hoarding their listings internally and making them available only to buyers who work with other agents from the same brokerage. This shift has been driven by companies like Compass, the country's largest real estate brokerage by sales volume.
Compass' founder and CEO, Robert Reffkin, has been crusading against the clear cooperation policy, which requires agents to list properties on the MLS within a day of publicly marketing them. Reffkin argues that sellers should have more control over how their homes are marketed, and his campaign has sparked fierce infighting among real estate agents.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) recently decided to leave the clear cooperation policy intact while introducing an option for privacy-conscious sellers to list on the MLS with a delayed release. This move is seen as a small concession to Compass but may not satisfy anyone in the long run.
Compass has already succeeded in shaking up the real estate landscape by exploiting a loophole in the clear cooperation rules. The company's "Private Exclusive" route allows agents to share new properties within their brokerages without adding them to the MLS, creating a walled garden with homes that can't be found elsewhere. This strategy has become a key part of Compass' business model.
While some argue that sellers benefit from spurning the MLS and marketing their homes within the safe confines of the Compass network, others see this as a ploy for control. The company's ultimate goal is to make its website a destination where it controls the inventory publicly and can expand its private listings program without restriction.
The clear cooperation policy has always been tough to enforce, with local MLSes struggling to keep agents in line. Some MLSes have already backed off enforcement, allowing agents to market homes however they like. This could enable private listing networks to flourish, further fragmenting the housing market.
NAR's decision to keep clear cooperation is a small victory for those who favor the status quo, but it won't end the practices fracturing the housing market. The real estate industry remains stuck in limbo, with secret listings on the rise and no clear resolution in sight.
