Compass and its CEO, Robert Reffkin, have not been shy when it comes to voicing their displeasure over the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Clear Cooperation Policy (CCP).
Over the weekend, the firm took things a step further by sending an email to MLSs with suggested changes to their CCP policies. The email was obtained and published by industry analyst Rob Hahn. A spokesperson for Compass confirmed to HousingWire that the email was authentic and that it had been sent to MLSs.
The email begins with excerpts from an Inman News article about CCP, which included quotes from commission lawsuit plaintiffs’ attorney Michael Ketchmark.
In the article, Ketchmark said that Realtor organizations need “to be aware of the fact that not only will our law firm and other attorneys be looking at [CCP], but the eyes of the world are upon them, and it’s time to do the right thing and let homeowners make decisions about their houses and not a bureaucratic organization.”
“Homeowners are the ones who own their homes, not the National Association of Realtors, and if the homeowner and their agent make a decision that they don’t want to list it on any particular site for any particular reason, they ought to have a right to do that,” he added.
Ketchmark also said that anyone who is involved in upholding CCP will be subject to legal exposure.
“That should be in the forefront of the minds of the men and women who are going to be voting either later this week or next on that policy,” Ketchmark is quoted as saying in the article. “If they’re doing it for the wrong reasons, they’re going to be held accountable.”
Compass goes on to say that it’s standing by its past statements that “your MLS is not giving adequate homeowner choice and that your MLS is subject to litigation risk. This is all coming to a head given what Ketchmark has said and now is the time to make these decisions quickly.”
The letter goes on to outline four different models of CCP that have been adopted by MLSs with significant shares of Compass listings.
At MLS Property Information Network (MLS PIN), BAREIS, Realtracs and Garden State MLS, Compass said that CCP was either never implemented or is no longer being enforced.
At Bright MLS, Compass said agents are allowed to market office-exclusive listings on the MLS. And at the MLS used by the San Francisco Association of Realtors, agents can designate listings as “Coming Soon.” Compass wrote that this “ensures participation / sharing with agents who participate in that MLS” while giving agents and sellers greater flexibility in marketing a property.
Notably, Compass said that while a listing is under this “Coming Soon” designation, price changes and days on market are not visible to buyers, and the listing is not syndicated to listing portal sites like Zillow. The Chicago area’s Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) MLS offers similar capabilities through its private listing network, according to Compass.
Compass noted in its letter that it’s important to maintain the office-exclusive designation as it gives options to “sellers who do not want their homes listed on the MLS at all / to be marketed privately only.”
“To remove this would be a step backwards for homeowner choice and would create additional legal risks,” the letter states.
Compass then goes on to invite the MLSs to reach out to its head of operations if they want to learn more about the strategies used by these MLSs.
NAR is expected to vote on CCP in the coming weeks. It currently remains unclear whether NAR’s leadership team, comprised of eight top executives and brokers, will be the ones who vote exclusively. The decision could also include the trade group’s larger executive committee, which has 71 members.
