Two U.S. lawmakers are urging the Federal Commerce Fee to look at the practices of on-line actual property marketplaces.
Democratic Reps. Jennifer McClellan and Don Beyer wrote in a letter to FTC chairman Andrew Ferguson that platforms that steer potential homebuyers towards purchaser brokers in trade for a referral payment could also be contributing to the unaffordability points plaguing the housing market.
The congresspeople didn’t specify any platform by title, however claimed that options like “contact agent” or “request tour” buttons, that are discovered on listings of platforms like Zillow, can mislead consumers, leading to larger transaction prices or much less favorable monetary phrases. (The letter additionally cited a lawsuit filed final yr by client Alucard Taylor in opposition to Zillow over its referral payment observe, which was later merged with one other client class-action criticism.)
“The skyrocketing value of dwelling on this nation has solely put house possession additional and additional out of attain for the American individuals,” McClellan mentioned in an announcement supplied to The Actual Deal. “Misleading and non-transparent promoting practices within the on-line actual property market make this worse by creating higher confusion, frustration or disillusionment with the method.”
The letter requires the FTC to “stay attentive, research developments within the on-line actual property area, and contemplate methods to advertise higher transparency and accountability in practices which will impression shoppers’ monetary well-being.”
The letter comes as residential actual property’s greatest gamers have confronted growing public and regulatory scrutiny amid business consolidation and a housing market slowed down by excessive rates of interest and an absence of reasonably priced stock. As of the tip of 2025, the typical American wanted to earn over $111,000 to afford a median-priced house, greater than $25,000 above the precise common revenue, in line with a February report from Redfin.
Compass and Zillow — the biggest brokerage and largest actual property portal within the nation, respectively — have borne the brunt of public criticism, for various causes.
Final yr, plaintiffs filed two separate lawsuits claiming that Zillow steers shoppers to make use of its Flex and Premier Agent applications resulting in inflated house buy costs. (Zillow filed a motion in February to dismiss the consolidated lawsuit, and adopted up on the movement earlier this week.)
In December, Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden urged antitrust officers to scrutinize the $1.6 billion merger between Compass and Anyplace Actual Property that they claimed might restrict transparency within the residential housing market and probably inflate dealer charges for homebuyers.
The deal closed the next month after the Division of Justice declined to conduct an prolonged evaluate. The Wall Avenue Journal reported that Compass employed Mike Davis, a lawyer affiliated with President Donald Trump identified for dashing alongside mergers, who successfully lobbied Deputy Lawyer Normal Todd Blanche to shut down any interest in an extended review.
Though the deal evaded federal regulatory inquiries, The Actual Deal reported this week that the New York Lawyer Normal’s workplace opened up a probe to research Compass’ footprint within the New York market.
Compass can be battling an antitrust lawsuit filed final month by Zillow. The portal alleged that Compass and the Chicago-area itemizing service, Midwest Actual Property Information, conspired to pressure Zillow into displaying listings which can be first marketed off its web site, in violation of Zillow’s newly-instated itemizing coverage.
Compass and MRED shut off Zillow’s access to listings in Chicago the next week, earlier than a choose within the case dominated Zillow’s entry wanted to be reinstated throughout the case.
Learn extra
NY AG probing Compass over antitrust concerns
Senators urge antitrust scrutiny of Compass-Anywhere $1.6B Deal
Reactions to Zillow-MRED lawsuit expose fault lines in fight over listing data
