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Each week on The Download, Inman’s Christy Murdock takes a closer look at the week’s top stories to give you what you need to meet Monday head on. This week: Industry heavyweights both expect and oppose Clear Cooperation. Find out which side of the topic the big names in real estate stand on.
Established by the National Association of Realtors in 2019, the Clear Cooperation Policy has had supporters and detractors from the start. The policy requires real estate agents to list any property they sell publicly on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) within one business day,
Proponents say Clear Cooperation promotes transparency by preventing listings, ensures wide distribution of listing information, encourages competition and ensures a fair playing field for potential buyers.
Opponents say the policy undermines both seller discretion and the ability of Realtors to fully fulfill their fiduciary duty to their clients. That’s because for sellers who want to sell without publicly listing on the MLS, whether it’s for security reasons or choice, the ability to do so is severely limited by policy requirements.
Now, with buyer’s agent compensation no longer posted on the MLS and brokerages looking for a strong differentiator to differentiate them from consumer awareness, Clear Cooperation is up for grabs — and this week it seemed to be all anyone was talking about.
This week, four of the top five most read stories were back-and-forths on the topic of Clear Cooperation. As always, we want you to benefit from a variety of voices on all sides of the topic, so that you can form your own opinion based on a balanced, balanced view of this important issue.
We went all the way back in July to set the stage. That’s where the Compass CEO is Robert Reffkin he talked about Clear Cooperation during his company’s Q2 earnings call.
Whether you think you’ve got your mind set or you’re just rushing to counter-intuitions, we’re gathering POVs from top sellers, MLS executives, current and former agents and more. As Anywhere Brands President and CEO Sue Yannaccone he said this week:
“The best approach cannot – and should not – be boiled down to a single topic. It will require thoughtful discussions and healthy debate among leaders across NAR and our industry as a whole, something we have asked NAR to conduct openly and transparently.”
Compass CEO: Clear collaboration is ‘the opposite of landlord’
Robert Reffkin he said clear cooperation forces homeowners into a system that attaches “bad ideas” to listings, and predicted that the anti-packet listing law would eventually be destroyed.
Clear Cooperation is in the middle, facing pressure to change
Officials from the National Association of Realtors are meeting this week to discuss the so-called ban on pocket listings — one of the industry’s most divisive laws. Jim Dalrymple II reports.
Umansky threatens to sue NAR as listing pressure
Agency CEO and founder Mauricio Umansky said he plans to renew the lawsuit against NAR over the pocket listing network. The threat came days after NAR officials met to reevaluate Clear Cooperation.
Reffkin: NAR’s Clear Cooperation violates the code of conduct, the country
In challenging the National Realtor Partnership Policy, Robert Reffkin writes, Salespeople maintain their highest moral, ethical and legal duties to help customers.
Here’s why you want (or don’t want) to see Clear Cooperation repealed
Tens of you weighed in on this The Pulse poll on your thoughts on Clear Cooperation, its pros and cons, and whether it’s time to put the controversial policy on ice.
NAR rival AREA presents a petition to end Clear Cooperation
The American Real Estate Association’s petition to end the NAR fund law has attracted nearly 3,000 signatures since Friday, when the petition was first uploaded to the Change.org site, Andrea V. Brambila reports.
Anywhere you join the push to change NAR’s Clear Cooperation
Documents obtained by Inman show that Anywhere shares some – but not all – of Compass’s concerns about this law when on Thursday the CEO of Compass. Robert Reffkin reiterated his request to abandon the policy, Jim Dalrymple II reports.
Some housing leaders say the focus of Clear Cooperation stems from the commission’s recent lawsuits. But others see a deeper question about brokerage profits at the heart of the matter, Jim Dalrymple II report..
NAR vows to assess current legal risk
The new CEO Nykia Wright told the NAR board of directors the trade group’s next step will be to develop a “comprehensive” litigation strategy and maximize any additional legal exposure related to its rules, Andrea V. Brambila reports.
Nearly 100 real estate professionals shared their thoughts on NAR’s Clear Partnership Policy with Inman, revealing a divide between supporters and opponents of the controversial law, Taylor Anderson report..
Although it has its critics, according to a former Realtor Oscar SorryA well-thought-out modification can ensure that the policy works as intended while preserving the client’s choice.
Compass founder and CEO Robert Reffkin writes that Clear Cooperation undermines the choice of sellers, putting them at risk of the consequences of the disclosure of property information.
According to Redfin CEO Glenn Kelmanmajor brokerages are interested in ending Clear Cooperation, even at the expense of agents and buyers.
In a LinkedIn post, James Dwiggins who say brokerage leaders who are fighting to end the package listing rule are hiding an agenda for listing, recruiting agents and doing insider trading.
Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales urges attention to Sula
Eales said the US partnership model remains the gold standard – but declined to make a decision on NAR policy. “Be careful what you wish for,” he said Wednesday at Inman Connect Austin, Taylor Anderson reports.
Inman Connect Austin kicked off with a spirited debate about Clear Cooperation and the disconnect between brokerage leaders and agents about whether to keep it, Marian McPherson reports.
At Inman Connect Austin, Rachel Hocevar of Compass and Romeo Manzanilla of @properties Christie’s International Real Estate discussed the impact of the industry shake-up, Lillian Dickerson reports.
MLS CEO Brian Donnellan contradicts what the CEO of Compass said Robert Reffkin on Oct. His 8 was chosen for Inman in MLS’s role in promoting clear collaboration.
A local association of Realtors will not use NAR Clear
The Park City Board of Realtors has informed the National Association of Realtors that it will no longer require agents to comply with the listing rule for fear of lawsuits, Andrea V. Brambila reports.
The NAR competitor is looking for agents to act in the classroom over Clear
The American Real Estate Association considers those who are ‘penalized or otherwise harmed’ by the National Association of Realtors’ pocket listing rule and interested in “collective action,” Andrea V. Brambila reports.
Anywhere Brands President and CEO Sue Yannaccone provides a limited, thoughtful assessment of the Clear Cooperation Policy debate.
