Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

Wait, Compass wants the MLS to pay for past commissions settlements?

From HousingWire:

Compass takes CRMLS fight to court and promises to cover agent fines

I’ve been delaying writing about this, too much reading. As you know, two weeks ago CRMLS beat Compass to the courthouse and filed in Manhattan. I told any MLS holding one of Compass’s demand letters to wait and see what that judge had to say before signing anything. On Friday Compass went and found a second judge. It filed its own antitrust suit in Riverside. Same fight, two federal courts, and both sides went shopping in the other guy’s hometown. CRMLS sued in Compass’s. Compass walked past its own federal courthouse in Manhattan and flew 2,500 miles to sue in the division CRMLS sits in, which tells you how badly it wants out of the district that told it no on Zillow in February.

From the complaint:

“Only the law and the homeowner should tell agents how to market a home, and CRMLS is neither the law nor the homeowner.”

Good line. Then read the rest of Friday’s announcement, where Compass adds itself to that list.

Compass will cover the fine for any agent at Compass, Coldwell Banker Realty or Sotheby’s International Realty, as long as the client asked for the public marketing in writing. Two conditions. Send the fine notice to a Compass email address, and assign Compass your right to sue CRMLS over it. Compass then folds your claim into its own case.


Call that what it is. Compass is buying plaintiffs, one fine notice at a time.

Remember the arithmetic. CRMLS says it issued 89 Rule 7.9 fines in 2025, eight of them to a Compass agent, and the fine tops out at $2,500. Call it twenty grand. Now, I’m even less of an attorney than Mrs. Zachria but as I read the complaint is asks for those back as restitution, buried in the prayer for relief. Paragraph 8 is where the real number lives, and the theory is this (and it’s a doozie). Compass couldn’t market a home publicly without putting it in the MLS, so it had no choice but to follow MLS policy, and MLS policy is what got brokerages sued over commissions.

Compass paid over $175 million to defend and settle lawsuits resulting from MLS policies it could not avoid… Although the settlements were the result of MLS rules, CRMLS paid nothing.

Compass wants an MLS to pay for the commission settlements. And in the complaint’s own words, the harms “must be paid back in triplicate.”

My head hurts.

It’s worth checking the word paid. Compass settled Gibson for $57.5 million. Getting anywhere near $175 million takes Anywhere’s $83.5 million settlement, and in Compass’s most recent quarterly filing, $54 million of that was still unpaid. Another $30 million of it was paid by Anywhere back in 2024, before Compass owned the company.

Nicole Aguilar at CRMLS sent over Art Carter’s full statement. Here’s the part that didn’t make the coverage:

“…no brokerage gains an unfair advantage by benefiting from the cooperative while withholding its own publicly marketed listings.”

The word for that is freeriding, and Art didn’t pick it at random. It’s the word the Manhattan judge used in February when he denied Compass’s injunction against Zillow, and CRMLS quotes that ruling three times in its own complaint.

Ten Compass enforcement cases were still open at CRMLS when it filed, eight of them on appeal. Those eight are the ballgame now, because an agent appealing a $2,500 fine wants it to go away. Compass’s lawyers want a transcript.

Compass also promised, on the record, to sue Unlock MLS. Twelve days ago. Maybe CRMLS is the test case and the rest of you are the docket.

So if you got one of those letters, here’s your homework this week. Find out what your enforcement process is worth once the defendant pre-pays the fine and owns the appeal. And I’d still wait before signing anything. Just know that waiting now means two judges instead of one, and every citation you write in the meantime is evidence somebody can buy.

RIP Mark Allen

Kathleen Lappe on LinkedIn

“Hi Friends,
With a heavy heart, I share the passing of Mark Allen, someone deeply loved by me and by the real estate industry.

For nearly four decades, Mark shaped how our industry works, shares information, embraces technology, and connects people.

He spent 16 years as CEO of the Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS®, establishing programs that became models nationwide. He founded 10K Research Marketing, pioneering market analytics for brokers, associations, and MLSs before its acquisition by ShowingTime.

As Vice President of Industry Relations at Realtor.com, he built relationships with REALTOR® associations and MLS leaders and helped oversee data relationships with more than 500 MLSs.”

I had no idea he was sick. Mark was a great guy, very kind and always great to share stories with. I met him first at the Minneapolis Area Association.

Why always the good ones?

#FUCKCANCER

You’re not on the list…

From the Wall Street Journal:

Katherine Clarke for the Wall Street Journal (pay wall)

The Fierce Battle to Control How Americans Buy and Sell Their Homes

Velvet ropes around a house? What a travesty. This is exactly what Brian Boero warned us about at the CMLS Conference in Seattle. The article is not a good look for Compass, but even a worse look for the industry. Just check out the comments, and I thought this quote was emblematic of Compass double talk…

“Compass’s spokesperson said those figures are incorrect, but said the company doesn’t keep track of the numbers itself.”

How long will the industry tolerate one person, one company gatekeeping the American Dream?

AI, real estate and finding a home

Andy Woolley for Homes.com

Beyond the Risks: What Thoughtfully Designed AI Can Bring Real Estate

“The industry’s inventory of homes for sale does not simply appear in a database. It is created, curated, and continuously maintained through the work of real estate professionals, and well-designed AI helps consumers and professionals put that work to better use.

MLSs support this cooperative marketplace by helping participating brokers share listing information broadly and consistently. Their standards, rules, and distribution systems make it easier for professionals and consumers to find and compare listings across brokerage boundaries. AI only increases the importance of accurate, comprehensive, and timely listing information and the systems that make it broadly available”

100%

There are a few initiatives out there regarding AI and real estate. I think we need to listen to all voices and let the best ideas win.

Blame the Dentists

The Industry Relations Podcast is now available on your favorite podcast player!

Overview

Rob and Greg look at the latest NAR existing home sales report. Sales rose 1.5% to a 3.99 million SAAR, inventory stands at 4.8 months, and the median price is $417,500. Investor purchases jumped from 15% to 20% month over month. Rob argues that housing affordability is becoming a political flashpoint ahead of the midterms. He warns that candidates may find it easy to blame real estate investors, and the realtors who work with them, for the housing crisis. Greg pushes back on how much political power anyone could gain by taking on NAR, the country’s second-largest lobby. The two then debate whether the industry has any real message for young, working-class Americans who believe they’ll never own a home.

Key Takeaways

  • Existing home sales hit 3.99M SAAR in September, the fourth straight year near 4 million.
  • Investor share of purchases rose from 15% to 20% in one month; first-time buyers edged up to 31%.
  • Mortgage rates are set by the bond market, not the Fed, and 10-year yields are near 5.3%.
  • Rising bond market concerns are pushing wealthier individuals toward real assets like housing.
  • Most real estate investors are individuals, such as dentists and retirees, not institutions like BlackRock.
  • Investors and first-time buyers often compete for the same starter homes.
  • Rob sees housing as an open lane for a “housing candidate” willing to blame investors and realtors.
  • NAR ranks second in national lobbying, behind only the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and ahead of pharma.
  • Policy ideas discussed include limiting Fannie and Freddie financing for investment properties and restricting the mortgage interest deduction to owner-occupied homes.
  • Down payment assistance risks raising prices by the same amount.
  • Greg is optimistic that the AI infrastructure build-out will drive long-term prosperity.
  • Rob argues Gen Z has lost the reasonable expectation that hard work leads to homeownership.
  • Open question to listeners: what message should the industry have for the younger generation?

Connect with Rob and Greg

Rob’s Website 

Greg’s Website 

Watch us on YouTube

Our Sponsors:

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Production and Editing Services by Sunbound Studios

Matt Fowler joins Bill Fowler in new consulting firm

MLS AND PROPTECH LEADER MATT FOWLER JOINS PHANTOM POWER.

“Matt Fowler brings more than three decades of experience across MLS leadership, technology and organizational transformation. Most recently, he served as the first Chief Executive Officer of DoorifyMLS, formerly Triangle MLS, where he led a multi-year transformation spanning technology, operations, organizational structure and business model. In 2024, he was named the Council of Multiple Listing Services’ 10th Shuttleworth MLS Executive of the Year.”

Best wishes to Bill and Matt on their new adventure.

One Lost Agent Costs You $18K, Plus 6+ Months of Lost Revenue [Sponsor]

Losing an agent isn’t just an operational headache. It’s a number, and according to the new Lone Wolf x Inman 2026 Broker/Owner Survey, it’s a bigger one than most brokers realize.

The direct cost: $18,036

Brokers surveyed put the average total cost of losing one productive agent at $18,036, with a median of $15,555. Independent brokers actually estimate this cost higher than franchise brokers do ($18,365 vs. $16,053), which likely reflects how much harder a single departure is felt in a smaller shop.

For a franchise brokerage, one unexpected departure can cost 1.5–2x that agent’s annual GCI contribution, plus the morale hit that often triggers a second departure.

Here’s the part that should worry every brokerage regardless of size: 18% of brokers haven’t even tried to estimate this cost. That’s not just a missed number. It’s a blind spot in its own right, if you don’t know what a departure costs you, you have no way to prioritize preventing it.

The hidden cost: 200 days

The dollar figure is only part of the picture. On average, a new agent needs 200 days to reach full productivity, more than half a year before they’re fully contributing to the business. Franchise-affiliated brokerages see even longer ramp times than independents (231.6 days vs. 190.6 days), which raises the stakes further for every retention miss.

Stack the two numbers together: a single unexpected departure can shadow your production for two-thirds of a year, on top of the immediate cost of replacing that agent.

The revenue-level cost: 7%

Zoom out further, and agent turnover eats an estimated 7% of annual revenue on average across the industry. That impact isn’t distributed evenly. Franchise brokers report roughly double the revenue hit that independents do, 10.0% versus 4.9%. For a franchise operator, retention isn’t a soft, feel-good metric. It’s a line item with a direct connection to the P&L.

And it’s often preventable

Three in ten brokers lost an agent unexpectedly in the past 12 months. “Unexpectedly” is the key word, and the survey shows why it catches brokers off guard: 26% get little to no warning at all before an agent leaves, and even among those who do notice something, 33% only get one to three months to act. That’s a narrow window, and 44% of brokers don’t keep any formal tracking list to make the most of it.

The cost of a surprise departure isn’t inevitable. It’s the direct downstream effect of not having a system built to catch the signal before the window closes.

Learn how to build a retention system that catches at-risk agents before the window closes

RIP Niki Rapattoni

She’s with Andy now and I think that’s where she always wanted to be. My condolences to her family.

She was always so sweet to me and proud of what she and Andy created. I enjoyed our many conversations, and her trust.

RIP Niki.

😢

Why 74% of Brokers Say Retention Matters, But Only 2%Actually Pursue It [Sponsor]

Ask any broker-owner whether retention or recruiting matters more, and the answer is nearly unanimous. In the new Lone Wolf x Inman 2026 Broker/Owner Survey, 74% of brokers rated retention as more valuable than recruiting. Then ask what they’re actually building their growth strategy around. Only 2% name retention as their #1 priority.

That 72-point gap is the story of the entire report.

Brokers know. They just aren’t set up to act on it.
The survey found that 65% of brokers say they assess flight risk in some way, but the top three methods they rely on are all informal: gut instinct (79%), regular check-ins (72%), and watching production trends (66%). Structured, data-driven approaches barely register. Only 24% use any kind of analytics tool for this, and just 6% run formal satisfaction surveys.

The result is a confidence problem. Only 15% of brokers say they’re “very confident” they’d catch an at-risk agent before that agent gives notice. The largest group, 38%, land at only “somewhat confident.” And 44% of brokers keep no formal tracking list at all, which means even the signals a broker does notice have nowhere consistent to live.

Why this keeps happening
Manual tracking works fine for a handful of agents. It breaks down for a full roster. When retention data lives in one broker’s head instead of a system the whole team can see, the signal is only as strong as that person’s bandwidth in any given week. Distraction, growth, or a vacation, and the signal disappears.

By the time an agent asks for their license file, it’s already too late. As one broker-owner in the study put it, agents go quiet, skip office events, and pull back long before they say anything out loud. The relational signs show up first. The behavioral ones show up last, right before the resignation.

Where the opportunity sits
Here’s the part that should change how brokers think about this: 66% believe AI could help identify a flight risk before it happens. Only 19% are actually using it that way today, the lowest AI adoption rate of any function brokers were asked about, well behind marketing (51%) and market analysis (52%).

The tools brokers already trust for the rest of the business haven’t caught up to the one thing they say matters most. The brokers who close that gap first, moving from gut instinct to something closer to a system, are already seeing the payoff in how confidently they can answer one simple question: who’s actually at risk right now?

See how top brokers are solving this

Treble Damages and Cupcakes

The Industry Relations Podcast is now available on your favorite podcast player!

Overview

Rob and Greg recap CMLS, from Errol Samuelson’s understated appearance to Robert Reffkin’s scripted, heavily criticized onstage interview with Jessica Edgerton. Rob notes that his engagement with Compass ended in September, though confidentiality restrictions still apply. The conversation then turns to the escalating Compass–CRMLS conflict and a heated debate over what the MLS should be in 2026 and beyond. Rob says MLSs need to define their identity and stop simply reacting to events. Greg says the answer will vary by market. They also clash over whether data-licensing revenue shared with brokers has any real connection to cooperation.

Key Takeaways

  • CMLS drew close to 1,000 attendees, but the lack of Wi-Fi in the main hall was a major unforced error.
  • Errol Samuelson argued that listing exposure is a form of MLS contribution and urged attendees not to listen to the loudest voice.
  • The recent ruling against Zillow went largely unmentioned during Samuelson’s session.
  • Robert Reffkin read from prepared notes, repeatedly warned of lawsuits and treble damages, and opened with a 1971 MLS book as a prop.
  • The crowd’s reaction to Reffkin seemed to unite MLS leaders rather than divide them.
  • CRMLS has published the Compass demand letter and its response, and has filed a declaratory judgment lawsuit.
  • Greg sees the fines issue as a red herring, with only eight fines totaling about $3,000.
  • Greg expects MLSs to split regionally, with some leaning platform, some staying cooperative, and some landing on hybrids.
  • Rob argues every MLS needs to answer two questions: who are we today, and who do we want to be tomorrow?
  • Rob says removing compensation should have triggered a fundamental rethink of what cooperation means.
  • 1% of brokerages contribute 64% of MLS listings, a fact Rob says the industry has avoided confronting.
  • Greg points out that CLAW’s more broker-friendly rules haven’t caused a mass exodus from CRMLS.
  • MLSs are experimenting with rewards programs and new data-licensing models that pay brokers for their contributions.
  • Rob says data-sales revenue doesn’t require cooperation and that tying the two together is arbitrary.
  • Greg says tying payouts to cooperation rules is a legitimate incentive, the “cupcake” for following the rules.
  • Rob calls cooperation a structural reality of a two-sided industry that doesn’t need incentives.
  • Both agree this kind of debate needs to happen inside MLS boardrooms.

Connect with Rob and Greg

Rob’s Website 

Greg’s Website 

Watch us on YouTube

Our Sponsors:

Cotality 

Notorious VIP

The Giant Steps Job Board 

Production and Editing Services by Sunbound Studios

Sponsored By Lone Wolf Technologies