SAN JOSE, Calif. — In what consumer advocates say is a win for homebuyers and sellers, the National Association of Realtors, the major trade association representing the real estate industry, has largely rebuffed a push by the largest U.S. brokerage to end a policy requiring agents to publicly list properties for sale on local online databases.

Dominant U.S. brokerage Compass has been pressuring the real estate association, which acts as a self-regulatory organization for the industry, to end a policy it adopted in 2020 requiring agents to post listings to a multiple listing service or MLS where any agent can see it within a day of marketing it to the public.

The policy has frustrated Compass’ efforts to persuade more sellers to list their homes privately, where the listing is shown only through the company’s vast network of agents. In the Bay Area, Compass controls nearly a third of the market.

Critics say private listings benefit the brokerage as it ends up representing — and earning commissions — from both buyer and seller, at the expense of home sellers who may not get the best price or buyers who won’t see the listing unless they go through a company agent.

Compass argues private listings protect sellers’ privacy and helps them avoid price drops if their publicly listed property remains unsold for too long, and that the national association’s “Clear Cooperation Policy” violates sellers’ rights.

In a decision this week, the real estate association said it will continue requiring agents to list homes on MLS — allowing other agents to see the listings. But it will create a new exemption so that some sellers can opt to delay listing their homes on public-facing databases like Redfin and Zillow that syndicate MLS listings. The private listing option already exists within some Bay Area MLSs, with what often is called a “Members Only” or “Coming Soon” listing.

“These policy changes allow for greater choice for sellers in marketing their properties while considering buyers’ need to access information through MLSs,” the national association’s President Kevin Sears said.

Brian Boero, a chief executive of 1000watt, a marketing agency for residential real estate companies, who has criticized the shift toward private listings, said the decision is a win for consumers.

“NAR just called Compass’ bluff,” Boero said. “They said, ‘Here, we’re introducing a new status for listings that accommodates those concerns that you have as champions of home seller rights and privacy.’ But it doesn’t give Compass what it wants — which is total unfettered control over its listings.”

In a statement, Compass CEO Robert Reffkin said that the NAR’s announcement was a “small step in the right direction.”

“MLSs shouldn’t restrict how homeowners market their homes at all,” Reffkin said. But with the new “exempted” status, multiple listing services “reduce their legal risk and homeowners gain more choice that they need and deserve.”

Boero doesn’t believe that the fight is over. “It just probably intensifies it,” he said.

Already, Compass says it has been successful in mitigating the listing policy in many places. In a February earnings call, Reffkin said it is not being enforced in nearly half of the markets in which they operate.

Last week, ahead of the decision, the company sent an email to local MLSs pressuring them to allow agents to keep homes off of consumer-facing syndicating websites, like Zillow and Realtors.com, and not reflect a property’s price change history or days on market. The email was first reported by the real estate newsletter Notorious ROB. Not doing so would open them up to “liability.”

“MLS CEOs increasingly realize the liability they face from enforcing this anti-competitive policy,” Reffkin said.

Private listings, also known as pocket listings, aren’t new — many of the most expensive Bay Area homes sold “off-market” in the last year — and they represent a small fraction of total sales in the region, around 3%, Redfin estimates.

Last year, Compass started advising sellers broadly — not just high-net-worth ones — to start with a private listing. A Bay Area News Group analysis of listings on Compass.com in January found that its private listings were 8% of the total from all brokerages in San Francisco, Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa and San Mateo counties.

Other brokerages, including Coldwell Banker and eXp Realty, also have their own exclusive listing networks, though they have a smaller Bay Area presence.

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