Today, Compass, Inc. filed a complaint against California Regional Multiple Listing Service (CRMLS), the second largest MLS in the country. This comes 11 days after CRMLS filed first against Compass.
Compass’s lawsuit challenges the fine CRMLS imposes on real estate agents who follow a seller client’s instruction to market their home publicly outside the MLS.
Read on for an overview of the complaint and the fine coverage Compass is offering to agents with private listings.
The Target of Compass’s Lawsuit
According to Compass, CRMLS is fining agents up to $2,500 when they publicly market a property outside CRMLS at a client’s request. In some cases, agents may even face suspension or expulsion for not complying.
Compass pointed out that builders and developers of new homes aren’t subject to the same restrictions. The company’s position is that individual homeowners should have the same marketing freedom builders and developers have had for decades.
In its complaint, Compass frames the agent’s role as building a marketing strategy around their client’s specific needs and circumstances.
Compass’s Case Against CRMLS
Robert Reffkin, CEO of Compass International Holdings, took to social media to share the reasoning behind Compass’s lawsuit, stating:
“Effective immediately, Compass will pay all CRMLS fines imposed on agents for publicly marketing homes outside of CRMLS at the lawful direction of their clients.”
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The post goes on to say:
“Every single member of CRMLS’s Board of Directors is a direct competitor of Compass, and they are dictating how Compass and our agents can and cannot compete, how our agents can and cannot serve their clients, and how homeowners can and cannot publicly market their own homes. Rather than allowing the homeowner to choose how to publicly market their home, with the advice of their trusted agent, CRMLS issues fines of up to $2,500 any time a real estate agent follows their client’s lawful instructions to publicly market their property outside of CRMLS.
“MLSs serving more than 350,000 brokers and agents in at least 12 states do not fine or punish agents for publicly marketing homes outside of the MLS as their clients lawfully instruct. Only the law and the homeowner should tell agents how to publicly market a home, and CRMLS is neither the law nor the homeowner.
“We are proud to stand by our California real estate professionals and their clients.”
What This Means for Agents
As mentioned in Reffkin’s post, Compass International Holdings (CIH) will pay all CRMLS fines for agents at its company-owned brokerages, effective immediately (October 16, 2026).
Those brokerages are:
- Coldwell Banker Realty
- Compass
- Sotheby’s International Realty
The coverage applies to fines for marketing homes to the public outside CRMLS in compliance with a homeowner client’s written instruction.
According to the release, agents who want the coverage need to do two things:
- Submit the CRMLS fine notice to Compass
- Assign their right to sue CRMLS to Compass
Compass says it will add those claims to its lawsuit as the case moves forward. Read the full complaint for more information.
