Last week’s Knowledge Brokers Podcast (KBP) highlighted some insider comments made about Compass and its private exclusive listings.
The highlights made it into an Instagram post, which racked up over 200 comments, many rushing to defend Compass and alleging bias in favor of Zillow.
Anyone who’s watched KBP enough knows co-host Byron Lazine does not mince words when he disagrees with Zillow leadership. But as the leader of the top real estate team in Connecticut, he still recognizes most of his clients expect to see their listings on Zillow.
It’s not the first time commenters have alleged bias because of a single soundbite. The goal of this blog is to break down the latest Compass-Zillow beef, separate from any respect or criticism due either party.
Read on for a quick breakdown. Then tune in to enjoy the full conversation.
What KBP Reported about Compass Private Exclusives
Last week’s Instagram post featured a clip pulled from the Knowledge Brokers Podcast episode, where the hosts discussed insider information straight from unnamed, yet verified industry sources.
The conversation was about internal guidance at Compass, specifically around how agents are navigating coming soon listings and private exclusives to prevent being banned on Zillow.
Tom Toole got right to the point:
“This is instruction from Compass to their agents not to put the addresses on Coming Soon to prevent being banned by Zillow.
“I’m going to take it one step further. There were some people very high up that reached out to their agents…And over the past few weeks, they’ve seen an increase in the number of listings that started as private exclusives and were banned by Zillow.”
Byron noted that this was based on conversations reportedly happening inside the brokerage:
“Your source verified that these are conversations happening with regional leaders within the brokerage…Some of these are now getting as far as being leaked on social.”
What made the segment compelling was how it connected the internal chatter to what’s actually happening on the ground. When a listing starts as a private exclusive and then gets flagged or restricted on a major portal, agents have to figure it out in real time.
In Tom’s words:
“So, they’re telling people, ‘If you’re worried about the future listing not appearing on Zillow, you should not use Compass private exclusive.’ For now, you can take office exclusives and maybe launch them as a Compass coming soon. And the Compass coming soon is compliant with Zillow’s standard.”
The KBP conversation treated this as a story still unfolding, but agents and sellers are already feeling the ripple effects.
Why Zillow Exposure Became the Flashpoint
The reaction to the post centered on what the story implied about Zillow’s role in the transaction. Once a listing loses access to a major portal, exposure becomes the only thing anyone is talking about, and that’s exactly where KBP focused.
Tom put it bluntly:
“What’s fascinating to me is if this was all about what’s best for the seller, and having this private exclusive launch, why are you telling people, ‘Hey, don’t do this if you’re worried about the Zillow ban’? It’s clear to me that this is not about what’s best for the seller.”
Listings need eyeballs to generate the interest that leads to showings and offers. Pull a property from the largest buyer pool around, and you’re rebuilding the entire demand creation process from scratch.
Is that impossible? No. Does that serve your seller’s best interests and timeline? That’s a question that should be asked and answered before the listing is launched as a private exclusive. For most sellers, the answer would be no.
And for those very few who don’t care about being seen on Zillow, the Zillow ban is a non-issue.
Tom spelled out why:
“Many people in the industry have said that getting banned on Zillow is not good for business for a seller…you’re removing potentially 60% of the eyeballs when it comes to major portals by not having placement on Zillow.”
Exposure drives activity. Activity drives offers. Fewer eyes on a listing means the whole process gets harder, and sellers are the ones absorbing that cost.
Where the Strategy Creates Friction for Agents and Sellers
This is where things get real for agents, who are already living this. When a listing loses visibility, the agent is the one who has to make up the difference.
Byron described what that looks like on the ground:
“Certainly, the sellers are frustrated by this experience, and this agent is now having to go out there and try to drum up interest because it is not available to the largest pool of buyers.”
During the episode, the hosts pulled up a Facebook post by James Dwiggins sharing a grievance from a Compass agent whose client’s listing had been banned.
“Friend of mine got this DM over the weekend from a Compass agent in his area… You all know my opinion on this subject and I’m honestly F’ing tired of explaining why this entire practice will backfire on the industry.
“Just so everyone knows… Zillow does send out multiple warnings to agents that their listing will be banned if they do not put it in the MLS. Whether I agree with Zillow or not is irrelevant. It’s their business and their rules. Mostly – I feel SO BAD for the seller who is stuck in this situation.
“Enter Exhibit A in a class action lawsuit against the industry for recommending these practices to begin with.”
The vast majority of home sellers go into a listing expecting their property in front of as many qualified buyers as possible. When the strategy limits where it shows up, the agent is left having that conversation, usually after the damage is already done.
So, the warning about private exclusives from folks in leadership positions shouldn’t be an issue for agents who are already having clear conversations with their seller clients about the where, when and how of marketing their property.
This Is Not a Zillow vs Compass Debate
The majority of the salty comments on the BAM Instagram post are defending Compass private exclusives and claiming BAM and KBP hosts Byron and Tom must be biased against Compass.
Because they’re reporting on Compass agents marketing their clients’ listings privately and then finding out Zillow was serious about the ban. And some in management positions are going as far as to warn Compass agents against using private exclusives if visibility on Zillow is something their clients want.
It’s fair to point out that continuing to expose sellers to the risk of having their listing banned by Zillow has predictable consequences for both seller and agent.
That said, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen comments like this one:
Quite a few Compass agents commented on the clip, some with a more measured response to the news:
And a few were openly critical of private listings as a marketing strategy.
So, where do you lean on this? Head on over to Instagram to share your thoughts.
Then tune in for this week’s Knowledge Brokers Podcast when the hosts will respond to some of the comments.
