The Justice Department and the National Association of Realtors announced yesterday a lawsuit settlement regarding how much information had to be provided to brokers, including Internet discount brokers. The Justice Department had argued that the NAR shut out discount brokers through its MLS policy limiting information that could be provided on Web sites. Discount brokers who rely heavily on the Internet were said to be disproportionately affected.
The exact terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but our guess is that the settlement will not affect the Orange County area. Redfin, Ziprealty and other "virtual" real estate brokers seem to have the same access to information as other brokers in Orange County already. It is not apparent in this area that virtual brokers were being shut out.
In fact, some of our clients have used Redfin and Ziprealty as information sources before coming to us, suggesting to us that they are providing enough information to be useful. That additional information, however, is not adding up to additional sales.
According to Trendgraphix, in April 2008, the top broker in Orange County sales was First Team Real Estate with 361 sales. The next highest was Coldwell Banker Residential with 138 sales. In 21st place was ZipRealty with 23 sales and in 402nd place was Redfin with 1 sale.
From our perspective lack of information is not the issue in Orange County, but rather consumer preference for working with brokers that sell.
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