Zillow Warns It May Lose Chicago Listings in MLS Standoff

The standoff between Chicago’s MLS and Zillow is escalating, as Zillow looks prepared to move forward with blocking private listings from its websites.

In an email to subscribers on Saturday, the Chicago area’s MLS operator Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) said that Zillow has been contacting brokerages asking for direct listing feeds and warning that Zillow’s access to local listings could be disrupted in early January. Zillow is also “allegedly threatening to contact sellers” about the potential disruption, the email said.

Zillow is asking brokerages to sign multi-year agreements for direct listing feeds, MRED claimed, which would eliminate the need for Zillow to receive listing data in the region from the MLS.

Tension is rising in the monthslong stalemate between MRED and the national home search giant over MRED’s Private Listing Network, which allows sellers to show listings to agents in MRED’s market and their clients but not the broader public. Under Zillow’s listing access standards, rolled out earlier this year, listings that appear first on the private network and then move to public channels would be blocked from appearing on Zillow.

MRED has previously stated Zillow blocking certain listings would be a violation of its licensing agreement with the MLS, suggesting Zillow could lose access to MLS data if it enforces its standards. MRED did not respond to a request for comment.

While Zillow hasn’t started enforcing its listing rules in Chicago, its direct appeal to brokerages shows it’s preparing for the possibility of losing access to MRED’s listings. The frequently asked questions section of Zillow’s listing access standards states it will accept a direct broker feed of listings “in the event the MLS doesn’t send an IDX or VOW feed with all coming soon/delayed marketing or active listings.”

In its email to subscribers, MRED said it had not given Zillow any notices of policy violations that would merit losing access to MLS listing data.

“Unless Zillow anticipates violating MRED policy, we do not understand why they claim service will be interrupted in January,” MRED’s email said. “MRED has asked Zillow for an explanation and has yet to receive an answer.”

In the email, MRED directed brokers to ask Zillow why the company expects its access to listings to be interrupted, and asked brokers to share those conversations with MRED. The MLS also directed subscribers to contact Illinois regulators and local real estate associations if they feel that Zillow’s requests violate state law or Realtor ethics.

Zillow declined to comment. The company hasn’t said when it will begin enforcing its listing standards in the Chicago market.

Zillow, which has been sued by Compass over the same listing standards at issue in Chicago, has criticized the Private Listing Network for distorting the market and putting consumers at a disadvantage.

Zillow also argued Chicago’s Private Listing Network deepens segregation in Chicago. The company released an analysis in November that showed private listings were twice as common in white neighborhoods as they are in non-white neighborhoods, but MRED pushed back against the methodology and narrative.