Illinois Bill Targets Private Real Estate Listings

The debate over private listings is back in the Illinois statehouse, drawing battle lines between industry players amid a broader fight over listing transparency in Chicago.

State Rep. Lilian Jiménez (D-Chicago) introduced House Bill 4964 in February. The legislation requires listing agents to publicly market homes on an internet platform accessible to consumers within one day of signing a brokerage agreement unless a seller signs a specific disclosure form.

The bill is in line with the tenets of the National Association of Realtors’ Clear Cooperation Policy, which requires agents to submit a property to the Multiple Listing Service within one business day of being publicly marketed. But its mandates are stricter, requiring public listing within one calendar day of signing the listing agreement.

The bill also requires listing agents to share property details with any other licensed agents and make properties available for showing to prospective buyers, effectively outlawing brokerage-exclusive pocket listings.

The bill is similar to one Jiménez filed in 2025 that never got a committee hearing. The new bill has a more limited scope, applying to only sellers of residential real estate and not landlords listing rentals. It also removes the requirement for the seller to provide a reason for opting out of a public listing. Jiménez’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

If the bill becomes law, a seller who wants to list a property out of public view would need to sign an acknowledgment that “the reduction in exposure of the listed property may reduce the number of offers to purchase the listed property and negatively impact the seller’s ability to sell the listed property at terms favorable to the seller,” the bill says.

That message is counter to Compass’ argument that private marketing can increase a home’s value by avoiding drags like days on market and price changes, but it’s in line with arguments from home search giant Zillow and many economists that the widest reach will deliver the highest sale price.

The reintroduced legislation, backed by Zillow, comes amid a widespread battle over access to listings that has pitted Zillow against the Chicago-area MLS and spurred a lawsuit from national brokerage Compass against Zillow. It also comes after similar restrictions on private listings have been signed into law in nearby Wisconsin, and a bill in Washington is awaiting the governor’s signature.

In a statement, a Zillow spokesperson said Zillow supports the legislation and that broad exposure for listings is a benefit to buyers, sellers, and the industry as a whole.

“We’re glad to see Illinois put forward a bill that would have it join other states in establishing pro-consumer protections to ensure broad access to real estate listings,” the spokesperson said. “Hidden listings worsen the housing affordability crisis by making it more difficult for buyers to navigate the market and causing sellers to lose out on potential offers.”

Brokerages that tout the benefits of private listings, including Compass and Chicago-based @properties Christie’s International Real Estate, have balked at state-level efforts to restrict private listings. Compass acquired @properties in 2024.

“We firmly support consumer choice when it comes to selling and buying real estate, and we are opposed to rules, policies and laws that limit consumer choice,” said @properties co-CEOs Thad Wong and Mike Golden in a joint statement. “Our own experience, and [Midwest Real Estate Data’s] experience with the [Private Listing Network], shows that giving people the freedom to choose how they bring their home to market has real benefits in a variety of situations. Restricting those options is not in the best interests of Illinois home sellers or buyers.”

With the added disclosure form, the bill would restrict how local agents can use the Private Listing Network maintained by Midwest Real Estate Data, the MLS serving the Chicago area. The network, which is relatively unique to Chicago’s market, allows agents to enter offerings that are visible to all agents who use the MLS, but are kept off internet listing sites. Zillow has said the private network violates its listing standards that bar agents from marketing listings off the public market if they want to put them on Zillow later.

MRED has defended its network against the attacks, saying it’s a necessary tool for sellers in sensitive situations involving death, divorce and other hardships. The network is also a key piece of the three-phased marketing strategy for Compass agents in the region, and agents often put “Coming Soon” listings on the private network. MRED didn’t respond to a request for comment on the legislation.

Sellers who list homes on the private network already need to sign a disclosure noting the listing will go to a smaller pool of buyers, according to MRED documents, but the language is not as harsh as the bill’s proposed form.

Illinois Realtors, the trade association representing the state’s real estate agents, is “still reviewing the bill,” spokesperson Anthony Hebron said, and has not yet taken a position on it. The National Association of Realtors did not respond to a request for comment on the legislation.

The realtors’ trade associations in both Washington and Wisconsin backed their states’ bills.

“Clear, consistent marketing practices ensure fair access for buyers, maintain competition, and give both parties confidence that the transaction is transparent and efficient,” the Wisconsin Realtors Association said in a 2025 letter on the legislation.

The Wisconsin law, which Gov. Tony Evers signed in December and which takes effect next January, is the first bill emulating clear cooperation to be signed into law in the country. Zillow pointed to its passage in a recent blog post as evidence of a “growing national movement” to ensure public access to real estate listings.

Whether that momentum will reach the Illinois Legislature this year remains to be seen. Jiménez’s bill was referred to the Rules Committee Feb. 6 and has not received any further action since then, according to the Illinois Legislature website.