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Zillow has announced a controversial new policy that it claims supports consumers — but in reality, it punishes sellers.
Beginning in May, if a listing is publicly marketed — be it a yard sign, social media post or on a private listing network — and is not entered into the MLS within one day, delaying the listing feeds — Zillow will permanently ban that listing from appearing on its platform. No second chances. No listing visibility. Ever.
While Zillow claims this is about fairness and equal access for buyers, the truth is this move directly undermines seller choice and agent autonomy. Let’s break down exactly what this means — and why it signals something much bigger than just a policy change.
Here’s Zillow’s position:
“If you publicly market a listing — on social media, via an email blast, or even with a yard sign — but delay putting it on the IDX feed, your listing will never be allowed on Zillow. Not now, not later. Period.”
They say it’s about creating fairness and giving all buyers equal access. That’s their spin. But when you look at the facts, it starts to feel more like a power move than a policy rooted in consumer benefit.
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But wait — isn’t delayed syndication allowed by NAR?
Yes. In fact, the National Association of Realtors recently introduced a new policy called Multiple Listing Options for Sellers.
The intent of? To give sellers more flexibility and control over how and when their home is marketed online.
This rule further paved the way for private listing networks.
So now if homeowners decide to list on a PLN and market their homes, thus delaying a listing’s appearance on public websites like Zillow, Realtor.com and others by temporarily withholding it from the IDX feed, Zillow will no longer host the listing for the life of the listing with that broker.
But apparently, Zillow doesn’t like this rule
Instead of embracing this seller-first policy, Zillow has chosen to push back — hard. Their new stance is clear: If the seller chooses to delay its appearance on the IDX feed, and the property is publicly marketed in any way, Zillow will permanently ban that listing from its site.
This isn’t just a technical enforcement. It feels like retaliation.
Zillow isn’t leveling the playing field — they’re flipping the board
When a company becomes as dominant as Zillow, it seemingly starts to believe it can make the rules — even when those rules contradict the very systems (like the MLS) that have kept real estate transparent, competitive and fair for decades.
Let’s call this what it is: Zillow is attempting to control how agents market homes, how sellers exercise their rights and how buyers find properties.
They’re not doing it for the greater good. They’re doing it because they want to own the pipeline — and punish anyone who dares to step outside their system.
If listings can be marketed and sold without Zillow — even briefly — it calls into question Zillow’s relevance. And that’s a threat. Especially to its lead-generation business model, which depends on agents believing Zillow is an essential tool.
The moment agents and sellers prove otherwise, the platform’s grip weakens. So Zillow is moving to prevent that from happening — not by improving its service, but by forcing compliance through exclusion.
The warning signs are clear
We’ve seen it before: Tech giants that climb to the top, start flexing their dominance — only to watch the cracks start to show.
Think of MySpace, once untouchable in the social media space, until its rigid platform and refusal to adapt opened the door for Facebook. Or Netflix, once the disruptor, which now faces a growing backlash and subscriber loss after trying to control content and pricing too aggressively. Even Amazon and Google have come under fire from regulators and industry groups for monopolistic practices and abusing their market positions.
The pattern is clear: When companies start acting like they’re untouchable, their downfall begins.
Zillow is entering that territory — pushing policies that serve its platform, not the people who use it. And whether they realize it or not, this may be the beginning of the end.
Zillow, I’m not your friend
Since the COVID era, I’ve been sounding the alarm: Zillow does not have the best interests of real estate professionals at heart. And this latest move only confirms what so many of us have felt all along.
Zillow has no intention of being our partner — its actions have shown time and again that it intends to be our replacement.
Need proof? Look no further than Zillow’s acquisition of ShowingTime, dotloop, its strategic purchases like mortgage companies, and its former pivot into iBuying with Zillow Offers — all moves designed to bring more of the transaction in-house, cutting agents further out of the process.
In 2021, Zillow even hired real estate agents directly to handle transactions in select markets, confirming their willingness to cross the line from partner to competitor.
But perhaps most telling is Zillow’s aggressive defense of its acquisitions. After purchasing ShowingTime, Zillow faced resistance from certain MLSs. Notably, the Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service (ARMLS) and Wisconsin’s Metro MLS developed their own scheduling tool, Aligned Showings, and decided to add that to the MLS system.
In response, Zillow filed a lawsuit in December 2023, alleging that these MLSs were unlawfully attempting to monopolize the market by sidelining ShowingTime in favor of their own product. The lawsuit was settled by June 2024, with the terms undisclosed, but the move underscored Zillow’s intent to dominate every facet of the real estate process — even if it means taking legal action against industry partners.
And don’t forget this little tidbit: Zillow’s co-executive chairman and former CEO Rich Barton is also the founder of Expedia — the very platform that helped decimate the travel agent industry by giving consumers the tools to book directly, bypassing professionals.
So what can we do?
As a real estate professional, it’s time to draw a line in the sand. Stand for your profession. Stand for your clients. And most importantly, stand for the future of real estate — a future that’s driven by people, not platforms.
That means:
- Educating your clients on the value you bring
- Resisting platforms that seek to marginalize or replace you
- Choosing vendors who support your role — not undermine it
- Uniting with fellow professionals to speak up in associations and push back when needed
This isn’t just about listings. It’s about leadership. And we need strong leadership now more than ever.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that Zillow’s ban is not on Delayed Marketing Entry Listings, but rather on private listings that don’t go into the MLS within one day.
Darryl Davis is the CEO of Darryl Davis Seminars. Connect with him on Facebook or YouTube.
