Did the NAR create an anti-competitive internet policy?

Many consumer advocates think the NAR's (National Association of Realtors) VOW policy adopted in May 03, impedes a consumers right to information and favors large firms who control most of the listings in a market.

Personally, I think general rules to govern real estate on the Internet is ok. But, interference between what a Realtor's clients can see when they search their site for listings, is not such a good thing if it impedes competition and innovation.

Is hard to mess with Realtors though. There are about 1 million of them. They listen to the NAR which is the largest trade association in the country. The last thing your congressperson wants to hear is 40 yenta's yapping their ears off - when they go to the supermarket - so they tend to side with the Realtors on some marginal issues. But with the high price and transaction costs of housing someone has to look at these issues. I've been a Realtor for 20 years - so I feel I can bust on my fellow Realtors a bit when they withhold data from the Internet but give out that same info over the phone, or in their mailings or other advertising.

But the serious issues where many people have a problem with the NAR's internet regulations are: the opt-out provisions; address removal; and advertising next to other brokers listings. The Justice Department is currently investigating if NAR rules violate anti-trust or other fair commerce regulations.

Opt-out means that if the largest broker in the market wants to hobble an up and coming competitor, they can withhold listings from that site, but let every other broker in that market show their listings on their websites.

Or the listing agent can put a sign on your property, send a postcard to everyone in the county saying 123 Main Street is for sale, but can withhold the address from its competitors website. Does that help the seller (if they request that), or the buyer - or just help that agent. With 70% of consumers starting their real estate search on the internet before calling a Realtor, I tend to think sellers who agree to hold back non-personal property information like where the property is located are not really marketing their property in this day and age. Heck, we are all buyers at some point, and we love to drive by an address to get a feel for the property before we call to schedule an appointment. If someone's address is listed on Smarter Agent - and yours is not- guess which home seller is going to get less action.

I'll post more on this later because I think many Realtor confuse IDX (internet positing of limited information) with a VOW where people have to log-in to get detailed information. Smarter Agent gets about 250 people a week who log-in and become clients to get the good stuff and our unique search tools.

And an Op Ed piece I wrote on this subject is running on Inman News. Email us at info@smarteragent.com if you want a copy. But if you enjoy the power of using Smarter Agent, and would be upset if we had to withhold information from you on our website - you can see why consumer advocates have asked the Justice Department to review this ruling.