Compass’s exclusive inventory is on the rise

Despite the threat of having their listings banned from Zillow, it appears that more and more Compass home seller clients are choosing to use at least some parts of Compass’s three-phase marketing plan and listing their property as a Compass exclusive. 

Since bottoming out in mid-July, the number of Compass exclusive listings has risen to over 9,000 listings nationwide, according to an analysis by real estate industry technology strategist Mike DelPrete.

DelPrete’s data shows that since Zillow’s listing standards policy, which bans listings that are not entered into the MLS and available for display on sites using IDX or VOW data feeds within 24 hours of public marketing, went into effect on June 30, Compass has gained over 1,300 exclusive listings.

According to DelPrete, in the 30 days prior to Compass filing its lawsuit against Zillow in late-June, barely a week before the policy went into effect, the Robert Reffkin-helmed firm’s exclusive inventory was declining an average of 0.3% per day, and in the 30 days after the lawsuit was filed, it rose an average of 0.1% per day. At present time, DelPrete said Compass’s exclusive inventory is rising at an average rate of 0.4% per day.

Earlier this week, Reffkin bolstered this data by highlighting how many exclusive listings Compass boasts on its website in key markets.

In a LinkedIn post on Thursday, Reffkin wrote that buyers working with a Compass agent in the Bay Area currently have access to 984 additional properties not listed on any other site. This includes 199 in San Francisco County, 76 in Marin County, 112 in San Mateo County, 108 in Contra Costa County, 203 in Alameda County, 180 in Santa Clara County, 13 in Santa Cruz County, 19 in Napa County, 66 in Sonoma County, and eight in Solano County.

This post came a day after Reffkin told his LinkedIn followers that buyers working with a Compass agent in New York City have access to 169 additional homes in Downtown Manhattan.

While both posts concluded with a call to action telling interested consumers to reach out to a Compass agent to gain access to these exclusive listings, a Compass spokesperson clarified that the brokerage was still promulgating its hard copy exclusive listing books that any agent from any brokerage could look through at a Compass office.

Although this rise in exclusive inventory shows that consumers are, at least thus far, responding positively to Compass’s three-phase marketing strategy, DelPrete questioned how this could impact Compass’s antitrust lawsuit against Zillow.

In its legal filings, Compass has claimed that Zillow’s policy has caused “irreparable harm”, scaring clients away from using its three-phased marketing plan.

“This increase does actually weaken Compass’s argument that it has been harmed,” Merx Sterbcow, the managing attorney at Sterbcow Law Group, said. “This is also on top of Zillow’s arguments against Compass’s motion for a preliminary injunction that note that Compass waited months before filing the lawsuit, showing a lack of urgency.”

However, legal experts also noted that the uptick in exclusive inventory could be framed in a way to help Compass, as the firm could argue that Zillow’s policy is forcing consumers to choose sides and the increased interest in Compass exclusives shows that consumers are hungry for more options.

No matter how this impacts Compass’s legal battle, for now, it appears that consumers are buying into the brokerage’s three-phased marketing plan and exclusive listing platform.