How the Good Guys Finally Won!

Some of you may have seen the headline several weeks ago about the settlement of litigation between NAR and the US Department of Justice. After more tan four years of discovery, court proceedings and negotiations, the matter was finally settled - and mostly on terms favorable to Realtors. What was this expensive, protracted litigation all about? Below I summarize the issues and outcomes based on commentary at Realtor.org as furnished by the NAR Legal Division, as well as my own thoughts.

The heart of the matter was as attack on our MLS system. The network of MLS's is the electronic nervous system for America's residential real estat and a powerful force for competition. Without it, Realtors, particularly those in smaller firms, would be left at an immense competitive disadvantage. MLS's enable all brokerages and new entrants to have the same access to listing information as large, national entities. They make it easy for sellers to reach buyers and for buyers to find the right property. The American MLS system is so successful that many foreign countries are now establishing MLS systems based on the US model.

The terms of the settlement are a win for NAR, Realtors and consumers, and confirm that members of the MLS's must be actively engaged in real estate brokerage by actually helping people buy or sell homes. This will ensure that MLS's are used for what they were originally intended to do - to help real estate professionals find buyers for people who want to sell their homes. NAR has also agreed to adopt a revised Virtual Office Web Site Policy that NAR will requet MLS's to adopt.

NAR settled with the DOJ without financial penalty or admission of guilt.

The settlement will protect the essential features of the MLS system created by Realtors. Consumers have always been able to access and view all publicly available listing information on the Web site of ther broker of choice. The proposed order ensures that the on-line environmentin which listings are displayed is the fairest possible. It preserve the right of seller clients and brokers to protect the proper display of the listings while ensuring the widest possible on-line display. The propose order provides clear rules for operating a virtual office Web site (VOW) and preserves the right to determine whether or not listings are displayed on other broker's Web sites. It also gives sellers the right to prohibit certain feaures, such as home-value estimates and blog posts, to accompany the display on VOW's.

In my opinion, the litigation was largely a political attack on Realtors driven by some big money and big institutional forces on Wall Street. These forces sought to hijack the MLS model created by Realtors, convert it into what essentially would be a public utility, and overthrow the concept of real estate agency relationships (the better to sell to consumers without real estate counseling or representation - or a Code of Ethics).

But with the settlement announced on May 27, 2008, the Good Guys finally won! After four days of successful meetings with Realtor PAC, Professional Development, Land Use, Large Board Forum, Washington Caucus, Region 12, and much, much more, we were all ready to decamp Saturday and come home. Linda, Jim and I took a taxi to Reagan Airport, only to be rear-ended on the George Washington Parkway near the Pentagon.

Later, our plane from DCA to Newark had a malfunction in the right engine. We all smelled jet fuel in the cabin, before the pilot announced an Emergency landing and we were greeted by fire trucks beside the runway.

Later, Sue and I were seated on either side by a Sumo Wrestler (I swear) on the six-hour flight back to PDX. Or perhaps Mr. Bear Squash You All Flat. Oh Lordy, it's OVER!