The bill would add a new provision to the state’s real estate brokerage law that would require extensive public marketing of real estate listings.
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson signed rules Monday regulating how real estate properties are sold in the state.
Mr. Ferguson signed SB 6091, which restricts the use of private listing networks in Washington when it goes into effect in three months.
The new law added a provision to the state’s real estate brokerage law that requires real estate to be sold broadly to the general public.
“A broker shall not sell or rent residential real property to a limited or exclusive number of prospective buyers or brokers, or any combination thereof, unless the property is sold simultaneously to the general public or to all other brokers, unless reasonably necessary to protect the health or safety of the owner or occupier,” the new law states.
The law does not require sellers to allow prospective buyers into their homes.
The law also stands in contrast to new proposals in other states that allow sellers to opt out of widespread public marketing of their real estate properties, with the knowledge that this may have negative consequences, such as lower sales prices and fewer potential buyers viewing the property.
In an exclusive op-ed for Inman, Jacobi, a Windermere alumnus, said Washington’s new law will bring real estate transparency and urged other states to follow suit.
“This bill is not born out of political theory or academic debate. It is born out of real tensions in the real estate industry: Will openness and equal access to listing information remain a core principle, or will the market fragment and become a private network that benefits only a select few?”
Inman previously reported that several other states have already approved or are discussing legislation that would generally target and limit the private marketing of real estate properties.
Zillow and the Realtor organization have supported measures moving forward in various Congresses.
“Ultimately, we feel that the use of private listing networks is inconsistent with our goal of being the most consumer-friendly state in the nation for buying and selling real estate,” Ryan Beckett, president of Washington Realtors, said in a statement around the time SB6091 was filed.
He added, “We believe the potential growth of private listing networks poses a threat to the transparent marketplace that ultimately benefits both consumers and real estate agents. And it could set us back in fair housing practices.”
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