HomeServices is one of the brokerages participating in Zillow Preview, a program that allows agents to premarket listings before they are added to the MLS.
Chris Kelly, CEO of HomeServices of America, said Zillow’s new program that allows agents to pre-sell properties before they enter the MLS offers the real estate industry an opportunity to rethink how homes are distributed online.
HomeServices is one of the brokerages participating in Zillow Preview. Zillow Preview is a new program that allows agents to market their listings on Zillow before joining the multiple listing service while complying with local MLS regulations.
Kelly said the development comes at a time when brokerages and portals are increasingly experimenting with different approaches to listing exposure.
“I hope this is just a little pulse check,” Kelly told Inman over the phone. “Everyone needs to take a moment and really evaluate the long-term impact, perhaps compared to the short-term benefits.”
Zillow announced Tuesday that affiliates of Keller Williams will now be able to pre-sell listings through Zillow Preview, and HomeServices of America, REMAX, United Real Estate and Side will also be part of the program’s initial rollout.
Kelly said HomeServices has been discussing joining Zillow since last month as it prepares to launch. He added that Zillow appeared to have been developing the program for months before that.
The announcement comes as brokerages and portals are increasingly looking for new ways to deal with listing exposure. Earlier this month, Compass and Redfin announced a partnership that will allow Compass agents to display upcoming listings on Redfin’s platform.
Other brokerages are also trying their own strategies. Last week, Pittsburgh-based brokerage firm Howard Hanna launched HannaList, a private listing network that allows brokers to share properties internally before distributing them more widely through the MLS.
As these developments take shape, some industry insiders are beginning to frame the debate as competing camps emerge over how listings are distributed. Kelly said that while some companies may think of the issue in that light, he believes the reality is more nuanced.
“I think some people think in linear terms, like you’re on this side or you’re on that side,” Kelly said. “But like most things in life and business, the truth lies somewhere in between.”
Kelly said brokerages across the industry are experimenting with new ways to distribute listing content, but warned that the industry could create problems for consumers if listings are scattered across competing platforms.
“If every brokerage starts running their own private listing network that they don’t share with anyone else, don’t put on their portals, don’t share on the MLS, that’s where you really start to run the risk of disconnecting agents from consumers,” Kelly said.
The result can be a fragmented market where buyers have to search multiple websites just to see what kind of homes are available, he said. Kelly compared this dynamic to the way TV viewing has changed since the rise of streaming services.
“When you look at a portal like Zillow, it’s a little bit like YouTube TV,” Kelly said. “Consumers will be consuming content there.”
While some industry leaders have advocated for greater use of private listing networks, HomeServices believes most properties still benefit from broader information provision, Kelly said.
“Sometimes that kind of secret passageway smuggling approach works,” he said, referring to selective marketing strategies used for certain properties. “But for the vast majority of companies, they’re trying to get the biggest audience. For the majority of our properties, the best advantage for sellers is to get the widest possible exposure.”
For HomeServices, the partnership with Zillow also comes as the company works to simplify internal technology systems across its brands. Historically, many of the company’s securities affiliates operated on a variety of technology platforms. Kelly said HomeServices is working to integrate these systems so agents and consumers can operate on a more unified platform.
“Some of the differentiation we had didn’t really make us better,” Kelly said. “It was differentiation for differentiation’s sake.”
By simplifying these systems, the company hopes to better integrate its brokerage, mortgage, title and insurance operations while moving more quickly as a national brokerage firm, he said.
Still, Kelly sees further opportunities in how homes are sold, and said the broader industry debate around property distribution is likely to continue.
“The truth is, there are many ways to deal with real estate,” Kelly says. “The question is, are we thinking not just about what’s going to help us now, but what’s going to be most effective in the long term?”
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