In June 2025, technology-driven real estate brokerage firm Compass, Inc. (“Compass”) filed a lawsuit against the leading online real estate marketplace company Zillow, Inc. and its affiliates (“Zillow”) in the Southern District of New York, alleging use of anticompetitive tactics to protect its market dominance.[1] Tensions over control of home listings have long been simmering between real estate’s largest brokerages and home search engines.[2] The heart of this dispute centers on Zillow’s Listing Access Standards, or the so-called “Zillow Ban,” a mandate that requires home sellers to list their homes on Zillow’s platform within one day of being marketed, or otherwise have their listings banned from the site entirely.[3] As the website where more than 80% of home searchers begin their hunt, Zillow has a significant edge on its competitors when it comes to digital home listings.[4] A federal judge in the Southern District of New York recently denied Compass’s motion for a preliminary injunction, finding that Compass had not provided sufficient evidence to prove that Zillow has monopoly power in the online home search marketplace.[5] Accordingly, Zillow’s rules may remain in place while the federal antitrust case proceeds, the outcome of which could reshape how homes are marketed and discovered nationwide.[6] This post will discuss the legal claims of each party, the importance of this suit for homebuyers and sellers, and analyze the implications this decision will have on residential real estate markets.
Compass’s Legal Arguments
Compass’s central claim is that Zillow’s Listing Access Standards are anticompetitive and harmful under the Sherman Antitrust Act, arguing that Zillow uses its dominant position in the online home search marketplace to limit competitors’ ability to innovate and market listings in ways other than Zillow’s preferred model.[7] Compass also states that since Zillow profits by selling leads off of the homeowners’ listings on its site, by requiring that all listings be posted there, Zillow preserves its market dominance and profits therefrom.[8] In an attempt to market specific properties to select groups, Compass has introduced some new pre-market listing options, including “Private Exclusive” and “Coming Soon,” but Zillow’s new policy prevents Compass from continuing these practices without forgoing being listed on Zillow’s platform entirely.[9] These pre-market listing options, Compass contends, allow sellers “a chance to test list prices, experiment with marketing approaches, and gather feedback.”[10] Furthermore, Compass states that many home sellers using their platform prefer their private listing strategies as opposed to Zillow’s website, because of Zillow’s displays of “negative insights,” “Zestimate,” and “Climate Risks,” which sellers may prefer not to immediately disclose.[11]
Compass argues that Zillow’s strategy prevents competitors such as Compass from being able to offer innovative marketing products and accuses them of colluding with other listing sites, like Redfin and eXp Realty, to institute parallel tactics.[12] Although Zillow’s Listing Access Standards may make the home search more rigid and limit home sellers’ ability to choose where they market their homes, they are unlikely to be illegal under antitrust laws.[13]
Zillow’s Position
Zillow argues that its Listing Access Standards ensure that agents, homebuyers, and sellers using their website have transparent, equal access to information about available properties.[14] The online real estate marketplace claims that Compass’s Private Exclusives marketing methods limit the visibility of listings, undermining an open market. Zillow therefore argues that its Listing Access Standards create greater information symmetry in the market.[15] A Zillow statement reads “[h]iding listings creates a fragmented market, limits consumer choice and creates barriers to homeownership, which is bad for buyers, sellers, and the industry at large, especially in this inventory and affordability-constrained environment.”[16]
The National Association of Realtors (“NAR,” the trade association that sets rules for real estate professionals) established its own policy in 2019, known as Clear Cooperation, which is functionally similar to the Zillow Ban, in that it requires real estate agents to submit any publicly-marketed properties to their local Multiple Listing Services (a cooperative database used to share listings in an efficient process) within one business day.[17] The NAR, similarly to Zillow, also faced pushback and legal challenges from agents to reconsider their rule, and in March 2025, they relaxed the policy to allow for delayed marketing, including Compass’s “Private Exclusives” and “Coming Soon” designations.[18]
Denial of Preliminary Injunction
On February 6, 2026, a federal judge denied Compass’s request for a preliminary injunction, allowing Zillow to continue enforcing its controversial Listing Access Standards while the lawsuit continues.[19] The District Judge opined that Compass failed to show that Zillow held monopoly power to exclude competition in the home search market and did not demonstrate direct evidence of collusion between Zillow and Redfin.[20] The hearing took place over four days in November, ending with Judge Jeannette Vargas finding that “there is no evidence that any brokerage stopped offering [pre-market listing] strategies to consumers” following the rollout of Zillow’s Listing Access Standards.[21] Judge Vargas’s decision stated that a preliminary injunction was unwarranted because Compass is unlikely to succeed on the merits of its claims, even if Zillow commands a 50% to 66% market share, as Compass alleges.[22] Additionally, Judge Vargas stated that Zillow’s and Redfin’s conduct likely reflected independent reactions to the NAR relaxing its Clear Cooperation policy, rather than any explicit collusion between the two companies.[23] However, the hearing revealed an internal strategy document in which Zillow explicitly stated that they will “punish” agents for choosing to list on alternative platforms.[24] Compass sees this as a threat to its clients, being the agents, and therefore feels an obligation to protect them from Zillow.[25]
Future Impact and Implications
Experts have noted the notoriously difficult and complicated nature of antitrust lawsuits, and the high bar that Compass will have to meet to show Zillow’s monopoly power.[26] However, Compass may have a higher likelihood of success on its second claim if they can show Zillow and its competitors formed a per se illegal agreement like a group boycott.[27] Through further discovery in anticipation of trial later this year, Compass may locate a “smoking gun” in Zillow’s records showing tangible collusion between the competitors, substantiating their claim, but for now, Zillow’s Listing Access Standards may remain in place. Zillow noted the overwhelming housing shortage in the United States and leveraged that fact to bolster its argument that its standardized listing policy improves the housing market in the country.[28] Overall, Compass’s position seems to be favorable to home sellers, whereas Zillow’s is attractive to buyers, and the outcome of this case will determine the future of real estate home listings, affecting those looking to buy and sell their homes.
This all comes on the heels of Compass’s January 2026 acquisition of Anywhere Real Estate, in a deal valued at $4.2 billion, creating the world’s largest residential real estate brokerage.[29] Anywhere Real Estate is the parent company of industry titans Coldwell Banker, Corcoran, and Sotheby’s International Realty.[30] This merger marks the consolidation of the country’s largest and second-largest brokerages in the country but was surprisingly able to dodge antitrust concerns from the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice.[31] Although Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden warned that this merger could raise broker fees for homebuyers and substantially increase market concentration, the deal passed regulatory hurdles speedily.[32] It remains to be seen whether the senators’ concerns will come to fruition.
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[1] See Debra Kamin, Compass Sues to Stop ‘Zillow Ban’, N.Y. Times (June 23, 2025), https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/23/realestate/compass-zillow-lawsuit.html.
[2] Id.
[3] Id.
[4] See Samantha Delouya, Compass sues Zillow as fight over private listings heats up, CNN (June 23, 2025), https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/23/business/compass-lawsuit-zillow-home-listings.
[5] See Jake Indursky, Judge Says Zillow’s listing policy can remain in place for now, The Real Deal (Feb. 6, 2026), https://therealdeal.com/national/2026/02/06/judge-says-zillows-listing-policy-can-proceed-for-now/.
[6] Id.
[7] See James Rodriguez, The ‘Zillow Ban lives, Business Insider (Feb. 10, 2026), https://www.businessinsider.com/zillow-legal-victory-compass-preliminary-injuction-real-estate-listings-homebuyers-2026-2
[8] See Delouya, supra note 4.
[9] Id.
[10] See Kamin, supra note 1.
[11] Id.
[12] Id.
[13] See Rachel Reed, The ‘Zillow ban’ makes searching for homes more complicated. But is it illegal? Harvard Law Today (Sep. 10, 2025), https://hls.harvard.edu/today/the-zillow-ban-makes-searching-for-homes-more-complicated-but-is-it-illegal/.
[14] See Chris Dolmetsch and Paulina Cachero, Compass, Zillow Take Feud Over Home Listings Into NYC Court, Bloomberg (Nov. 18, 2025), https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-11-18/compass-zillow-take-private-listing-feud-to-new-york-courtroom?embedded-checkout=true&leadSource=uverify%20wall.
[15] Id.
[16] See Delouya, supra note 4.
[17] Id.
[18] See Kamin, supra note 1.
[19] See Indursky, supra note 5.
[20] Id.
[21] See Jonathan Stempel, US judge rejects Compass bid to block ‘Zillow ban’ for online home listings, Reuters (Feb. 6, 2026), https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/us-judge-rejects-compass-bid-injunction-over-zillow-online-home-listings-2026-02-06/.
[22] Id.
[23] Id.
[24] See Indursky, supra note 5.
[25] Id.
[26] See Rachel Reed, The ‘Zillow ban’ makes searching for homes more complicated. But is it illegal? Harvard Law Today (Sep. 10, 2025), https://hls.harvard.edu/today/the-zillow-ban-makes-searching-for-homes-more-complicated-but-is-it-illegal/.
[27] Id.
[28] See Stempel, supra note 21.
[29] See Jake Indursky, Compass-Anywhere merger dodges antitrust concerns for speedy closing, The Real Deal (Jan. 9, 2026), https://therealdeal.com/national/2026/01/09/compass-anywhere-merger-has-closed-heres-what-to-know/.
[30] See Sasha Jones, Compass And Anywhere To Merge Into $10B Brokerage Behemoth, Bisnow (Sep. 22, 2025), https://www.bisnow.com/national/news/capital-markets/compass-and-anywhere-to-merge-into-10b-brokerage-behemoth-131058.
[31] See Indursky, supra note 29.
[32] Id.
