A little over a week after Zillow sought to clarify its discussions with Chicago-based Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) over restrictions on private listings, the MLS appears to be digging in, as this week MRED CEO Rebecca Jensen sent an emotional open letter to members defending its private listing network against a “one-size-fits-all model.”
With Zillow previously saying the company was “attempting to work” with MRED as it delayed implementation of its new rules—which ban most private listings from subsequently appearing on its platform—Jensen’s 1,400-word message to members indicates the MLS and its almost 50,000 agents are not about to give up on its private listing service.
“A widower whose wife just passed away deserves the dignity to quietly sell his home without the public scrutiny that comes with it. A cancer patient needs to sell their home but isn’t ready to tell those around them about their medical or financial situation. Automatically and indiscriminately blasting their listing online would surely result in a family member finding out on their own, not on the individual’s terms,” Jensen wrote. “MRED understands the emotional side of transactions.”
The friction over the MRED private listing service—the largest, but not the only private listing network run by an MLS—puts Zillow in conflict with a major player in the MLS world even as the portal has mostly aligned with the MLS industry at large in its battle with Compass (and some other brokerages) over private listing policy.
MRED did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of discussions with Zillow. In an emailed statement, a Zillow spokesperson did not specifically address the status of discussions with MRED, but reiterated its own position that private listings create “an uneven playing field” in most circumstances.
“On the rare occasion a seller has a legitimate reason to keep their listing fully private — whether for privacy, safety or another personal reason—we support that. In those cases, the listing never gets publicly marketed (on Zillow or anywhere else online) and there is an existing path in the MLS for these unique sellers,” the spokesperson said.
“Listings shouldn’t be used as leverage to control who gets to participate in the home-buying process,” the Zillow spokesperson added. “It’s a bait-and-switch move, where agents or brokerages try to get the best of both worlds—dangling a listing to gain more business, only to turn around and market it widely later.”
Previously, a source close to Zillow told RISMedia that conversations with the MRED and brokers were focused on education. Zillow has already implemented the new rules across essentially the country, and both sides previously declined to comment on any deadline or timeline for implementing the Zillow rules in MRED’s region, which would potentially result in a significant number of listings being disallowed from its platform.
Both Zillow and MRED have acknowledged that Zillow communicated directly with MRED brokers about the Zillow rules and the use of MRED’s private listings, though Zillow denied issuing notices of violations.
MRED’s private network, which allows MLS participants to see a listing but keeps it from being syndicated on public platforms like Zillow, has been around for almost a decade, and has been praised by many in the industry—including by Compass CEO Robert Reffkin back in 2024, well before the new Zillow rules sparked a high-stakes legal and public showdown between the two real estate giants.
In her note, Jensen noted that MRED’s private listings are still available to all brokers, and claimed that having listings entered into the MLS within 24 hours of marketing “ensures compliance, consistency, and a level playing field for all agents and brokers.” She also said that the MLS has “clarified our policy on display on public websites” to note that members cannot filter “by what brokerage or agent represents a listing.”
An emotional appeal
Jensen’s letter does not leave much room for the MLS to maneuver if it is discussing the future of the private listing service with Zillow. Connecting private listings directly to the heart of real estate business and values, Jensen—without naming Zillow—decried “(r)igid rules” and “threats and strict fines to the listing broker trying to help families navigate their home sale during a difficult time.”
“In an era where every listing can be broadcast instantly to millions, privacy has become a rare and valuable commodity,” she wrote. “The (MRED private listing network) gives these sellers a trusted space within the professional network to prepare, plan, and decide when they’re ready for full exposure.”
Much of Jensen’s letter hones in on these emotional situations—what she called the “Five Ds: Divorce, Death, Disability, Displacement, Downsizing.” That included a detailed description of how a seller with a family member in hospice would benefit from starting parts of the listing process but delaying others—something she claimed the private listing service could accommodate.
“These aren’t just market events; they are life events,” Jensen wrote.
But she also went to the data, citing internal MRED stats that show that private listings on the MLS spend “a median range of 9 to 17 days in a private status” and also sell faster, and for a better sale-to-list ratio.
A white paper released by the MLS in 2022 and updated this year said that 16% of MRED’s listings were private in 2024, amounting to just under 30,000 total listings. They were also slightly more likely to be double-ended by the same brokerage firm, with 10.4% of private listings double-ended, compared to 8.2% of standard listings.
On the other hand, the Zillow spokesperson pointed to a selection of studies, commentaries and testimonies focused on private listings. Many analyses—mostly by MLSs—claim that private listings sell for less and stay on the market longer. Compass, like MRED, has said its own data shows that properties that at least start as private listings perform better.
Zillow, for its part, also previously claimed that 30% of inquiries by potential buyers to MRED’s areas were from people outside the region, arguing that private listings are stymieing opportunities for consumers.
By most estimates, private listings still make up a relatively small number of transactions around the country—somewhere between 2% and 10%, depending on the definition.
“The (private listing network) stands as a cornerstone of MRED’s offerings to brokers: using data, technology, and market feedback to empower real estate professionals,” Jenson wrote.
