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A federal court Wednesday dismissed all antitrust claims filed by REX Real Estate against the National Association of Realtors and Zillow, as attorneys shift their focus to several smaller claims against Zillow. It put an end to an 18-month feud.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Giry, Finds Discount Broker Fails to Prove NAR and Zillow Agrees to Collaborate to Disadvantage Portal’s Non-Multiple Listing Service Listings dismissed all of REX’s antitrust claims. website.
Judge Thomas S. Giry
“[T]The court found REX’s alleged conspiracy in the amended complaint, an agreement between the NAR, Zillow, and non-MLS to segregate, conceal, and demote non-MLS listings on Zillow’s website and mobile. concluded that he had not provided any evidence of platform,” Zilly wrote. Ordered August 16th.
Zilly dismissed the antitrust claim with prejudice, meaning permanently unless REX decides to appeal the order.
The case is currently scheduled for trial on September 18th and will last for two weeks. The NAR is no longer a defendant in the lawsuit, so if the trial goes ahead as planned, the industry group with 1.5 million members won’t have to participate.
The ruling marks the latest chapter in an 18-month long dispute between REX, Zillow and the NAR over Zillow’s application of the NAR’s “no mixing rule.”
A rule that is optional in MLS looks like this:
Listings obtained through the IDX feed from a real estate association MLS to which an MLS participant has a participation must be displayed separately from listings obtained from other sources. Listings obtained from other sources (e.g. other MLS, non-participating brokers, etc.) MUST indicate the source from which each such listing was obtained.
Mantil Williams
“We are pleased with the court’s decision to effectively conclude this lawsuit against NAR,” NAR spokesman Mantil Williams told Inman in an emailed statement.
“The NAR guidelines recognize that each real estate market is different and allow independent multiple listing services (MLS) to choose whether to display their listings alongside listings from other data sources. Local MLS benefits competition and fair housing, providing consumers with the most accurate, transparent and up-to-date information about residential properties.”
In March 2022, REX filed a lawsuit against Zillow and the NAR, citing Zillow and It claimed that the number of views of REX listings on the NAR had dropped dramatically. Sales went down. In addition, REX said that this decision would have a negative impact on consumers, especially merchants, and[listing] Because buyers aren’t searching the More Listings tab, you have more days on the market and can accept lower selling prices.
in Ordered separately on August 4thZilly asserts three of REX’s claims against Zillow: a false advertising claim under the Lanham Act; a claim for unfair or deceptive trade practices under the Washington Consumer Protection Act (CPA); and a claim alleging defamation. The continuation of the case was acknowledged.
Zillow believes Wednesday’s ruling will improve the company’s chances of success in the case.
“Today’s ruling is an important victory for Zillow in this case,” Zillow spokesperson Will Lemke told Inman in an emailed statement.
“The court agreed that REX’s antitrust claims were without merit and lacked evidence to support them. With REX’s core allegations thrown out of the case, we now believe that the public is looking at the case as it is. There: REX used a redesign of another company’s website to cover up its own business failure.”
Giry noted in the order that the no-carry-in rule is voluntary and that about 29 percent of real estate-affiliated MLS have not adopted the rule, even unaffected by the NAR.
“REX does not dispute that any member MLS would not be affected in any way if they chose not to adopt the no-mixing rule,” Gilley wrote.
The rule alone “does not constitute direct or circumstantial evidence of an anti-competitive agreement between the NAR and Zillow,” he added.
Additionally, Zillow, and Zillow alone, chose to follow the rules without any input from the NAR or MLS, Zilly said.
“The indisputable evidence in this lawsuit indicates that neither the NAR nor its associated MLS were involved in Zillow’s decision to implement the controversial two-tab display that allegedly put REX out of business. ‘ he wrote.
Zilly said REX did not provide any evidence that “Zillow was not engaging in acceptable competitive conduct” when it redesigned its website to comply with the rules.
Zillow also made REX listings visible on its site, unlike other brokerages, Zilly added.
“The evidence is that rather than eliminating REX listings entirely, as websites such as Redfin do, there is a need to ensure that REX and other non-MLS listings remain on the platform, albeit in separate tabs. It shows that Zillow has invested a lot of time and resources,” he said. .
Additionally, Zillow has repeatedly said it does not like the no-mixing rule, and in October 2021 the NAR will introduce a “mandatory rule requiring all MLS to allow mixing of listings, regardless of source.” Zilly said it has launched an aggressive campaign.
Inman has reached out to REX for comment and will update this article when it receives a response.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated with comments from the NAR and details of the court’s August 16 order.
Please email Andrea V. Brambilla.
