At the annual conference held in September, CMLS announced that the Board of Directors decided to take a position in support of the National Association of Realtors® Clear Cooperation Policy. CMLS believes it preserves the values of efficiency, openness, and fairness that are the foundation of our housing market and MLSs themselves. Below is the letter CMLS sent to members announcing the position.
We Stand for the Big Idea
The debate over NAR’s Clear Cooperation Policy is intense and complex.
Our position is measured and simple:
CCP should remain in place. Modifications should preserve the spirit and effect of the policy.
The CMLS Board of Directors has arrived at this conclusion after careful consideration of the objections to CCP. We do not believe many of these concerns are inherently invalid. But none of them, alone or in aggregate, merit the removal or significant weakening of a policy so critical to the integrity of our housing market.
A Big Idea
The MLS is a big idea. The notion of fierce competitors maintaining a broadly accessible platform for homes was farsighted when brokers conceived of it. It remains, to this day, a singular achievement unmatched outside North America. The competitive vibrancy, efficiency, openness, and equity this big idea spawned should not be conceded to lesser, more shortsighted considerations.
If CCP is repealed, sellers will pay dearly. Buyers will find it more difficult, and perhaps more expensive, to see a full picture of their options. Agents will awaken each morning to a constrained view into their market. Brokers will find it more difficult to compete as listings are systematically held within private networks and a few market-dominating firms.
We respect those who disagree with us, but we stand for the big idea.
A New World
The Clear Cooperation Policy was put into place just five years ago in response to a rise in pocket listings. Despite the fact that the “office exclusives” exception permitted holding listings within a single company, those who want to repeal or weaken CCP want more. We believe this is risky in a world where consumer, regulatory, and legal scrutiny on our industry has never been more acute. The optics of hoarding homes are as bad as the actual effects.
For brokers, for agents, for consumers
CMLS believes that CCP ultimately, if imperfectly, supports the brokers and agents the MLS community serves, and the consumers we all serve. This is a challenging time in residential real estate. But it is amid challenges that core principles matter most.
We believe that the principle – the idea – of an open, efficient, and equitable housing market is worth preserving. CCP is therefore worth preserving.
We have communicated this position to the NAR in a recent letter as it considers this matter, and encourage you to do so as well.
This discussion around CCP will continue, and we support ideas for updating the policy so long as its fundamental purpose is preserved.