Realcomp, a National Association of Realtors (NAR) affiliate, failed to release discount real estate listings to its own and other public Web sites and made these listings unavailable on default searches from their database. By restricting access to these listings, the FTC said the company narrowed consumer choice and harmed competition. Realcomp is now required to provide non-discriminatory access to non-traditional and lower-price listings on its Multiple Listing Service (MLS), and they must stop preventing these listings from being sent to other public real estate sites, according to the FTC.
The opinion finding by the FTC stated that, “The practices at issue improperly limit consumers’ access to information about the availability of these lower-priced alternatives. [Realcomp’s] acts and practices unreasonably restrain trade in violation of section one of the Sherman Act and section five.” This decision will resolve the litigation arising from a complaint alleging that Realcomp’s policies violate section five of the Federal Trade Commission Act.
