DOJ to NAR -In Your Face Sucka

The Department of Justice Antitrust Division launched a new website this week aimed squarely at the real estate industry.  The DOJ and the National Association of Realtors have been embroiled in a legal battle for a few years now because the DOJ believes that NAR supports policies that deter competition and unnaturally keep real estate commissions high. 

The site goes on to talk about different business models that are present and emerging in real estate brokerages.  The site even has a section that talks about how a company like… ahem…Rebate Real Estate…can save a buyer thousands of dollars when purchasing a home. 

Although this site bolsters my case and obviously I am in favor of what they are talking about, it does seem a little lopsided.  There is some great information here, for example, that certain states actually ban rebates and other states, Indiana being one of them, have minimum service laws that require a customer to receive a certain level of service.  These seem like blatant violations of my rights as business owner.  That being said; some these pages seem flagrantly in support of alternative brokerage models. 

For those of you not aware, there is a full on war being waged on the internet to encroach upon NAR’s power.  Companies like Zillow and Trulia, although they are doing a pathetic job of presenting quality information, are nipping at NAR’s heels and attempting to usurp NAR from power. 

Based on the tone and information provided in the new DOJ website, it seems clear to me that the DOJ is determined to change the way NAR operates.  IMHO, NAR better be careful and change its curmudgeonly ways or it will be thwarted and become even more irrelevant than it already is. 

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