FTC sues Zillow, alleges $100M payoff to Redfin
The Federal Trade Commission filed a federal antitrust lawsuit Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, alleging Zillow paid Redfin $100 million and struck a nine‑year agreement to end Redfin’s competition in the multifamily rental‑advertising market. The FTC says the deal eliminated an independent competitor in a concentrated ad market, harming renters and property managers; Zillow and Redfin dispute the allegations, calling the arrangement pro‑consumer.
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🔍 Key Facts
- FTC filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (filed Tuesday).
- Agency alleges Zillow paid Redfin $100 million and secured a nine‑year agreement for Redfin to stop competing in multifamily rental ad placements.
- FTC Bureau of Competition director Daniel Guarnera is quoted calling the conduct a violation of federal antitrust laws; both companies issued statements denying the charges.
📍 Contextual Background
- In March 2025, Rocket Companies announced it was acquiring real estate listing company Redfin, and weeks later agreed to buy out mortgage competitor Mr. Cooper.
- A proposed $1.6 billion merger between Anywhere Real Estate and Compass was announced in September 2025.
- Rocket Companies is the parent company of Rocket Mortgage, an online mortgage lender and refinancing portal.
- In 2024, Compass, Anywhere and eXp Realty together accounted for 17% of total U.S. residential real estate sales volume.
- In 2024, the top 10% of brokerages represented 42% of total U.S. residential real estate sales volume.
- Compass was the largest U.S. residential real estate brokerage by sales volume as of September 29, 2025.
- Multiple Listing Services (MLSs) allow brokerages to share information on properties they have listed for sale.