Compass dominating real estate in key markets
Consumer Policy Center aims to address concerns
By: Maddle McGay
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Compass is recognized as the largest resident la real estate brokerage in the United States. and if its $1.6 billion acquisition of anywhere Real Estate - parent company of Coldwell Banker, Sotheby's and Corcoran - in early 2026 is any indication, the company is only getting bigger.
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Its rapid growth through major acquisitions and brand awareness has raised concerns about tis potential market dominance, and what that would mean for the industry. A recent report from the Consumer Policy Center aims to address that.
..... Stephen Brobeck, CPC senior fellow and author of the report, analyzed transactions in five major cities = Boston, Washington, DC, Chicago , Austin and San Diego - from before and after the brokerage's major acquisitions. It found that Compass now holds 30% to 39.5% of unit sales in those cities.
..... That is at least four times larger than the share of the second-largest firm in four of the large cities, the report says. The only exception is Austin, where the market share is 2.5 times larger.
..... Overall, compass was recently named the top independent brokerage in the United States by sales volume for the fifth year in a row. It surpassed $262 billion is sales volume in 2025.
..... Before obtaining Anywhere Real Estate, the company acquired Latter & Blum and Parks Real Estate in early 2024, as well as @properties and Christie's International Real Estate in late 2024. The moves aided in major growth for the company, and the report suggests that further expansion of the company won't be stopped, due to weakening antitrust oversight.
..... "The concern is hat the Compass share is not only very large but much larger than that of major competitors," Brobeck said. "Compass is becoming so dominant in some local markets that consumers will feel both pressure and attraction to list and purchase properties through Compass agents."
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The report also highlights how Compass led all but five of the cities in double-ended sales - when the listing and buying agents were in the same brokerage - and "double-dipped" or dual agency sales, when on agent handles both sale s of the transaction. About 20% to 42% of Compass sales in the markets fell into tis category.
..... Compass' new policy of offering 10% of a commisison to a Compass agent for an internal referral has contributed, the report says.
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It also says the company's widespread adoption of its private listing program, known as the Compass Private Exclusive Book, and its recent partnership with redfin to exclusively display "coming soon" listings on the site also play a role.
..... The report also comes after Compass dismissed its lawsuit against Zillow, in which it challenged the platform's Listing access Standards Policy and its ability to hide listings hat haven't been broadly marketed to the public.
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A spokesperson for Compass disputed the report's claims, saying it relies on "incomplete data and flawed assumptions."
..... Compass also said its inventory outside the Multiple Listing Service is available to the entire brokerage community, and that a majority of its private exclusive that are sold off-MLS are co-brokered with non-compass agents.
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It alos said any agent, regardless of brokerage affiliation, can access local listings in the Compass Private Exclusives Book by visiting a Compass office.
..... "Our real estate professionals are expected to act in their clients' best interests, regardless of which brokerage or agent has written an offer on the property," a Compass spokesperson said.
..... In New Jersey, Compass maintains 20 locations with nearly 900 agents across the state. A majority of Compass-affiliated agents are found in Essex and Morris counties, with an expanding presence in Hudson, Bergen and Monmouth counties.