According
to
the
CPC,
the
popularity
of
these
paid
referral
fee
platforms
reflects
a
surplus
of
real
estate
agents,
leading
many
to
be
willing
to
sacrifice
a
large
share
of
their
commission
in
order
to
obtain
more
business. 

The
report
claims
that
consumers
who
use
an
agent
they
encounter
via
a
referral
source
may
have
difficulty
negotiating
a
commission
below
3%,
that
the
likelihood
that
they
work
with
a
less
experienced
member
of
a
real
estate
team
increases
and
that
the
likelihood
they
are
subject
to
the
marketing
of
ancillary
services
by
their
agent
or
the
referral
company
increases. 

“Most
agents
are
fiduciaries
obligated
to
represent
the
interest
of
their
clients,
but
when
these
agents
work
with
a
referral
company,
they
are
often
under
pressure
to
sell
quickly
and
market
ancillary
products,”
Gilch
said
in
a
statement.

The
report
notes
that
if
an
agent
is
required
to
pay
nearly
half
of
their
commission
in
referral
fees,
they
are
less
likely
to
be
willing
to
negotiate
a
lower
commission
because
they
are
already
taking
home
a
smaller
paycheck
than
they
would
be
if
they
didn’t
have
to
pay
the
fee.
The
report
cited
a
survey
of
1,016
Americans
conducted
by

Big
Village
in
mid-January
2026,
that
found
that
55%
of
respondents
said
that
a
40
%
“referral
fee
tends
to
increase
the
commission
the
buyer
pays.”

“An
agent
required
to
pay
40%
of
their
commission
to
a
referral
company,
and
another
portion
to
their
broker,
has
a
strong
incentive
not
to
negotiate
down
a
3%
commission,”
Brobeck,
a
senior
fellow
at
the
CPC,
said
in
a
statement. 

Additionally,
the
CPC
argues
that
referral
services
provided
by
listing
portals
may
limit
consumer
choice,
as
when
CPC
Mystery
Shoppers
inquired
about
specific
properties
on
Zillow,
Realtor.com
and

Redfin,
they
were
directed
to
an
agent
that
had
a
“special
relation
to
the
company
as
a
Zillow
Premier
agent,
as
a
Realtor.com
Concierge
agent
or
as
a
Redfin
employee
or
partner
agent.” 

“Receiving
the
name
of
one
buyer
agent,
in
relation
to
either
a
search
for
an
agent
or
for
a
specific
property,
limits
meaningful
consumer
choice,”
the
report
states.
“Being
presented
with
several
agent
options,
which
then
can
be
researched
and
compared,
helps
ensure
a
more
optimal
choice.”

The
report
also
noted
the

lawsuits
Zillow
is
currently
facing
related
to
its
‘contact
agent’
button
and
allegations
of
RESPA
violations
related
to
partner
agents
allegedly
steering
buyers
to
Zillow
Home
Loans
to
receive
more
or
better
quality
leads. 

Despite
these
negative
impacts,
the
report
did
note
some
positive
things
including
that
consumers
are
most
likely
to
be
referred
to
agents
who
have
already
successfully
transacted
and
that
the
revenue
generated
by
these
programs
have
helped
some
of
the
portal
companies
make
a
broad
array
of
property
listings
and
information
about
individual
agents
available
to
buyers
and
sellers. 

The
report
noted
that
via
a
Mystery
Shopper
experiment
that
saw
them
apply
to
10
referral
agencies,
they
were
recommended
to
40
different
buyers
agents
who
were
all
local
and
the
majority
had
recorded
over
five
sales
in
the
prior
year. 

In
an
emailed
statement
a
spokesperson
from
Zillow
wrote
that
the
report
“has
little
to
no
evidence
for
its
claims,
often
relying
on
comments
posted
anonymously
on
social
media
instead
of
verified
sources.”

The
spokesperson
argued
that
there
is
no
evidence
in
the
report
showing
that
the
cost
of
referral
fees
actually
impacts
commissions.

“The
vast
majority
of
buyers
and
sellers
(85%,
out
of
nearly
30,000
surveyed)
feel
their
agent’s
commission
was
either
fair
or
too
low
–
not
too
high,
as
the
report
suggests.
Where
the
authors
get
it
right,
they
point
to
Zillow’s
emphasis
on
providing
potential
homebuyers
with
connections
to
high-performing
agents,
and
to
the
benefits
of
these
referrals
to
agents
themselves,”
the
spokesperson
wrote.
“Referral
fees
are
a
business
and
marketing
expense
agents
pay
in
the
same
way
they
might
otherwise
have
spent
thousands
on
billboards,
print
ads,
and
other
marketing
tools.
While
we
can’t
speak
to
the
referral
practices
of
other
companies,
with
Zillow’s
Preferred
program,
agents
get
marketing
and
other
benefits
and
don’t
pay
unless
they’ve
helped
their
clients
succeed
in
buying
or
selling
a
home.” 

As
a
result
of
this
report,
the
CPC
recommends
that
state
governments
require
all
referral
companies
and
referred
agents
to

clearly
disclose
the
fee
and
its
amount
at
the
start
of
the
business
relationship.
Supporting
this
is
data
from
the
Big
Village
survey
that
found
that
84%
of
the
1,016
respondents
thought
that
referral
fees
should
be
disclosed
upfront
to
home
buyers. 

“Because
of
the
risks
and
costs,
consumers
should
think
twice
about
contacting
a
referral
company
or
choosing
an
agent
working
with
that
company,”
Gilch
said.
“Consumers
would
likely
get
better
value
by
working
with
a
local
agent
that
they
had
researched
and
interviewed.”