Zillow and Realtor.com announced Tuesday they will share pre-market listings across both platforms starting this summer, giving buyers access to preview homes regardless of brokerage affiliation or platform login.
The partnership between two of the industry’s largest and most directly competing portals arrives as the National Association of Realtors’ Clear Cooperation Policy remains under pressure and private listing networks continue to grow. In a blog post shared with Inman, Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales framed the collaboration as a direct counter to those trends.
“Pre-market inventory is growing, and too much of it is flowing into narrower and more fragmented channels,” Eales said. “When listings and information become harder to find, buyers and sellers lose, and it becomes harder for brokers to work together to best serve their clients.”
Zillow CEO Jeremy Wacksman also stressed transparency, saying in a statement that “the real estate market works best when every buyer has access to the same information — nothing hidden, nothing reserved for a select few.”
“Zillow and Realtor.com both are committed to the same principle: sellers deserve maximum exposure from day one, and buyers deserve visibility into every home available to them,” he added. “With this collaboration we’re not just expanding reach, we’re creating true seller choice while setting a new industry standard for what transparency in real estate actually looks like for buyers, sellers and agents.”
Under the deal, Zillow Preview listings will appear on Realtor.com as “Realtor.com Preview” listings. Together, the two portals reach three-quarters of major portal visitors, according to March Comscore data cited in the announcement.
The statement explains that, after finding a home, users of both portals can save the listing and get updates, contact the listing agent, pre-book a tour, and “use the extra time to connect with a buyer’s agent and get pre-approved for a mortgage.”
The statement adds that “the collaboration raises the ceiling on what pre-market exposure can look like.”
“This collaboration unlocks more visibility for more people, supporting a healthier housing marketplace,” the statement continues, noting later that “Preview is available to brokerages that believe listings should be widely visible to the public, including in the earliest window of marketing.”
Eales said Realtor.com’s preference remains that MLSs establish and syndicate their own coming-soon listings but that the portal had a responsibility to act given that pre-market inventory already exists outside that system.
Zillow Preview launched last month with brokerage partners including Keller Williams, RE/MAX, HomeServices of America, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, United Real Estate, Engel & Völkers and Side. Listings will be available at no cost to sellers or agents enrolled through a participating brokerage.
Under the new partnership with Realtor.com, listing agents who close a deal via a connection made on either platform may receive revenue share, the companies said. Commissions remain negotiable between consumers and their agents.
The collaboration is available in all U.S. markets except New York City, where StreetEasy is developing a separate offering.
Update: This story was updated after publication with additional context about the portals’ partnership.
