You may have heard me saying recently to shop homes.com when searching for your next home.

There are many great reasons for that.

Among these are Zillow issues that are affecting buyers, sellers and agents.

Here’s a quick look at current events. Not mentioned below is the fact that many thousands of MLS listings are no longer on Zillow.

Timeline of Zillow’s Rough Patch (Mid-September to Early October 2025)

This isn’t one isolated hit; it’s a cascade. Here’s the blow-by-blow:

• September 19: Class-Action Suit on Hidden Fees A lawsuit accuses Zillow of burying agent commissions (up to 40%) in its Premier Agent Flex program, misleading buyers and sellers about costs. Filed as a class action, it claims this inflates home prices and deceives users. X is buzzing with realtor frustration, like podcasters calling it “realtor’s secrets exposed.”
• September 22: Deceptive Buyer Practices Lawsuit Another suit hits Zillow for allegedly hiding its cut of agent commissions from buyers/sellers, violating transparency rules. Reuters notes this ties into broader commission crackdowns post-NAR settlement. On X, it’s fueling rants about “price inflation” in listings.
• September 22: Compass-Anywhere Merger Bombshell Compass announces a $4.2B acquisition of Anywhere Real Estate (parent of Coldwell Banker, Century 21, and Sotheby’s), ballooning to 340,000 agents across 120 countries and $10B in value. Compass was already the U.S.’s top brokerage by sales volume (18% share); this makes it double Zillow’s scale in agent network and global reach. Zillow’s firing back by probing the deal for antitrust inconsistencies tied to Compass’s June lawsuit against Zillow over “private listings” bans. X threads are lit with predictions: “Zillow & NAR better watch out!” as Compass pushes off-market inventory that sidelines Zillow’s MLS dominance.
• September 30: FTC (Federal Trade Commission) Antitrust Hammer The FTC sues Zillow and Redfin, alleging Zillow paid Redfin $100M in February to kill its rental ad competition and prop up Zillow’s monopoly in multifamily listings. The complaint calls it a “pay-to-stay-out” scheme that hikes ad costs and limits renter options. Fast Company dubs this part of Zillow’s “legal storm” with four suits in 100 days.
• October 1: Multi-State AG Lawsuit Joins the Pile Attorneys General from New York, Virginia, Arizona, Connecticut, and Washington file a bipartisan antitrust suit, echoing the FTC: Zillow and Redfin conspired to squash rental listing rivals, potentially jacking up costs for landlords and renters. NY AG Letitia James is leading the charge, vowing to “stop this illegal deal.” X posts from news outlets and podcasters (e.g., Land Development Podcast) are dissecting impacts on affordability and Gen Z buyers.
• Ongoing: CoStar Copyright Clash Not new to September, but escalating—CoStar’s suing Zillow for “crusading against consumers” by allegedly stealing listing photos without permission, in a massive infringement case. This one’s been simmering since earlier 2025 but ties into the “monopoly or meltdown?” narrative on X.

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Steve Martin Smith is the Broker/Owner of Slice of Florida® Realty and Host of the globally downloaded Real Estate Agent Man Podcast

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