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Selling your home is a big decision, and how you list it can impact your results. In the Salt Lake County market (and nationwide), there’s a lot of buzz about the Clear Cooperation Policy (CCP) and whether it benefits home sellers more than private or “exclusive” listings. Let’s break down what the CCP is, why it exists, and how it compares to off-market strategies like private listings. We’ll also look at Zillow’s latest move against exclusive listings, and offer some perspective on which path tends to serve sellers best.
The Clear Cooperation Policy is a rule adopted by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) in late 2019 to ensure that listings get shared on the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) quickly once they’re advertised to the publicrismedia.com. In plain terms, if an agent markets your property publicly – whether that’s a yard sign, social media post, or any public website – they must submit the listing to the MLS within one business day nar.realtor. This policy (sometimes called “Policy 8.0”) was introduced to promote a fair, transparent marketplace. NAR’s stated goal was to maximize exposure for sellers and reinforce the pro-competitive, pro-consumer benefits of an open market realestatenews.com. By getting listings onto the MLS quickly, all buyers and agents have an equal chance to know your home is for sale, rather than deals happening behind closed doors.
CCP was largely a response to the rise of “pocket listings” – homes sold off-market or only within private networks. NAR grew concerned that too many homes were being kept off the MLS, limiting inventory visibility and potentially disadvantaging consumers. By requiring broad sharing of listings, NAR aimed to curb exclusive “secret” listings and ensure every buyer gets a fair shot at every listed homerealestatenews.com. In theory, this benefits sellers as well: more exposure could mean more competition and better offers. NAR also cited maintaining accurate data (since MLS listings are tracked) and upholding the cooperative spirit of MLS systems as reasons for CCP. Essentially, CCP is about forcing cooperation among brokers – hence the nickname “Forced Cooperation” used by some – to prevent any one brokerage from hoarding a listing and to give consumers full access to available homes.
Not everyone in the real estate world cheers the CCP. Some brokers and sellers feel it limits their freedom and control. Critics argue that CCP takes away a homeowner’s right to decide how and when to market their own property. For example, high-profile broker Mauricio Umansky has said “the homeowner should have the freedom to choose how he or she wants to market their home for sale, period, end of story”realestatenews.comrealestatenews.com. Other opponents (like the CEO of Compass) have even called CCP “reckless,” claiming it’s a collusive, anti-competitive rule that forces cooperation at the expense of seller choicerealestatenews.com.
Key arguments against CCP include:
Seller Autonomy: Owners should be able to opt for a quiet sale if they want. Detractors say CCP “disenfranchises sellers by reducing their ability to choose how their listing is marketed”realestatenews.com. In other words, it compels them into the MLS even if they’d prefer an alternative approach.
Privacy Concerns: Some sellers value privacy and might not want their sale public immediately. Opponents feel CCP doesn’t sufficiently accommodate those who need discretion (more on these scenarios later).
Brokerage Innovation and Competition: There were new platforms and networks (often run by brokers) for exclusive listings. Those opposed to CCP argue that banning these stifles innovation and competition in real estate. In fact, CCP has faced legal challenges from private listing networks claiming it’s an NAR tactic to quash competitors to the MLSrismedia.com.
“One Size Fits All” Critique: Real estate is nuanced. Critics say an across-the-board rule doesn’t account for unique situations. For instance, if a seller wants to test the market privately or do a slow rollout, CCP forces their hand too soon.
It’s worth noting that NAR did build in an exception for “office exclusives” – a listing can stay out of the MLS if it’s truly kept private within one brokerage and not publicly advertised. But if there’s any public marketing, CCP kicks in. Some see this as a small loophole; others see it as necessary flexibility. Either way, the debate has been heated, with valid points on both sides about seller freedom versus market fairness.
One thing most agents and brokers agree on: the MLS is the powerhouse for home exposure. The MLS is a local database (in Utah, it’s the UtahRealEstate.com MLS for Salt Lake County) that feeds out to hundreds of websites and is accessible to every REALTOR® in the area. When your home is on the MLS, every active buyer’s agent knows about it and sites like Zillow, Realtor.com, Redfin, etc., can display it to millions of users. If you keep your home off the MLS, you’re essentially invisible to a huge segment of potential buyers.
Listing on the MLS ensures maximum exposure. In fact, real estate pros will tell you the MLS is “probably the single best way of getting the word out to buyers and their agents”ruthkrishnan.com. The reason is simple: reach. By casting the widest net, you increase the chance of finding that one buyer willing to pay top dollar. The MLS helps orchestrate competition too. When a new listing hits, buyer agents spring into action, scheduling showings and notifying clients. In a hot market, this can lead to multiple offers within days. Even in a cooler market, being on the MLS means no qualified buyer will overlook your property – which can only help your odds of a timely, successful sale.
On the flip side, a private or pocket listing relies on a far smaller network – maybe just one agent’s contacts or a single brokerage’s email list. You might get lucky and find a buyer through those channels, but you’re also betting that the “right” buyer just happens to be in that small pool. With an MLS listing, you’re not leaving it to chance; you’re systematically notifying all the buyers out there. It’s the difference between quietly telling a few friends your car is for sale versus putting it on Autotrader and a dealership lot – the latter will simply get you more eyeballs.
If MLS exposure is so great, why would any seller choose to list privately? There are a few common reasons why a homeowner (often with their agent’s advice) might go the exclusive route:
Privacy and Discretion: Some sellers, especially high-profile individuals or those dealing with sensitive situations, don’t want it public knowledge that their home is for saleruthkrishnan.com. Perhaps they value their privacy, or they’re testing the waters and don’t want nosy neighbors or media attention. A pocket listing lets them avoid having their home (and photos of their rooms) blasted all over the internet.
Hassle & Control: Selling a home publicly can be a hassle – constant showings, open houses, staging, keeping the home “show-ready” 24/7. Some owners don’t want to go through the full circus of showings and prepruthkrishnan.com. They might tell their agent, “Bring me a buyer, and I’ll sell, but I’m not repainting the walls or vacating every weekend for open houses.” In some cases, sellers aren’t in a rush or need to sell; they’re only willing if a buyer meets a certain high price or ideal terms. A private listing can feel like a “soft launch” – the home is available quietly, and if the right buyer comes along, great. If not, no big deal.
Exclusive Image or Strategy: In luxury markets especially, there’s a school of thought that making a listing “invite-only” creates mystique. The idea is that buyers who feel they have access to something exclusive may be extra motivatedruthkrishnan.com. For example, an agent might whisper about an off-market mansion to a select few affluent clients, hoping to create a buzz of “psst, only we know about this”. In theory, a buyer might pay a premium thinking they’ve got an inside track. (This doesn’t always pan out in reality, but it’s a rationale some cite.)
Testing the Market: Some sellers use private marketing as a trial run. They float a high price privately to gauge interest. If no one bites off-market, it’s a signal that when they do go public on the MLS, they might need to adjust the price. The benefit is they can do this without racking up “days on market” in the MLS or having a price reduction history visible to everyone. It’s like quietly shopping a product before a big launch.
These reasons can be valid, depending on a seller’s priorities. For instance, if you’re a public figure in Salt Lake who values discretion above all, you might accept a lower price in exchange for a quiet sale. Or if you absolutely hate the idea of dozens of strangers touring your home, a pocket listing could limit foot traffic to only very serious prospects.
However, it’s important to understand the trade-offs you make with a private listing – which leads us to how these off-market deals actually perform.
When it comes to sale price and time on market, the general trend is that MLS listings outperform private listings for most sellers. There’s data and plenty of anecdotal experience to back this up. Here’s what studies and Realtors have observed:
Higher Sale Prices on the MLS: More exposure usually means more competition, which drives up price. One analysis in San Francisco found that homes sold off-MLS went for 9% to 17% less on average than similar homes that were sold on the MLSruthkrishnan.com. That’s a huge gap – potentially tens of thousands of dollars (or more) left on the table. Now, that was a specific market study, but the logic applies broadly: if you only negotiate with one buyer, you lose the power of a bidding war. With an MLS listing, even just the threat of other offers can push a buyer to put their best foot forward. Without that, a buyer has little incentive to overpay.
Time on Market (Speed of Sale): An MLS listing, when priced right, often sells faster because it reaches the largest possible buyer pool immediately. Think about the first weekend a good property hits the MLS – agents are scheduling back-to-back showings and there’s momentum. A private listing, in contrast, can linger if the limited circle of buyers doesn’t produce a match. It’s not unheard of for a pocket listing to sit quietly for weeks or months, only to end up being placed on the MLS anyway when the private route yields no result. (At that point, you’ve potentially lost valuable initial marketing time.) There are exceptions: sometimes an off-market deal is arranged in advance, so a home might technically sell “instantly” off-market because buyer and seller were matched by the agent behind the scenes. But for an average seller without an immediate buyer lined up, going straight to MLS increases your chances of a quick sale.
Are There Financial Benefits to Staying Off MLS? For sellers, pure financial upside to off-market listing is rare. One could argue you might save a bit on costs – for example, some off-MLS sellers skip staging or repairs, saving on prep expensesruthkrishnan.com. In very high-end markets, we’ve seen cases where sellers avoid $50k+ in home prep by selling as-is to a private buyer. Also, if the same agent represents both buyer and seller in a private deal, occasionally the commission can be negotiated (since the agent is “double-ending” the deal). But these savings often pale in comparison to the price premium you forgo by not exposing your home to multiple bidders. In essence, not listing on the MLS can be a bit like saving pennies but losing dollars. For most homeowners, the highest price a buyer will pay is achieved by casting a wide net, not a narrow one.
Of course, every property and situation is unique. A ultra-custom luxury home might only appeal to a handful of buyers nationwide – in such cases, a targeted private outreach could find that unicorn buyer without the spectacle of a public listing. Or a seller might value a quick, no-fuss transaction over squeezing out every dollar (think of an off-market sale to a friend or family member). But these are the exceptions. In the majority of cases, MLS listings both sell for more money and in less time than their private counterparts, simply because the market forces have a chance to play out in full. As one Bay Area realtor put it, if you sell off-market and get a “pretty good” price, you’ll never know if it could have been higher had you listed publiclyruthkrishnan.com. Many sellers are not comfortable with that lingering what if?
One recent development is shaking up the off-market vs. MLS dynamic even further. Zillow, the country’s largest real estate portal, announced that starting in May 2025 it will no longer display listings that aren’t shared on the MLS within 24 hours of any public marketingzillowgroup.com. In other words, Zillow is enforcing the spirit of the Clear Cooperation Policy on its site and its sister site Trulia. If an agent tries to promote a home as an “exclusive” or pocket listing outside the MLS, it won’t show up on Zillow at all.
Zillow’s decision to ban off-MLS “exclusive” listings on its platform aligns with the industry push for more transparency. Homes publicly marketed must be listed on the MLS for Zillow to display themzillowgroup.comzillowgroup.com.
Why is this a big deal? Zillow is where a huge chunk of buyers search for homes. Even here in Salt Lake County, you can bet that many prospective buyers browse Zillow or get alerts from it. If your home isn’t on Zillow, you’re effectively invisible to those buyers. Zillow’s leadership said they made this move to create an “even playing field” and ensure that if a listing is marketed to any buyers, it’s available to allrealestatenews.com. “Our belief is that, if a listing is going to be marketed to a buyer or a subset of buyers, it really needs to be made available to all buyers,” explained Zillow’s industry development head, Errol Samuelsonrealestatenews.com. The company is aligning its platform with NAR’s Clear Cooperation rules, even if NAR’s rules themselves allow some loopholes like “coming soon” or delayed MLS entry.
Zillow’s policy change was applauded by some (it was endorsed by eXp Realty, a major brokerage, as being pro-consumer)realestatenews.com and criticized by others who favor private networks. But the takeaway for homeowners is: if you were considering a pocket listing, keep in mind it won’t get exposure on Zillow or Trulia anymore. This removes one of the last semi-public venues where an off-MLS listing might have been showcased to buyers. Now, unless a buyer happens to work with the listing brokerage or hear about the home via word-of-mouth, they may never know your home is for sale. This change further tilts the scales toward listing on the MLS if you want maximum visibility.
(For those interested in the source: Zillow’s announcement was covered in an official news release on April 10, 2025zillowgroup.comzillowgroup.com, detailing that any listing publicly marketed must be on the MLS to appear on Zillow. Even a yard sign or Instagram post about the home triggers this requirement. The move was described as supporting fairness by not letting anyone hide listings behind a “velvet rope.”)
Choosing how to list your home comes down to your priorities, but you should do so with eyes wide open to the pros and cons. Here are some final points to keep in mind as a homeowner deciding between an MLS listing and a private approach:
Exposure vs. Exclusivity: If your goal is to get the best price and sell in a reasonable timeframe, it’s hard to beat the MLS. The more buyers who see your home, the more likely you are to get strong offers. Exclusive listings limit the buyer pool severely – which might align with a need for privacy, but it’s a trade-off. Ask yourself: am I okay if only a handful of people even know my home is for sale? If not, go MLS. If yes (maybe due to personal reasons), recognize the likely financial impact.
Market Conditions Matter: In a seller’s market (low inventory, high demand, which Salt Lake County has experienced in recent years), a public MLS listing can ignite a bidding war – great for sellers. In a buyer’s market, you need every bit of exposure to even get a single offer, so an off-market listing would be very risky (you could miss the few buyers who are looking). Off-market deals tend to happen more in ultra-hot markets or for ultra-unique properties. For the typical home in our area, the MLS is your friend, especially if market conditions are balanced or favor buyers.
Who Really Benefits from Private Listings? Here’s a little industry secret: exclusive listings often benefit the brokerage or agent more than the seller. Why? If an agent keeps your listing in-house, they might find the buyer themselves and earn double commission (representing both sides)ruthkrishnan.com. Some big brokerages have tried to create “walled gardens” of listings to attract affluent clients or force buyers to come directly to them – strategies that pad the brokerage’s stats and lead funnelsrealestatenews.com. But none of that necessarily puts more money in your pocket as the seller. Be wary if an agent heavily pushes you toward a private listing without a compelling reason based on your needs. Make sure it’s about your best interest, not theirs. As NextHome’s CEO James Dwiggins pointed out, the push to sidestep the MLS is often about brokers wanting to
“Keep Listings off the broader marketplace for internal promotion, generate internal buyer leads, double-end deals, and boost profits” realestatenews.com – which says it all.
Legal and Contractual Obligations: If you’re working with a REALTOR®, remember that CCP is likely baked into their MLS membership rules. They don’t really have a choice; if you want any public advertising, your agent will have to MLS the listing within 24 hours. You do have the option to choose an office-exclusive listing (signing an MLS waiver), but then the agent is extremely limited in how they can market – essentially it must stay completely private (no public posts, no Zillow, etc.). Make sure you understand what you’re signing. “Private” truly means private now, given rules and Zillow’s stance. There’s no halfway “post it on Zillow but not on MLS” option anymore.
Case-by-Case Exceptions: There are scenarios where not going on the MLS immediately might make sense. For example, maybe you’re renovating and want to delay full MLS exposure until the work is done, but meanwhile your agent quietly networks it. Or you have a short-term need for privacy (a divorce situation, an ill family member, etc.). In such cases, a temporary pocket listing could be a bridge strategy. Just have a clear game plan: perhaps private for a few weeks, then MLS if not sold. And get advice on how that fits with CCP rules (many MLS have a “Coming Soon” status or similar to handle this).
Great question — and one that deserves a real answer. In some cases, agents recommend private listings because the seller has specific goals: privacy, less hassle, or they only want to sell if the right buyer comes along quietly. That’s legit.
But here’s the truth: sometimes agents push off-market listings because it benefits them more than it benefits you. When a listing stays in-house, that agent or brokerage has a better shot at representing both sides of the deal — meaning double the commission. Some large brokerages even create exclusive networks that gatekeep homes from the general public, which gives them more control but limits your buyer pool. So while there can be strategic reasons to go private, it’s worth asking your agent who gains more from that choice — you or them?
Yes — but you need to be strategic. Sellers sometimes want to “float” a price off-market to see if it sticks. The risk is that if your home sits too long without bites, then hits the MLS later, buyers may wonder “what’s wrong with it?”
A better move in most cases is to use the “Coming Soon” status on the MLS, which many MLS platforms (including UtahRealEstate.com) allow. It lets agents and buyers know your home is coming without officially starting your days on market. You can also prep the home fully, then list it at your best price right away when it’s ready to make a splash — that first weekend is often the most powerful.
Bottom line: testing is fine, but make sure you don’t waste your strongest marketing moment by going too quiet for too long.
It depends on your situation. If you’re going through a divorce, job relocation, or just want to avoid showings and stress, selling off-market for a little less might be worth the trade-off. The same goes if you’re selling to a friend, family member, or neighbor and want to keep things simple.
But for most sellers — especially in Salt Lake County, where demand is still strong — taking your home to the full market usually leads to higher offers and better terms. Even one weekend of showings can create a level of competition that private deals just can’t match.
So yes, privacy and convenience are valid reasons — just make sure the price cut you’re accepting matches the value of those benefits to you, not your agent.
Alex Lehauli is a Salt Lake native with extensive knowledge of the Utah housing market. He is a top producer with multi-million dollar sales volume and has valuable skills in strategic marketing, negotiation and guiding clients. He is an associate broker at Black Diamond Realty and passionate about building lasting relationships as a trusted real estate resource.
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