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Real estate portals spotlight days on market and price cuts
A HousingWire column argues that even though sellers fund commissions, portals often present data that can pressure pricing by encouraging buyers to make lower offers.
HousingWire says the U.S. real estate industry is effectively funded by sellers through commission payments, even as major portals and common practices focus on strengthening buyer leverage. The column argues that buyer-facing search tools highlight signals that can weaken sellers’ pricing power.
The piece points to portal listings that display days on market and a history of price reductions, including timestamps, as an example of how “transparency” can be used against seller pricing expectations. It contends this information can lead buyers to anticipate negotiation room, including offers below asking prices.
HousingWire also argues that many brokerage models prioritize competition for agents rather than building and marketing a selling process designed to improve outcomes for the paying customer, the seller. The column criticizes the effect of brokerages steering around seller-focused positioning, while the seller remains the party that pays commissions at closing in most transactions.
In its discussion of representation practices, HousingWire notes that some systems were originally structured to prevent MLSs from publishing buyer agent compensation, but it says buyer agent fees still tend to be handled in the offer and are ultimately paid by the seller at closing. The column frames the central question as who really controls the business, given that sellers write the check.