The National Association of REALTORS® has signaled its intent to continue its Clear Cooperation policy, but the debate over the issue has not subsided.

The policy, which requires Realtors to list their properties on MLSs within a day of signing a listing agreement, is intended to promote transparency, limit pocket listings and provide a level playing field for all Realtors and their clients.

Critics note that builders don’t have to abide by Clear Cooperation rules. That puts individual homeowners and their agents at a disadvantage, they say, because the longer a home is publicly listed, the more likely that the value of the home will decline.

Compass founder and CEO Robert Reffkin has been leading the calls for change.

“In my opinion, the easiest way to create more inventory in this country is to take away the risk of listing your house — days on the market and price drop history,” he said. “Forty percent of homes on the market have a price drop right now, which makes them look like damaged goods in the eyes of a buyer.”

RE/MAX President Amy Lessinger believes in the Clear Cooperation policy’s transparency components.

“REMAX is in favor of policies that help buyers and sellers achieve their homeownership dreams,” Lessinger said. “We are in support of full transparency in real estate transactions. Agents and companies who promote listings to the widest possible audience, they serve the best interests of buyers and sellers, and they honor their fiduciary responsibilities.

“Buyers deserve equal access to all available properties, and sellers deserve the broadest possible exposure for their homes. And so we really stand for trust and transparency and professionalism, and we believe in prioritizing consumer interests over practices that may benefit a few at their expense.”

Coldwell Banker Realty President and CEO Kamini Rangappan Lane said the Clear Cooperation debate should not be all or nothing. A better approach, she said, is measured changes that continue to promote transparency.

“We believe that Clear Cooperation needs to be reformed, not fully repealed,” Lane said. “Our philosophy on real estate is transparency, a transparent approach that is in the best interest of buyers and sellers, full stop.

“Some of our competitors are speaking really loudly about a full repeal, and I don’t know that that approach is in the best interest of buyers and sellers. I think a full repeal is in the best interest of a brokerage to create a walled garden, which does create advantages for brokerages. And listen, we stand to benefit from a walled garden just as much as anybody else; we have incredible region listing volume. But at the end of the day, our stance is that a transparent approach, a transparent marketplace that benefits buyers and sellers that is in the best interest of buyers and sellers, is what we believe is the right thing to do.”

Century 21 Real Estate President and CEO Mike Miedler offered similar sentiments and warned about what could happen to the industry without Clear Cooperation. “The Century 21 brand supports an open dialogue and a consumer-centric approach that balances seller flexibility with equitable access to listings,” he said. “Consumers benefit from having a broad view of effectively every listing on the market; building silos around different brokerages’ listings would potentially make the process of buying a home less transparent and more confusing for buyers.”

Compass, meanwhile, has introduced three levels in which homeowners can market their property. It starts with showing it only within the Compass network, then showcasing it as a “coming soon” property, before finally posting it to all MLSs. The strategy allows sellers to use a build-up approach to listing their homes without immediately accumulating days on the market.

“Compass introduced a new three-phased marketing strategy that empowers Compass agents to deliver the best value for homeowners,” Reffkin said. “A person’s home is their most valuable financial asset, and they deserve the best return when they sell it to buy their next home, feel secure in their retirement or pay for their child’s education.”