To comply with the NAR settlement, the organizations can no longer include offers of compensation on their platforms — a change that has made MLSs "somewhat" or "much" less valuable, according to 55% of real estate professionals in an October survey from WAV Group.
Consumer sentiment has continued to trend upward, reaching 73.1 in December — "substantially above year-ago levels," said Mark Palim, Fannie Mae SVP and chief economist.
Instead, United, which operates on a flat fee model, offers other benefits — such as health care and financial planning — which Duffy believes are more valuable to agents and their primary business of selling real estate, not being a recruiter.
In an interview on PBS NewsHour last week, Shaun Donovan, CEO and president of Enterprise Community Partners and a former HUD chief, said the improvement in the veteran population illustrates a "really a hopeful sign we do know how to solve homelessness" and could help serve as a blueprint as policymakers work to address the crisis more broadly.
A recent T3 Sixty survey of real estate association and MLS executives found that more than 70% are budgeting for a projected decrease in membership, citing a combination of external and internal factors.
The bond market's response to economic and political conditions — in particular, concerns about deficit spending and inflation stemming from Trump administration proposals — is also having an effect, said Selma Hepp, chief economist at CoreLogic.
