Chicago Zillow Listings Disappear After Local Group Yanks Data

Midwest Real Estate Data LLC (MRED), the operator of the multiple listing service (MLS) for Chicago and its suburbs, suspended data access for Zillow Group Inc. on May 21, 2026. The decision affects 43,000 property listings, following Zillow’s refusal to display nine homes that were initially marketed privately by Compass Inc. MRED CEO Rebecca Jensen stated that all listings must comply with its licensing agreement, and the company has a duty to enforce these rules equally across participants. Zillow had previously notified MRED two weeks earlier that it would exclude certain listings, citing a policy that removes properties publicly advertised for over 24 hours before being posted to the MLS. MRED argued this violated their data licensing terms, giving Zillow until May 20 to comply before cutting off access. By 12:30 PM New York time, Zillow’s app had begun removing MRED listings, though some data remained visible temporarily. The dispute stems from a broader conflict between Zillow and Compass. Last year, Compass sued Zillow in New York, alleging anticompetitive tactics, though the lawsuit was dropped in March after a federal judge denied a request to block Zillow’s listing restrictions. Compass has pushed for sellers to market homes exclusively through its agents first, while Zillow advocates for transparency in real estate listings. Compass released a statement defending homeowners’ rights to market properties as they choose, arguing that buyers should not face reduced access to listings due to platform disagreements. Meanwhile, Zillow criticized MRED’s decision, stating that Chicagoland homebuyers and sellers now have worse access to the housing market, undermining the ‘American Dream’ of homeownership. The conflict highlights tensions between tech-driven real estate platforms and traditional brokerage firms over data control and listing policies. MRED’s action follows a pattern of escalation, with both sides accusing the other of prioritizing profits over consumer access to housing information.