The MLS of Catawba Valley, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Catawba Valley Association of Realtors®, recently informed their 600+ subscribers that they will no longer provide MLS data to Zillow Group.
The Zillow Group is perhaps best known as the provider of the “Zestimate”, a controversial valuation tool that has long angered many Realtors® and property owners alike. Despite this and other controversies, the Seattle based company founded in 2005 emerged as the leading real estate website and a dominant player in real estate listing syndication. They are strategic partners with Yahoo, MSN, AOL and more than 180 United States newspapers as a part of the Zillow Newspaper Consortium. They recently acquired their top competitor, Trulia.
The MLS of Catawba Valley, citing contractual concerns, joins an ever growing number of local and regional Multiple Listing Services across the country that have discontinued their relationship with the Zillow Group. Despite this, local Realtor® firms will still be able to provide their listing data to Zillow and its distribution network. Now that they have a choice it’s safe to say some firms will choose not to do so. Maybe they will check the Zestimate and decide on a per listing basis? Regardless, this is not good news for the Zillow Group. They and their strategic partners are going to be less relevant resources for real estate listing information in the Catawba Valley.
Christie Oakley officially took office as a Director for the Catawba Valley Association of Realtors® during ceremonies held Wednesday at the Lake Hickory Country Club. Mrs. Oakley has spent more than twenty years serving the interests of property owners throughout the Catawba Valley. She is the owner and Broker in Charge of Prime Properties Group in Hickory NC, a full-service real estate firm specializing residential sales and property management.