Redfin pushes Northwest MLS to allow pre-marketing to increase seller flexibility

Seattle-area homeowners cannot currently test the market before officially listing their homes because the Northwest MLS (NWMLS) prohibits all pre-marketing. Redfin and its parent company, Rocket, are urging the region's largest multiple listing service to change these policies to allow seller choice.

Redfin proposes a pre-marketing phase where a home is filed with the NWMLS and remains visible to all member agents, but allows the property to be listed as 'Coming Soon' on public platforms like Redfin.com. This approach aligns with a new Washington law taking effect in early June that prohibits marketing residential properties to exclusive groups of prospective buyers or brokers unless the property is also broadly marketed to consumers and agents simultaneously.

Redfin argues that providing this flexibility can encourage more homeowners to list their properties, which would increase housing inventory for buyers.