Mortgage Steering Allegations Put Zillow’s Platform Under the Microscope

• People v. Zillow: Zillow faces a class-action lawsuit accusing it of steering mortgage business through its Premier Agent program.

• Last reply all: A top New York broker was fired for political remarks, showing how carefully real estate firms handle political speech.

• Where to put the data: New research suggests data centers should shift to regions with cleaner power and stronger water resources.

• Smart building trends webinar: Smart buildings are evolving as AI and connected systems redefine how properties think, adapt, and perform. Sign up

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Mortgage Steering Allegations Put Zillow’s Platform Under the Microscope

For years, Zillow has straddled the line between being a real estate media company and a transaction platform. Now, that blurred identity is under scrutiny. A new class-action lawsuit alleges that Zillow’s Premier Agent program didn’t just connect agents with leads—it tied those leads to Zillow’s own mortgage arm, creating what plaintiffs describe as an illegal “closed network” that violated federal law. The complaint claims Zillow offered valuable customer inquiries to agents only if they steered those same customers toward Zillow Home Loans.

At the heart of the case is Section 8(a) of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, or RESPA, which forbids giving or accepting any “thing of value” in exchange for real estate referrals. The suit argues that Zillow’s model, which both sells advertising and controls lead access, crossed that line. “Zillow, Inc. and Zillow Home Loans, LLC gave to real estate brokers, in the form of access to valuable customer leads, explicitly in exchange for sending those customers to Zillow’s financing arm for mortgages,” the complaint reads. That, according to the plaintiffs, is “per se illegal under federal law.”

This lawsuit comes as real estate’s digital gatekeepers face increasing pressure over how they monetize their platforms. Zillow’s Premier Agent program has long been a profit driver, letting agents pay for prime exposure to buyers browsing listings. But the complaint suggests the company leveraged that influence too far, claiming Zillow “created a closed network in which the company not only sells advertising to agents but also dictates the conditions for remaining in the program.” In other words, access to homebuyer leads—the lifeblood of many agents—may have come with strings attached.

For Zillow, the stakes go beyond potential fines. The case touches the very structure of its business model. If courts determine that lead-sharing arrangements can qualify as kickbacks under RESPA, other platforms that integrate financing, advertising, and brokerage services could face similar scrutiny. The outcome might force major adjustments to how online real estate marketplaces bundle and sell access to consumers.

Whether this case ends in a settlement or a precedent-setting ruling, it highlights a tension at the core of proptech: the convergence of marketing and transaction. Zillow built its empire on connecting buyers, sellers, and agents—but when those connections start to resemble referral agreements, regulators tend to take notice. The industry will be watching closely to see if this marks the beginning of a new phase of accountability for platforms that have, until now, operated largely outside the rules that govern traditional brokerages.

Overheard

Broker Firing Highlights Politics as Risk in Real Estate

A longtime New York broker was recently fired after making inflammatory remarks about incoming mayor Zohran Mamdani, prompting swift backlash from his firm. The company said the comments, shared internally, did not align with its values and moved to terminate the broker within days. The episode reflects how sensitive large real estate organizations have become to political expression within their ranks, particularly when a single message can spiral across social media and risk alienating clients or city officials.

For major brokerages, neutrality has become part of the brand. As firms expand across markets and demographics, they’ve adopted strict communication policies to prevent employees from wading into political territory. The calculus is simple: in a relationship-driven business, politics introduces unnecessary volatility. Brokerages depend on cooperation from government agencies, development partners, and public institutions; appearing partisan can easily complicate those relationships. Even when speech is protected, companies often act preemptively to safeguard perception.

This tension is growing more visible as the industry confronts an increasingly polarized political landscape. With national marketing teams and corporate HR departments shaping every public-facing statement, there’s less tolerance for individuality that might be seen as divisive. For agents and executives alike, that means understanding that “personal” opinions can carry organizational consequences. The incident is a reminder that in modern brokerage culture, politics isn’t just polarizing—it’s operationally expensive.

The Next Data Center Boom Will Follow the Cleanest Grids

A new analysis is reshaping how the data center industry thinks about sustainability. Researchers found that building facilities in regions with cleaner power grids and more abundant water supplies could dramatically reduce the sector’s emissions footprint. States like Texas, Montana, Nebraska, and South Dakota scored highest for both renewable energy potential and water resilience, while traditional hubs such as California and northern Virginia now rank among the least sustainable due to strained resources and slow grid decarbonization.

The study underscores how data centers—once sited primarily for fiber access and tax incentives—have become major players in the global energy system. These facilities already consume about 2% of U.S. electricity, a share expected to rise sharply with the surge in AI and cloud computing demand. Historically, markets like Loudoun County, Virginia, and Silicon Valley grew into massive clusters because they offered both proximity to users and robust digital infrastructure. But those advantages are now weighed against grid congestion, cooling costs, and mounting local resistance tied to water use and land consumption.

For commercial real estate, this shift signals a potential redistribution of capital and talent. Developers and investors chasing data center demand may increasingly look to secondary or emerging markets that combine affordable land with renewable capacity and regulatory support. It’s a reminder that site selection is no longer just a question of connectivity—it’s an environmental calculus. As ESG reporting becomes more standardized and energy costs more volatile, the “greenest” grid may soon prove to be the most profitable one.

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