Zillow Study Finds $1.49B Lost to Dual-Agency, $1.36B from Off-MLS Deals
ZG•Zillow analysis of 15M US home sales from 2023–2025 shows sellers in dual-agency deals lost a total of $1.49B (about $2,165 per home) over three years. Off-MLS listings cost sellers a combined $1.36B (roughly $4,230 each), with higher losses in lower-price tiers (2.2%) and communities of color (1.9%).
1. Analysis Scope and Purpose
Zillow analyzed more than 15 million US home sales from 2023 to 2025, focusing on transactions where one agent represented both buyer and seller (4.7% of the sample) and properties marketed privately off the MLS (1.9% of the sample) to quantify price impacts.
2. Dual-Agency Transaction Losses
Sellers in same-agent dual-agency arrangements incurred aggregate losses of $1.49B over three years, equating to an average shortfall of $2,165 per sale as agents' split-commission incentives often favored deal closure over maximizing seller proceeds.
3. Off-MLS Listing Penalties
Properties never published to the MLS generated a combined $1.36B in seller losses, with a median price penalty of 1.3% (approximately $4,230 per sale). This effect intensified to a 2.2% loss for lower-price-tier homes.
4. Geographic and Demographic Variations
California accounted for $533M of dual-agency losses, followed by Florida ($217M), New York ($146M) and New Jersey ($115M). Off-MLS penalties were notably higher in majority-people-of-color neighborhoods (1.9%) versus majority-white areas (1.1%).
