Overview
- The parties announced a settlement on Monday that ends a 16‑month antitrust fight and establishes a new NWMLS listing status called First Look that goes live Sept. 4, 2026.
- First Look lets sellers and listing brokers market a property for up to 21 days before the full public launch, and sellers may permit showings, open houses and offers during that period if they choose.
- Every First Look property must be submitted to NWMLS and remain accessible to the service’s 30,000+ member brokers, and any days in First Look or pre‑launch price changes will be visible inside NWMLS but not published publicly.
- Under the settlement NWMLS will remove watermarks from listing photos and require portals to display listing broker names and contact details by Oct. 15, 2026, with additional broker data fields to be provided by Nov. 15, 2026.
- Industry groups and competitors praised the compromise as a balance between seller choice and open cooperation, Compass said the deal protects its agents from enforcement 'under the guise of enforcing state law,' and observers note the change follows earlier regional precedents such as MRED’s private‑listing network.