If you’re thinking about selling your home in Seattle, a behind-the-scenes industry debate could shape how your home comes to market.
Redfin supports a seller’s choice in how their property is marketed, including premarketing to test pricing and demand. But home sellers in Seattle don’t have this choice because Northwest MLS (NWMLS), the region’s multiple listing service, currently prohibits all premarketing.
We’ve asked NWMLS to update its rules to better align with what our customers want. And this comes at an apt moment. A new Washington State law addressing private listing networks will take effect in June. It requires agents to market homes to the general public and all brokers at the same time. At Redfin, we believe the law clearly supports premarketing as long as the listing is publicly marketed and the seller consents. That means a home can be shared on a publicly available platform, like Redfin.com, where any buyer or agent can view it freely.
Our proposal is to create a premarketing phase within the MLS. During that period, a home would still be filed with NWMLS and visible to all member agents and available to all buyers through those brokers, preserving the cooperation that the MLS is built on. At the same time, sellers and their agents would have more control over their data.
This approach fits within the law’s framework. The law requires public marketing and access for all brokers and buyers, but it does not prescribe exactly how or where that marketing must occur. Importantly, the law allows the homeowner to choose, not the MLS. Public display on a site like Redfin.com ensures broad visibility while giving sellers flexibility in how they go to market.
We’re already seeing demand for this flexibility from sellers in the Seattle area. As Redfin Agent Macartney McQuery put it, “I’ve had sellers who just want a little runway before going fully live. Premarketing gives them that space to test the waters, get feedback, and feel confident in their next move.”
McQuery recently tested a Coming Soon listing on Redfin.com in Tacoma. His sellers have a very unique home. It is an 1800s build that doesn’t have direct comparables in the neighborhood, so being able to launch as a Coming Soon and gauge interest helped them make the right decision for when the listing went live on the MLS.
This shift is already underway across the country. Major MLSs including BrightMLS, MRED in Chicago, UnlockMLS in Austin, Canopy MLS, Realtracs, and MLSPIN have all adopted seller-choice frameworks that include a pre-marketing status within the MLS. The momentum is clear: the industry is moving toward giving sellers more flexibility, not less. We’re asking NWMLS to join that movement.
Redfin’s goal is to work constructively with NWMLS and the broader industry to find a solution that keeps listings available on the MLS, supports transparency for agents, and gives sellers the flexibility they’re asking for. We’ve had productive conversations with leaders at NWMLS who have expressed an openness to hearing our ideas and considering our proposal.
For the broader market, the outcome of this discussion matters. Policies that give sellers more flexibility can encourage more homeowners to list, which can help increase inventory and give buyers more options.
We believe that’s achievable, and we’re committed to continuing that conversation in the open.
