Almost two years after holding a workshop on competition in the real estate industry, the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice have produced their report on the subject. The feds come down on the side of consumer choice, transparency and efficiency and in opposition to the collusion, conflicts of interest and ethical lapses that seem to emerge whenever large brokerage firms get together.

The FTC-DOJ report shows that while real estate prices have skyrocketed in recent years, commission rates have fallen very little. Why? The industry discourages price competition through anti-rebate laws, minimum-service requirements, restrictions on usage of the MLS, and even boycotts of alternative-model brokerages (all thoroughly documented in the report).
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