Los Angeles — A group of eight real estate agents has initiated a lawsuit against the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and several affiliates of Move Inc., accusing them of misleading sales practices including the sale of fictitious leads to agents. This lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, is seeking class-action status to represent all U.S. real estate agents who were allegedly deceived into purchasing these ineffective leads.
The defendants in the case also include Move Sales, OpCity Acquisitions, OpCity Inc., and REA Group Ltd., all subsidiaries of Move Inc., which is itself a part of News Corp. These organizations collectively operate Realtor.com, a prominent home search portal.
Plaintiffs in this case hail from diverse geographical locations, including Nevada, Florida, California, Washington state, New York, and Georgia. Their complaint accuses these companies of fraudulent business practices by cobbling together a vast amount of data from various sources, both known and obscure, to create what they sold as potential sales leads.
NAR, although primarily a trade association, is also implicated in the lawsuit. The plaintiffs contend that NAR was complicit in the scheme, alleging that it assisted in legitimizing the misleading sales strategies employed by the co-defendants.
The practices at issue involve the aggregation of user data gathered from various online interactions keyed to certain real estate-related terms like “home” and “property,” which the defendants then reportedly sold as promising leads. However, the complaint suggests that approximately half of these leads were not genuinely potential buyers, consisting instead of individuals who have never expressed interest in purchasing property.
Additionally, the complaint highlights a purported lack of proper management oversight by the defendants which allegedly failed to train or supervise their senior management effectively in accordance with their own policies and state laws.
A critical issue raised in the lawsuit is the handling of personal data. Allegedly, the co-defendants gathered personal details under the guise of generating leads and then used this information without proper disclosure, contributing to the potential violation of privacy guidelines.
The complaint also notes that the defendants allegedly employed deceptive sales techniques, including providing their sales team with scripts designed to mislead real estate agents about the value and effectiveness of the leads being sold. Furthermore, the plaintiffs claim that contract terms were changed without proper notification.
The plaintiffs argue that the implicated practices have not only harmed individual agents financially but have also damaged the overall trust and integrity within the real estate industry. As the lawsuit progresses, the group is seeking damages and reimbursement for attorneys’ fees, pushing for a court ruling that could impact lead generation practices across the real estate sector nationwide.
Representatives for the defendants did not respond to requests for comments on the allegations. The outcome of this legal challenge could lead to significant changes in how real estate leads are generated and sold, potentially setting new industry standards for transparency and accountability.