Another lawmaker asks FTC to review agent referral tools on real estate portals

House Representative Ben Cline (R-Va)., is urging the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate whether online real estate marketplaces are using deceptive agent referral tools and mortgage steering practices that increase homebuying costs, according to a letter sent on June 12 to FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson.

In the letter obtained by HousingWire, Representative Cline commended the FTC for filing its lawsuit in September 2025 against Zillow and Redfin over an alleged illegal agreement in the multifamily rental advertising market and said similar conduct may be occurring in owner-occupied housing. He framed the issue in terms of affordability pressures facing working families.

Citing National Association of Realtors (NAR) data, Representative Cline noted that the national median home price recently hit about $429,400, the share of first-time buyers fell to a record low of 21% and the typical age of a first-time buyer climbed to 40. High rent was identified as a major obstacle to saving for a down payment.

In the letter, Representative Cline asked the FTC to examine two practices he said fall squarely under the agency’s purview:

• Misleading “contact agent” interfaces: According to the letter, some online marketplaces use contact tools that divert buyers away from “knowledgeable (and compensated) listing agents” to platform-affiliated buyer agents. Those agents have pre-agreed, without buyers’ knowledge, to share a significant portion of their incremental commission with the platform, which Representative Cline argued helps maintain “high dual commissions” and raises transaction costs.
• Mortgage steering to affiliated lenders: Representative Cline said some programs allegedly require affiliated agents to route buyers to platform-affiliated mortgage lenders, “often at higher rates and on worse terms,” again without transparent disclosure. He warned that this can leave buyers with higher-cost mortgages and “thousands of dollars in platform-related agent fees.”

Practices especially harmful to first-time buyers, says Cline

Representative Cline also warned that these practices can be especially harmful to first-time buyers, who have less equity and industry knowledge. While online platforms are often marketed as ways to avoid fees, Cline said “the opposite may all too often be the outcome.”

He asked the FTC to “examine these practices more closely” to protect consumers and “help make the dream of homeownership a reality for the next generation of Americans.”

By sending this letter, Representative Cline joins fellow Virginia-based federal lawmakers Representatives Jennifer McClellan and Donald Beyer, both Democrats, in raising concerns with the FTC regarding the referral practices of online real estate platforms. 

In a letter sent to FTC Chair Ferguson in late May, the two democratic representatives claimed that “certain deceptive or insufficiently transparent internet advertising and solicitation practices may be steering consumers.” 

The representatives claimed that, in some instances, these referral practices could impact a buyer’s choice of agent or lender, without any type of referral or financial relationship being disclosed to the consumers. The letter highlighted “contact agent” buttons employed by some online real estate portals that connect consumers to an agent paying the portal for leads and not the listing agent of the property the consumer is interested in.

Zillow and Redfin did not immediately return HousingWire’s request for comment.

This article was written by Brooklee Han and generated with the assistance of HousingWire Automation, then reviewed by a HousingWire editor before publication.