Appraisers warn of risks as more real estate listings go private

As technology and specifically artificial intelligence have grown and changed over the past few years, consumers and real estate professionals have become increasingly concerned about the privacy of their data and information. Among consumers, this may result in homebuyers requesting that listing photos of their new property be removed from portals. For certain brokerages and agents, this means preventing their listings from being input into LLMs and a propensity to encourage sellers to list their home privately to avoid accumulating days on market or having a recorded history of price adjustments. While some brokers and MLS leaders have spoken out against practices like private listings or blocking the usage of listing data in LLMs, real estate agents are not the only ones impacted by these changes. Appraisers, who are an integral part of real estate transactions, also rely on MLS data in order to appraise properties for prospective homebuyers. “Appraisers rely on historical MLS data to verify the condition and quality of comparable sales. If a listing agent wipes out the interior photos and floor plans the second a house sells, we’re left flying blind,” Desiree Mehbod, a Virginia...