National Advertising Division Finds Realtor.com “#1 Site Real Estate Professionals Trust” Claim Supported
New York, NY – November 8, 2024 – In a challenge brought by competitor CoStar Group, BBB National Programs’ National Advertising Division determined that Move, Inc. provided a reasonable basis for its claim that Realtor.com is the “#1 site real estate professionals trust.”
Realtor.com, operated by Move, Inc., is affiliated with the National Association of Realtors, the real estate industry trade association that owns the US trademark to the term “Realtor.”
The challenged claim appeared online, including at the top of Realtor.com’s homepage. In some advertising, the claim appeared with a disclosure that it is “based on an Aug. 2023 proprietary survey among real estate professionals.”
In support of the challenged claim, Move relied on results of a double-blind survey of over 1,300 real estate professionals conducted in August 2023. by a market research firm. The National Advertising Division (NAD) determined that the survey was reliable support for the claim.
Further, NAD determined that the survey remained timely during the period of the challenge. Nevertheless, because preferences on any website might change after a year for various reasons, NAD cautioned Move that the August 2023 survey’s validity will not last in perpetuity and that a newer survey to support the claim will be necessary in the near future.
As the timing of the survey is potentially material to the audience for whom the claim is intended, NAD recommended that, to the extent Move has not already done so, the fact that the survey was conducted in August 2023 should be clearly and conspicuously disclosed in close proximity to the main claim.
In its advertiser statement, Move stated that “in the ordinary course it has already conducted a newer survey in August 2024, which found that Realtor.com remains the #1 site real estate professionals trust’ and will therefore update its citation to reflect that going forward.”
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