Real estate experts are debating benefits and risks of on-line property search as millions of people click on URLs and take care of their real estate needs, virtually, literally. By now, majority of real estate agents have to accept the fact that online listings are essential to getting more clients, despite the fat that there are still some risks involved such as possibility of losing control over the data or making it accessible to non-professional individuals.

In the past, brokers used to have a guaranteed spot in the real estate "value chain" when it came to prospective buyers. People who wanted to look at homes that were up for sale had to visit the realty office where the listings were catalogued in a book. Then, with the rise of Internet, prospective buyers can search thousands of homes without even getting a hold of an agent. Then when they do contact an agent there’s no guarantee it will be the agent behind the particular listing.

Lots of brokers got upset over the fact that some virtual listings would not include their data – names and contact information – under the listings, which was done to increase the listing’s availability. The (lack of) visibility threat is what's prompting some brokers to pressure their local MLSs to shut down their public listings available on the Internet. Recently, a group of brokers in Chicago asked that the Multiple Listing Service of Northern Illinois turn off a website that used the listings anonymously.

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