Lawmakers Accuse DOJ of Fast-Tracking the Compass-Anywhere Merger — What Texas Agents Should Know
The Compass-Anywhere merger is back in the news — and this time, it's not about the deal itself. It's about how the deal got approved.
Eighteen federal lawmakers, led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Becca Balint, just sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi demanding answers about how the Department of Justice handled its antitrust review of the $1.6 billion merger. Their accusation is blunt: the normal review process was short-circuited, and political connections may have played a role.
If you're a Texas real estate agent, this story matters more than you might think.
What Actually Happened
Here's the timeline that has lawmakers concerned:
The DOJ's own antitrust chief, Gail Slater, reportedly wanted to conduct an extended review of the merger to examine potential anticompetitive impacts. That's standard procedure for a deal this size — we're talking about combining two companies into a brokerage with roughly 340,000 agents.
But according to reports, Compass hired Mike Davis, a Trump-aligned attorney who's been involved in other merger review controversies. Davis reportedly helped Compass make its case directly to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche's office, bypassing the normal antitrust review channel. Blanche's office cleared the merger without the deeper investigation Slater had called for.
Shortly after, Slater resigned from the DOJ. Davis allegedly boasted on social media: "I recommended her hiring. And her firing," adding "good riddance" minutes after her departure went public.
The lawmakers aren't mincing words. Their letter states the situation is "deeply disturbing" and "raises questions about corruption." They've given the DOJ until March 4, 2026, to answer detailed questions about who made the decision, what communications happened outside normal channels, and what safeguards exist against this kind of political interference.
Why This Matters for Agents
You might be reading this thinking, "Political drama in Washington — what does that have to do with me selling houses in Texas?"
A lot, actually.
When mega-brokerages consolidate, agents typically lose bargaining power. A company with 340,000 agents can dictate terms that smaller operations can't. Commission structures, technology fees, desk fees, franchise fees — all of these get harder to negotiate when fewer companies control more of the market.
The lawmakers specifically warned that the merger "will make it easier for these firms to exert greater control over the real estate market, limit consumer access and choice and ultimately exacerbate the housing crisis."
This isn't the first time Warren has raised these concerns either. Back in December, she and Sen. Wyden argued that the acquisition could lead to higher broker fees and limited access to property listings.
Whether or not you agree with the political angle, the underlying question is real: does consolidation at this scale benefit agents, or does it primarily benefit the companies doing the consolidating?
The Bigger Picture
This merger is part of a pattern. The real estate industry has been consolidating for years — big brokerages acquiring other big brokerages, rolling up market share, and building walls around their ecosystems.
For agents, consolidation usually means one thing: more of your money going to overhead you didn't ask for. You get a bigger brand name on your business card, but you also get more layers between you and your commission check.
The question every Texas agent should be asking right now isn't whether this particular merger was handled properly (that's for the DOJ to sort out). The question is: does my current brokerage model actually work for me, or am I paying for someone else's growth strategy?
What You Can Do About It
You can't control what happens in Washington. But you can control your brokerage relationship.
The industry is shifting. More agents are moving to flat-fee models where they keep 100% of their commission and pay a predictable monthly cost instead of giving up a percentage of every deal. At RaiderX, plans start at $99/month with zero transaction fees — no splits, no surprises, no percentage of your hard-earned commission going to fund the next mega-merger.
While the big brokerages are spending billions to acquire each other, independent agents are quietly building better businesses by keeping more of what they earn.
The Compass-Anywhere situation — regardless of how the DOJ investigation plays out — is a reminder that in real estate, the people closing deals aren't always the ones benefiting most from them. That's worth thinking about the next time you look at your commission statement.
The DOJ has until March 4, 2026, to respond to the lawmakers' questions. We'll update this story as it develops.