Anyone seeing Google blanket-suspend eXp Realty agents?

[ElizabethRule]

Just spotted a brutal thread over on the GBP Help Forum and wanted to see if anyone managing real estate clients is running into this.

Apparently, Google's live verification teams are explicitly telling some real estate agents that they are no longer verifying eXp agents, leading to instant denials and profile suspensions. Even for realtors set up as a Service Area Business (SAB) with state licensing. Google seems to be aggressively cracking down on cloud brokerages and ones using virtual/shared addresses.

The only current "workaround" seems to be scrubbing eXp from the realtor's business name and positioning the business/realtor as a completely independent entity from eXP, but that obviously creates massive brokerage compliance headaches.

Anyone else dealing with a spike in GBP real estate / eXp suspensions right now? Think this is this a new policy or just a glitch?

 

[keyserholiday]

I haven’t heard of this. Google should conduct a sweep and remove the one that are live. I found one in my area with an incomplete address.

 

[JS Girard]

We have two amongst our clients, and we haven't seen anything, but it's Quebec, so take that with a grain of salt.

 

[ElizabethRule]

Google should conduct a sweep and remove the one that are live.

I would argue they likely deserve to have listings, even if eXp operates with a virtual office model. They can be SABs.

 

[JS Girard]

I would argue they likely deserve to have listings, even if eXp operates with a virtual office model. They can be SABs.

I was saying that to my coworkers. The agency's business model should really not impact on the Realtors capacity to get verified. They do not, in their interactions with clients, operate that much differently than other realtors, I assume.

Funnily, in Quebec, eXp is still forced to operate traditional offices with a designated reporting realtor (directeur d'agence), so strictly speaking, they're not even truly operating as a cloud brokerage here!

 

[ElizabethRule]

I was saying that to my coworkers. The agency's business model should really not impact on the Realtors capacity to get verified. They do not, in their interactions with clients, operate that much differently than other realtors, I assume.

Currently the advice going around if you want to get your eXp realtor listing unsuspended is to distance yourself from the brand as much as possible. Crazy!

 

[rustybrick]

Nothing from Google on this?

 

[ElizabethRule]

Nothing from Google on this?

Not that I have seen. I have just seen posts about it on the GBP community forum. As well as screenshots from people who contacted Google support who says the guidelines prevent them from working with cloud-based brokerages.

 

[fisicx]

I can sort of understand Google's view on this.

A GBP is supposed to be a B&M business where that business markets themselves either in a location or LSA. If that business uses a brokerage or some other affiliate / franchise model to promote the services (or properties) then it's not really what a GBP is for.

Reading threads here there are a number of business types that fall into the same category. Locksmith is just one example.

 

[JS Girard]

Not that I have seen. I have just seen posts about it on the GBP community forum. As well as screenshots from people who contacted Google support who says the guidelines prevent them from working with cloud-based brokerages.

So just to check: no one has reported being suspended specifically for that reason. People are only reporting that Google refuse to validate the profiles?