Mike Brandly nailed it.
In his recent blog post, "The So-Called ‘Two-Thirds Rule’ is Nonsense — and It’s Hurting Sellers", Brandly calls out a troubling trend in real estate: major associations and MLSs are legitimizing myths. Worse, these myths are becoming policy — and those policies are harming the very clients we’re supposed to protect.
For those unfamiliar, the “two-thirds rule” is the false idea that a seller at auction should expect to get only 66% of the property’s value. Not only is this baseless, but it's also a fundamentally dishonest representation of what the auction method offers. Yet, it’s being repeated — not just by agents in the field, but by entire organizations that ought to know better.
And that brings us to Article 12 of the REALTOR® Code of Ethics.
“REALTORS® shall be honest and truthful in their real estate communications and shall present a true picture in their advertising, marketing, and other representations.”
— Article 12, Code of Ethics, National Association of REALTORS®
What happens when organizations with enormous market share and influence fail to follow this ethical mandate? When they promote outdated, incorrect, or intentionally misleading narratives — especially about methods they don’t understand — it spreads like wildfire. Misinformation metastasizes into industry “standard.” And suddenly, clear cooperation rules, marketing restrictions, and MLS policies are built on a foundation of fiction.
As auctioneers, we already face an uphill battle. We work within systems designed for traditional brokerage models, trying to adapt our time-tested method to tools that often don’t understand us — or worse, actively exclude us.
But we are not the ones misrepresenting value. The auction method is transparent, time-defined, and offers full public exposure. It is, by design, the opposite of the “whisper campaigns” and off-market listings that violate both the spirit and letter of clear cooperation rules. Yet MLS systems often treat auctioneers as second-class citizens, forcing us to conform to listing templates and marketing timelines that distort how auctions work.
Let’s be honest: a lot of this comes from ignorance. But a growing share stems from willful misrepresentation. When national organizations disseminate myths to their already-underserved or undertrained membership, they’re doing real harm. They erode trust, discourage innovation, and drive sellers away from a method that might actually work better for them.
Instead of doubling down on this confusion, it’s time for auctioneers to lead. We should be the ones educating the public. We should be the ones holding the line on ethical advertising. We should be the ones advocating for consumer choice — not misleading them with scare tactics and fake math.
Mike Brandly is right. The “two-thirds rule” is nonsense. But the real issue is bigger than one myth. It’s about who controls the narrative — and whether they’re telling the truth.
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