...[I]n almost every other consumer industry-- booksellers, retailers, home appliances, insurance, banking, stock brokers-- the introduction of Internet and discount sellers has been a phenomenal financial benefit to customers.... Economists call this process of squeezing out transaction costs "disintermediation." If any industry is ripe for this, it is the $70 billion-a-year real estate brokerage market. Yes, fees have fallen modestly to about 5.1% on average in recent years. But a new study... concludes that in an unimpeded free market, fees should be dropping much faster -- particularly amid a real estate boom that has doubled home values over the past...
