The San Diego MLS (SDAR) has certainly been challenging to connect with over the last three months and we just learned why. Turns out that they’ve been deep in the throes of a shakeup, the kind that lands people in prison.
On July 27, 2023, local news in San Diego reported that the former CEO of SDAR, Mike Mercurio has allegedly been involved in embezzling funds from the MLS for years.
Apparently, as high-level execs at SDAR stepped up to alert others to their suspicions, they were quickly fired by the SDAR board. And, in recent conversations with their team, they are currently extremely understaffed. I’m not sure if it’s a result of the missing $1 million, the investigations or the transitioning company culture, but I really feel for the staff there.
Props to the team members who were courageous enough to report it and endure the ridicule and investigations into their conduct as a result.
Remember when Stuart Wolfe, the CEO at HomeStore (former owner of Realtor.com) was caught for his role in a $76 million accounting scheme to boost the company stock price in 2006? It rocked the real estate world. This should be a similar eye-opener for the other associations around the US and we’ll likely see some tightening of various processes and procedures. It’s certainly a tough time to be in the Association and MLS space with all of the DOJ issues facing NAR.
We can only imagine what the remaining team members are going through as they deal with the media, the scandal, the members, and the new leadership. There’s nothing like broken trust, but we wish the SDAR and SDMLS team a new outlook and a fresh start.
Get the most complete report here on CBS8.com in San Diego. It includes a letter from the terminated staff members who have now filed a lawsuit.
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