MLS of Choice went into effect in July this year. Some in our industry were fearful that MLS of Choice was going to dramatically change the game. They believed that brokers would immediately drop member of their secondary MLS memberships or would move to the lowest price provider in the region.
As we end 2018, now is a great time to sit back and reflect on the best ways to help prepare your organization for the inevitable evolutions and revolutions we will experience next year.
Crye-Leike is the 6th largest real estate company in America, and 3rd largest independent behind HomeServices of America and Howard Hanna[1]. The firm processes over 30,000 transactions a year across their 3200 agents, 125 offices spanning 9 states. Beyond residential real estate, they operate businesses that provide services in commercial real estate, mortgage, Title Insurance, Property and Personal insurance, property management, and relocation. A few years ago, the company embarked on a program to select a transaction management solution and tie it into their accounting system and CRM system. The result is among the most sophisticated and effective solutons deployed anywhere in the nation.
This is not the tragic story of another Realtor® being attacked. But rather the story of the REALTOR® brand value being attacked. Brad Inman asked a rather productive question on the popular Inman Coast to Coast Facebook group – “How Important is it for a licensed real estate agent to be a member of NAR?” The post invited healthy commentary. Way to go Brad!
Like Mark Twain, the early reports on the death of Facebook clearly have been an exaggeration especially when it comes to real estate. It remains the social media channel that is still the best place to stay top of mind among the greatest number of home buyers and sellers. And it's still the best media channel for real estate agents to keep in front of their peers.
Our industry needs to find meaningful ways to support new thinking and innovation. I recently put myself in the shoes of a start-up and found out just how difficult it REALLY is to leverage MLS information. We have made it REALLY hard for the smart 16 year old in her garage to build the next big thing for a brokerage. Frankly, even well-established tech companies have major challenges working with more than 600 organizations. Refer to my commonapp article for more on that topic. Let’s put ourselves in the shoes of a tech start-up. They have built something interesting. [...]
From the NAR Boston conference, one statistic keeps ringing in my head. As a confessed data junkie, I consume a lot of real estate research, so I'm pretty jaded. But when NAR's research guru Jessica Lautz showed a slide at a press conference entitled “Median Age of Home Buyers,” I almost fell off my chair.
Our industry loves shiny objects! We’re also looking for the next goose that is going to lay golden eggs at our feet. This year the promise of greatness has been tied to technology investments. From Open Door to Compass to Keller Williams and a whole bunch in-between, brokerages are lining up to claim their rightful place as a technology company.
CoreLogic® (NYSE: CLGX), a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, today announced a new agreement to provide SavvyCard®, a CoreLogic Alliance Network solution, to the subscribers of California Regional Multiple Listing Service (CRMLS). The nation’s largest MLS, CRMLS is a consortium of 38 real estate organizations representing approximately 100,000 members.
What does the business of your dreams look like? What if we told you it was attainable? What if it was easy to attain - with a little help?
Real estate is a service business. REALTORS® are service professionals. Are MLSs doing what it takes to support their subscribers with the service needed to help every agent and broker deliver the best service they can to the homebuyers and sellers? With today’s new MLS of Choice environment, REALTORS® DO have a choice about what MLS to work with. It’s time to take a serious look at the norms of service quality for MLSs today.
For years, I have strenuously maintained that when I fly West, especially to Hawaii from the West Coast, I never have been jet lagged. But when I fly to Europe from Seattle, if I don’t follow all the jet lag management tactics I’ve learned over the years, I’ll pay the price. Many fellow business and active leisure travelers told me I was nuts.
