Four Trends That Will Rock the Real Estate Industry in 2012

January 23, 2012 Leave a Comment

If there is one thing that I’ve learned in the real estate business over the years it’s that change is constant.  New tools, programs, regulations and innovators make this an industry that doesn’t stand still.

From computerization of Multiple Listing Service data to smart phones to mortgage preapprovals to digital signatures; innovation waits for no one.  You either embrace it or get out of the way.

So without further ado, here are my predictions for the upcoming year and some of the things that I believe will rock our industry (again):

1.  Listing Syndication and Internet Data Exchange (IDX) Will Come Under Fire

It has been commonplace over the last couple of years for companies and agents to syndicate their listings to as many real estate web sites as possible to increase the chance that their properties will get noticed by home buyers who will in turn contact an agent to buy a home.  Sounds like a plan – right?

Enter Edina Realty.  Edina is a mega broker with 60 real estate offices and over $5 billion in sales located in Minnesota, Wisconsin and North Dakota.  In late 2011, Edina stopped syndicating their listings to national websites.  Why would one of the top ten real estate companies in the US decide to shun syndication?  If you listen to them, there are three reasons: Read more of this post

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The Race For a National MLS is On

November 23, 2009 Leave a Comment

 

Within the last two weeks, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) unveiled its vision of a national property database called the REALTORS® Property Resource (RPR) that would be available to its membership starting in the second quarter of next year.  After I watched NAR’s online presentation of the RPR the first thing I concluded (read my post here) was that they were going to build a national Multiple Listing Service (MLS) even though they stated numerous times during the presentation, “This is not a national MLS.”  I didn’t buy their statement two weeks ago and I’m not buying it today.  I wish they would just call a spade a spade and get on with it.

While the NAR and the oodles of MLS’s serving their membership haggle over how they’re going to tweak or preserve the status quo, Google is busy blowing up the old model and rewriting the rules of the game.

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Filed under Agents, Buyers, Consumers, Lancaster, Technology Tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

Google Maps Hit a Home Run

October 31, 2009 1 Comment

Google unveiled its latest innovation for real estate this past week and they crushed a 3-2 pitch in the bottom of the ninth into the upper deck!  Every time Google tinkers around with its website, real estate people get a shiver of anxiety and this latest innovation is likely to give many within the industry a full-blown case of hives.

Since Google announced the ability to see lots of real estate listings directly on Google Maps back in July of this year, they’ve been working hard to make it even easier to use.  They’ve added things like brand new high-resolution Street View imagery and detailed map data.  Now they’re making Google Maps an even more useful tool for online real estate searching.   Here are a couple of things you can look out for next time you visit their website:

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Filed under Agents, Buyers, Consumers, Sellers, Technology Tagged with , , , , , , , ,

Is the Social Media Revolution a Passing Fad?

August 15, 2009 Leave a Comment

more about “Social Media Revolution“, posted with vodpod

A couple of weeks ago I posted a video to this blog which showed the impact that social media is having on our society, and in particular, on the real estate business.  Still aren’t buying into this phenomenon?  Wake up and smell the coffee!

Related articles of interest:
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Fasten Your Seat Belt!

July 13, 2009 Leave a Comment

 
Finding it hard to keep up in today’s fast-paced world?  Are you waiting for this inconvenient ‘Recession’ thingy to pass so you can get back to normal?  Think again.
 
(WARNING: This video will make you rethink everything.)
 
more about “Did You Know?“, posted with vodpod

Now go out there and make things happen.  Happy Monday!

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Google Maps Enter the Real Estate Search Field

July 7, 2009 Leave a Comment

Image via CrunchBase

Google just upped the ante in the competitive field of real estate listing search engines.  In a move that certainly had a few established players (i.e. REALTOR.com, Zillow, Tulia, et.al.) do a double take, Google Maps incorporated a new tool into its site that links buyers and renters to available properties.   The feature was only launched in Australia and New Zealand yesterday, but I understand that selected metropolitan areas in the United States are already able to utilize the service.

The following is an instructional video on how to utilize the service:

more about “Google Maps“, posted with vodpod

 
So what’s the big deal?

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Filed under Agents, Buyers, Sellers Tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,

Psst . . . Don’t Tell Anyone!

June 2, 2009 2 Comments

"Sell my listing . . . but don't tell anyone."

Image courtesy of Flickr

When I first got into the real estate business year’s ago, occasionally I would run into a seller that told me to sell their home quickly at the highest price but with some of the following caveats:
  • “Don’t put a sign on my front lawn.  I don’t want my neighbors to know that I’m selling.”
  • “Don’t put my home in the MLS.  I want to keep the sale of my house as private as possible.”
My response was always the same; “Are you out of your mind?”  Actually, I conveyed my message a little differently but the point was always the same; “Mr. & Mrs. Seller, in order for me to get your home sold in the shortest period of time at the highest price, I need all the tools available to me.  That includes . . . . “  At the end of the day, I would get the listing, use all the tools and eventually sell the home.
  
I can understand this line of reasoning from a seller (hmmm – not really) but from the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), I’m floored!
  
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Filed under Agents, Legislation, Sellers Tagged with , , , , , ,

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