Wow. If Scrybe will sync with Entourage … whoo-hooo! Organization made simple and intuitive. I have not seen another calendar app online or off that compares. PaperSync – simple and useful! I’ve signed up for the beta; I hope they pick me!
Date Archives October 2006
Neighboroo
Fun with graphical display of data. Thanks to TransparentRE.Crozet, Charlottesville, Palmyra. 29 North/Pantops area, Ruckersville, Waynesboro, StanardsvilleNote: apparently Neighboroo has not disclosed their data sources, but I did some quick checking to see how their data corresponds to some of the Census Data, and most of it is close. Mapping is going to comprise a huge part of the next generation of real estate marketing. This site is mighty cool.
What is the future of the MLS?
I do not intend to bore readers, but this has been a very hot topic of late, and I am fascinated by the direction of the MLS for a variety of reasons:1) How will this affect my clients?2) Emerging technology and the implementation of said technology fascinates me.3) How will this affect my business?4) What do I need to do to adapt, overcome and out-innovate my competition?… We are in a time of massive transition, from one where the Realtor controlled all the information and consumers were forced to go through a Realtor to buy or sell property to a world where information is free-flowing…. I would argue that most of this is happening in a way that consumers are not paying close attention to the changes, but they are in fact experiencing and taking advantage of the changes.But – referencing free information, such as that provided by Zillow, Johnathan Miller states:Free infers less precision, so as long as the product is marked accordingly, thats ok. I think the turmoil created has been the assumption that the result was gospel, and people will rely on the results, which may or may not be accurate.Most consumers do not use the MLS every day, but I would argue that somewhere near a majority checks the local MLS public search page at least once a month, if not once a week – just to satiate their own curiosity.For more information and insight, read Russ’ review from this past May and this article describing the future path(s) of the MLS concept. Disclaimer: I am a member of the NAR Future of the MLS PAG (how’s that for acronym overload).This, from Saul Klein’s blog (actually a cut-and-paste of an Inman article) – from Tom Stevens, CEO of the National Association of Realtors:What makes MLSs unique in the business world is that they exist first to facilitate cooperation between brokers, and that includes interbroker compensation…. (I am not advocating this position, just asking the question)Now that two large brokerages are going to send their listings to Google Base (subscription only), how long before an MLS decides to do the same? Or a large regional MLS?”The content partnership with Google will grant home sellers increased visibility for their property listings, as the partnership allows home buyers greater access to search for properties with specific attributes including details on bedrooms, baths, lot size and address,” according to Prudential California’s announcement..How long before they stop adding properties to their local MLS’? How will this impact consumers?Each day that I learn more and think more about the future of the MLS, the future of marketing property, a couple of things become clear:1) I get more confused2) I get more unsure as to what the future will look like3) What we know today is far different than what we will know tomorrow4) Property data (or content) is becoming far more fragmented than ever before.
Friday roundup
And Realtor.com’s CEO goes SpringerThe Difference between good Realtors and bad agentsBuying a new construction home? Bring your own tape!Housing Starts rebound (national) … but building permits are down (PDF)Zillow uses their prominence to discuss eminent domain. Good for them, and thank you.A Super Wal-Mart in Greene?… they expect people to consistently show up for work…. If they would just open a Super-Walmart in Greene and close down the one in Charlottesville …More home loans go sour – yet some lenders continue to loosen lending standardsYou think Google’s not benefiting from Trulia’s growth?… Pete Flint, CEO of Trulia … showing me his referer logs, and they definitely show that Google sends more traffic his way than any other search engine.
Cracks in the foundation
The Northwest Multiple Listing Service will no longer send their data to Realtor.com…. Realtor.com depends on MLS’ sending them their data. Without the data, what is Realtor.com?What if … more MLS’ pulled their data?My question is this – will the NWMLS still allow, via IDX, their data to go to their broker sites, and in turn, google, trulia, etc? This could signal the beginning of the end for Realtor.com.How will out-of-the-area buyers find the individual brokers’ sites, in light of Realtor.com’s no longer being an option?The same way I just did. The search engines. These are fascinating times to be a part of an industry that is changing more rapidly than ever beforeLocally, see what happens when one searches for “Charlottesville homes”? (note: my website comes up #2 – Wow again!)This I know – soon, the search engines will refine their real estate search even further.
What if – the MLS went away?
Search engines are already dipping their toes feet are already up to the waists in real estate search technology…. All the blogs we do for properties, all the personalized websites, all our personal websites, not to mention our blogs – depend on the search engines.There is much talk around the real estate blogosphere about the demise of the MLS, how it is for the consumer, a public utility …One huge question is one relative to data/content quality: What about duplicates?… There are at least three services that allow for easy uploading to various sites which are all competing for the real estate dollar: Postlets and VFlyer will both upload listing information to Google, craigslist, eBay …… What’s next?A question I have asked before but have not yet answered – Are we as Realtors undermining the value of the MLS by posting our listing content in all these places? Are prospective buyers looking at these alternatives because Realtors put content there?Greg puts it succinctly (as usual):But: It would be a mistake to replace this depth of information with a more-shallow but more-user-friendly substitute. A true home search entails searching for the small details, not the big features.For those who feel that the MLS is for the public – here is my challenge – work for a week without using the MLS.Bottom line: Realtors are shooting themselves in their collective feet…. How will we be different going forward?As a Realtor, how would you do business relying solely on the various sites that are in the process of filling the perceived void?… As a consumer, would you rather look at many sites, or a few?Related reading:Understanding market value in full contextStarting a conversation on real estate commissionsWhoo-hooo!