At cvillenews.
Date Archives December 2007
The NAR Gateway – Preliminary report released
The Gateway facilitates multi-lingual access to real property information.2.Information available to participants and subscribers is: comprehensive timely relevant accurate objective secure formatted so it can be annotated, supplemented or corrected by other participants or subscribers whose contributions will be acknowledged and electronically “fingerprinted” “official” information (i.e., data available from recognized authoritative sources); “factual content” (i.e., data and comments provided by listing brokers); and enhancements and corrections offered by otherparticipants and subscribers information enhancements, updates and corrections made by others will be performed on identical platforms participants and subscribers can provide direct, immediate feedback to listing brokers3.Service providers can offer participants access, value-added tools, and other enhancements to real property information, at prices determined by the service provider. Participants can choose whether they will input / access real property information directly through the Gateway or through the service provider of their choice.4.Participants cooperate with each other in the manner anticipated by Article 3 of the Code of Ethics.5.Participants have the opportunity, but will not be required, to offer compensation for cooperative services.6.Access to information is subject to participants agreeing to arbitrate contractual disputes with other participants.7.Participants can register their buyer-clients, including their real property search criteria.Participation and access1.Participants are real estate broker-principals, firms comprised of real estate broker-principals, licensed and certified real estate appraisers, real estate appraisal firms, and property management firms.2.Subscribers are non-principal brokers, sales licensees, and licensed and certified real estate appraisers affiliated with participants and may, as a matter of local option, also include participants’ affiliated unlicensed administrative and clerical staff, personal assistants, and individuals seeking licensure or certification as real estate appraisers, provided that any such individual is under the direct supervision of a participant or a participant’s licensed designee.3.Vendors authorized by participants to develop/deliver enhanced data products to those participants have access, subject to appropriate license agreements.Operational issues1.The Gateway is an NAR-owned subsidiary governed by real estate broker-principals…. It does not subsidize or underwrite unrelated activities or operations, including associations of REALTORS® at any level.3.The Gateway exists for the benefit of the community of real estate professionals.4.There is a standardized data structure which can incorporate local customization and content.5.The Gateway employs streamlined, consistent business rules applied on a universal basis.6.The Gateway has authority to contract with local and regional service providers for administrative services (e.g. arbitration, rules enforcement, billing, training, technical support, and other functions).Implications for Existing MLSs1. The Gateway is a data repository supporting multiple service providers’ front end user interfaces, including the Gateway’s interface2.Service providers establish / enforce rules consistent with the business rules established by the Gateway.3.Existing MLSs – are encouraged, but not required to, participate in the Gateway.4.Participating MLSs / service providers supply data (including listing information) to the -Gateway and may provide front-end, value-added tools, and other enhancements to participants.
The HooK’s recap of 2007
Looking over her predictions of 2007, Madam Hook notes:”I see young people in houses,” mused the Madam, explaining that the once red-hot housing market would stay cool, with median home prices remaining stable for the first time in years, and making it a good time for first-time homeownership.Did she say the market will “stay cool”? It actually seems downright frosty these days, what with a nearly nine-month supply of houses for sale and average days on the market lingering at over 90 days. Still, who are we to argue with a psychic?
Are (real estate) blogs commercial?
If you have a link to an MLS search, are you therefore offering the potential for you to make money, and thus commercializing your blog? Is it possible even to make a blanket statement about blogs?Creative Commons offers several different licenses by which to license your work, many of which specify that use is authorized for noncommercial work, “Noncommercial. You may not use this work for commercial purposes.”This is a tangentially related debate to the “are real estate blogs advertising?”… Attorney and the Courts?If you have Google Adwords, as some blogs do, (get smart) that would seem to be a commercial offering, no?This post has been sitting unattended for a couple of days.
Know something good when you see it
And share.
Not sure that I like the ads on the new Realtor.com beta
But all in all, it’s an improvement.More later.
Links for 20 December 2007
If you are buying or selling a home or happen to be a Realtor – pay attention to this – Risk-based pricing. Why exactly hasn’t been this done in the past?Like it or not, if you’re going to be in just about any business these days, you’re going to be considered both a producer and publisher of content.Its time to admit that the US is a global superpower in hock to parts of the world that should make us nervous. That’s the story of 2007.Can you spot the self-interest?