Keeping The REALTOR® In The Middle Of The Transaction

With the emergence of the Internet many REALTORS® were fearful that this new medium would replace many of the Realtors functions and therefore, reduce the need for Realtors. Many within the real estate industry even predicted that the Realtor as we know it would be extinct.

So far nothing could be further from the truth.

Most - if not all - major real estate Internet companies (emphasis on major) are bending over backwards to promote Realtors and Realtor services.

One of HomeStore's (operator of Realtor.com), main themes is "Protecting the rights of the REALTOR®". Microsoft , the same company that is being sued by the US government for anti-trust violation, is doing everything they can to court the REALTORS® on the Internet. They have even started to give away free Web pages to Realtors. HomeSeekers has a TV campaign going that ends with "after finding the home of your choice on HomeSeekers.com, contact your nearest real estate professional".

HomeBid - the first home auction site on the Internet and with a war chest of 25 million dollars - will not let FSBOs list their homes on their site. They will not even allow consumers to bid on their properties. Only registered agents can bid on their customer's behalf. This is the definition of "bending over backwards".

E-LOAN, iown, QuickeMortgage, LendingTree, and Countrywide all have major Internet mortgage strategies. Every one of these companies is doing all they can to promote Realtor services and many have Realtor sections on their Web sites.

Now let's face it, these companies are not doing this out of their love for Realtors. They are doing it because it is good business. With billions of dollars at stake, love has nothing to do with it. Money has everything to do with it.

But who cares. With this much money pushing the Realtor services on the Net, the Realtors should have nothing to fear from the Net.

The MLS Quandary

Today many of the MLS organizations will meet at a conference which is hosted and arranged by the SoCalMLS. There is probably no other business in the real estate industry that will go through more changes in the next few years than the MLSs. They have several issues that will determine their function, profitability, and existence:

• Should MLSs send their listings to Realtor.com only?
• Should MLSs host their own public Web site?
• Should MLSs go to a Web-based system for their members?
• If they go to a Web-based system, do they force all members to go Web or support two systems?
• If they go to a Web-based system, what do they do with the old system, many which are relatively new and have contracts which continue for many more years?
• If they go to a Web-based system, how will they make money? They will no longer be able to charge for upgrades.
• What do they do with Broker owners who refuse to send their data to the MLS?
• What do they do with the Brokers and Broker owners who insist that their listings be sent to not only Realtor.com but HomeSeekers, HomeAdvisor, and CyberHomes?

If Brokers start sending their data directly to these various home searches, what is the role of the MLS?

Obviously, all of these questions directly affect the Realtors and the way they will function in the future. It should be a very interesting conference.

On-line Real Estate Auctions:

In the past few months there has been a fair amount of press about real estate auctions on the Web. You are about to see a lot more. This is an idea that makes way too much sense. I realize homes are a lot more complicated than beanie babies. However, auctions will reduce seller and buyer remorse, and it is an extremely efficient way of maximizing the sales price of a home. The Internet allows all interested parties a vehicle to participate without the constraints of auction halls. Millions of consumers on Ebay purchasing over 2 million items prove that this is an idea whose time has come. In the future Realtors will need to figure out how to play and participate with this sales vehicle. Stay tuned.

NAR and HomeStore:

NAR owns about 10% of HomeStore (RealSelect) and it appears this ownership could be worth anywhere from 100 million to 700 million. NAR now brings in and spends about 65 million per year. With this windfall, is NAR still to be considered a non profit organization? Or should the NAR divide the proceeds between all of its members. Hmm .. $700 million dollars divided by 700,000 members = $1,000 per member or no dues for ten years. That works for me!

has been in the real estate industry in Texas for over 15 years in both commercial and residential brokerage and is a past member of National Association of Realtors. Jody is the publisher and majority owner of Realty Times, which first launched as Agent News on October 15, 1997. Jody’s wife, Nora Lane, is a very successful Realtor in Dallas, Texas

Published: May 25, 2012

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.