Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

Where’s the pony?

Walk with me…

July 2006

Fortress, a Private Equity (PE) firm, buys Nationstar Mortgage, LLC.

2008 – 2010ish

The Great Recession

July 2011

Zillow goes Public

May 2014

Nationstar acquires Real Estate Digital (red) in 2014, under its sub division Solutionstar. See what happen there?

July 2014

Zillow announces it will acquire Trulia.

May 2015

Solutionstar re-launches as the unpronounceable name “XOME” in May 2015. With Nationstar CEO saying “We expect to revolutionize real estate.”

July 2017

Softbank acquires Fortress (owners of Nationstar and XOME)

Redfin “Amazon of real estate” announces IPO, eventually raising $138M

December 2017

Softbank invests $450M in Compass, a “a technology-driven real estate platform.” Sound familiar?

Okay, so it seems the whole “Amazon of” “tech-driven” “reimagine real estate” brokerage of the future is hot right now, white hot.

So I see a few scenarios here playing out. Seems Compass has the branding figured out but, sofar unproven tech. XOME does a lot of the backend “services” bundling. Maybe Softbank, owners/investors of both Compass and XOME, reach the same conclusion that the dual investors of Zillow and Trulia reached back in 2014, “why are they two separate companies?”.

And don’t forget Opendoor, co-founded by former Trulian Eric Wu, or as I like to call him Head of Product Development of Zillow and Redfin (see Instant Offers and Redfin Now). They raised $210M back in December of 2016. What’s their next move?

My “Black Swan” Prediction (nod to the Notorious R.O.B.)

As part of Zillow’s “multi-brand strategy”, they buy fellow Seattle company, Redfin. Boom, now they are a brokerage, which a everyone knows is the sixth sign of the real estate apocalypse.

But, even after all this, I still don’t see the $450 million dollar pony.

FBS acquires Solid Earth

FBS acquires Solid Earth’s Spring software platform to achieve powerful industry vision

“Michael Wurzer, CEO of FBS, says he looks forward to building on the foundation established when FBS and Solid Earth announced a partnership earlier this year to build the Spring Portal on the Spark API. “Spring is the best MLS consumer portal in the market and powering it with the Spark API reduces duplicate entry and data lock-in for brokers and agents,” Wurzer said. “Today, MLSs, brokers, and agents need to clearly and beautifully communicate the full-breadth of the powerful value proposition they deliver together, and Spring is laser-focused on creating the best portal to deliver on that value proposition.”

Smart (an both sides). It basically gives FBS more design focused products to sell in to its market, and the integration work is already done. Matt Fowler, Solid Earth co-founder will stay on and serve as Vice President and lead the Spring team.

and this…

“Spring and Spark together create a platform that does not exist today and achieves a long standing goal of MLS industry leadership,” Wurzer said. He noted that an initial focus is to enhance the current Spring offering to include products that help MLSs showcase all of the valuable products and services they provide to members. “Together with Flexmls, this will be the most complete MLS portal available, serving all customers of the MLS beautifully and efficiently,” Wurzer said. “

This is basically a counter to the Clareity Dashboard, which was acquired by CoreLogic earlier this year.

Unsaid in this release is any future involvement Solid Earth might have in AMP, NAR’s backend effort into the MLS business. I’ve seen Matt at many of the AMP presentations. Not sure if that is going to happen any longer.

2017 was certainly a year for consolidation, both on the MLS side and the vendor side. And I don’t think its going to slow down. Congrats to Michael and Matt and both of their teams.

There and back again

Premier Provider of Software and Data and Analytics Solutions Rebrands as Black Knight

” Black Knight Financial Services, Inc. (BKFS) announced today that, effective upon the completion of the previously announced distribution by Fidelity National Financial, Inc. (FNF) of its equity interest in Black Knight Financial Services, Inc., it will be rebranding as Black Knight, clarifying its position as a leading provider of software, data and analytics to the nation’s top financial institutions.”

I love the fact that they don’t mention FNF in the title of this press release. Foley is relentless.

Long and Foster sold to HomeServices

Long & Foster sold to Warren Buffett company

“The acquisition price was not disclosed. Warren Buffett is the CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. HomeServices of America gets a company with a 50-year track record, $29 billion in sales volume last year, about 11,000 real estate agents and more than 230 offices across the mid-Atlantic, New Jersey and North Carolina. Long & Foster’s Prosperity Mortgage business originated $3.3 billion in home loans last year.

Long & Foster will continue to be run by its existing management, with founder Wes Foster serving as chairman emeritus. Long & Foster president and chief operating officer Jeff Detwiler will become CEO.

“Finding the right partner to maintain the legacy, culture, and integrity of Long & Foster was of utmost importance to me,” said Foster. “I couldn’t be more pleased that we are joining an organization known for its impeccable reputation and commitment to protecting brands. Joining HomeServices ensures that our history of market leadership and industry expertise continues.”

Monster deal.

CoreLogic acquires Clareity

CLAREITY SECURITY SOLUTIONS NOW A PART OF CORELOGIC REAL ESTATE SOLUTIONS SUITE

““The Real Estate industry is full of visionary tech companies driving all of us forward,” said Chris Bennett, executive leader of Real Estate Solutions for CoreLogic. “Every day, a cutting-edge app or web service is introduced to agents and brokers to help them find and serve customers. The addition of Clareity solutions to the CoreLogic Real Estate Solutions suite helps tech companies deliver those innovative tools to users more transparently. We think our mutual cultures of commitment to moving our industry forward through innovation is a terrific catalyst for the benefit of our customers.”

Gregg Larson, founder and CEO of Clareity, who will be joining the CoreLogic executive team states, “We’re thankful for our employees, customers, and integration partners for their continued trust in Clareity. We’re confident that CoreLogic’s dedication to customer centered innovation will help fuel the growth and enhancement of the Clareity line of solutions.”

A huge congrats to both teams! Gregg, Matt, Troy, Amy, and the rest of the Clareity team have built a solid business that is a perfect fit for CoreLogic.

A few thoughts.

I hope they keep the MLS Executive Workshop going, but its hard to see a path forward under CoreLogic (but one can dream).
I guess the MLS Survey is kaput.
This is also a huge opportunity for some. Seems like T3’s MLS Division got an earlier Christmas present.

Boston Logic gets big investor

I’ve been traveling so I’m catching up on some stories I thought deserved attention. Here’s one of them…

Boston Logic Accelerates Growth with a Significant Investment from Providence Equity

“Boston Logic (http://www.bostonlogic.com), a software-as-a-service (Saas) technology platform that powers enterprise and boutique leading real estate brokerages nationwide, today announced it has received a significant growth investment from Providence Strategic Growth (PSG), the growth equity affiliate of Providence Equity Partners, a leading global private equity firm with $47 billion in assets under management. Boston Logic will use the investment to accelerate its ability to provide its real estate customers with technologies that help their businesses succeed.”

Providence is no joke. They own Hulu, Ironman, Top Golf, and CDW. This is a big player entering our space.

I had a chance to talk to Boston Logic’s CEO David Friedman yesterday. While he wouldn’t give me the exact amount Providence Strategic Growth (PSFG) invested, he did make a couple comments.

“There are literally 100s of software companies focussed on the real estate vertical. Most of them are small, with less than $5MM in annual revenue. We see an opportunity to be a dominant enterprise in a fragmented market. This vertical is enormous. We see opportunities every day. We vet lots of them and focus on a few. With PSG’s help, we’ll be able to seize many more of these and grow even faster”

As I see it Berkshire Hathaway, Vista Equity, Newscorp, and now Providence have all noticed this space and put their money on the table. Gotta wonder what other deals may be announced. NAR Annual always has some surprises.

Listingbook and RLS2000 now part of new firm, Elm Street Technology

Elm Street Technology Poised for Growth, Launches Elevate for Real Estate

“Two best-in-class acquisitions, including one of the most established real estate marketing brands used by millions of consumers — Listingbook, has catapulted Elm Street Technology into the real estate industry spotlight. Headed by a team of well-known real estate industry entrepreneurs, Prem Luthra and Randall Kaplan, Elm Street Technology today launches Elevatetm, a new Digital Marketing System that uses advanced automation to move Elm Street Technology towards delivering “everything real estate agents and brokers need for new leads and client-for-life retention, all in one place.”

Lots to chew on here. I’ve always thought Listingbook had a lot of promise but was hampered by a flawed (and ever changing) business model and poor design. That being said, they have a large MLS footprint and I know some agents have sworn by it. I’ve never heard of “RL2000“. Reading the press release I’m not sure if both brands/products are going away and now becoming “Elevate”, or what. If that’s the case then it sounds like MLS permissioning nightmare.

“According to Luthra, Elm Street Technology is in the process of rolling up other successful technology and marketing services companies. “We will be able to deliver everything a broker or agent needs from lead generation, to customer for life retention solutions,” he says.

I wonder who’s next?

This “roll up” strategy is interesting, others have tried with mixed success. I think it all comes down to the fit of the products and people. Ideally playing to each others strengths while complementing any shortfalls.

I also respect Prem for getting in to the mix again. Pulling something like this off isn’t easy and will be full of challenges. Having people in this industry that aren’t afraid of hard work and have a strong entrepreneurial spirit is what makes this industry so great. Best of luck to Prem, Randall and Todd.

Zillow Group to Acquire Bridge Interactive Group

Zillow Group (ZG) to Acquire Bridge Interactive Group

“”Bridge Interactive has an outstanding team that has pioneered some of the industry’s most innovative solutions for helping MLSs and brokers manage their data,” said Errol Samuelson, Zillow® Group chief industry development officer. “Bridge Interactive’s offerings simplify a sometimes tedious process that many of our agent, broker and MLS partners face on a daily basis. We’re confident our partners will see tremendous value in Bridge Interactive’s offerings, and we’re excited to help Bridge Interactive expand their platform to drive further efficiencies for brokers and MLSs.”

Congrats to Pace and team!

Lone Wolf acquires WhereToLive.com

Heard about this awhile ago, I guess its official now…

Vista Equity-backed Lone Wolf buys WhereToLive.com

““This acquisition aligns with our vision of a completely integrated real estate business,” says Lorne C. Wallace, CEO of Lone Wolf Real Estate Technologies. “At Lone Wolf, we have a clear vision of a real estate eco-system. We believe that a single point of entry, whether for leads, agents or listings, is critical for an efficient and successful brokerage. This acquisition brings the WhereToLive clients and us one step closer to that vision.”

Lorne has been on a tear lately.

Constellation Software (the guys who bought Market Leader) acquire Zurple.

Teke Wiggin from Inman News

Market Leader’s new owner also purchased CRM provider Zurple

“Market Leader provides a customer relationship management system and some online marketing products. Since Zurple basically does the same thing, the acquisition raises the possibility that Constellation might integrate or blend the two.

Zurple offers a website, a customer relationship management system and online advertising management. The advertising managed by Zurple drives prospective buyers and sellers to the Zurple-powered website where some register their contract information.”

It’s kind of getting lonely out here…. : )

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