Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

More Upstream drama

Andrea Brambila at Inman News wrote a story about how a few NAR Directors were under the impression that Upstream would be REALTOR Only. Not the case says NAR…

“Yet just recently over the last few weeks, three NAR directors told Inman they voted to fund Upstream under the presumption it would be available exclusively to Realtors — that is, certified, dues-paying NAR members. NAR and Upstream’s leadership, however, disagree, saying they have always maintained Upstream would be available to all brokers, not just Realtors.”

Someone has some explaining to do…

“Diana Bull, a Santa Barbara, California broker who says she’s been an NAR director for the last 31 years and a member of RPR’s advisory board since 2009, also seemed astonished to find out that Upstream would not just be for Realtors.

“This is really an anomaly,” Bull told Inman. “For NAR to fund millions of dollars for Upstream … for brokers who are not Realtors … it’s something that I really have to look into and it’s something that I should know about being on the RPR advisory board and being in the positions I hold.”

She, like Frank and Stroman, believes other NAR directors also voted in favor of Upstream funding thinking it was going to be a tool only for Realtors. “It was never discussed that non-Realtors would have this benefit after we have funded millions of dollars for Upstream, now twice,” she said.”

Well, this whole drama got NAR leadership involved. Newly appointed NAR CEO Bob Goldberg penned a letter to the membership. Which is pretty unusual.

“Some of you have read Inman’s latest article, which questions whether Upstream should be available to brokers who are not REALTORS®, as well as our NAR membership.

Since the very beginning, the Upstream contract outlined both a member and non-member pricing approach. That has never changed, and many products and services in this industry follow the same model.

NAR offers products to both REALTORS® and non-members and gives NAR members preferred pricing. Multiple listing services are also an example of a service that is available to both REALTORS® and non-members.

This approach can incentivize non-members to join the association to get more attractive pricing.

I think it would also be useful to clarify here that RPR is a vendor for Upstream RE, LLC; Upstream is independent from NAR. Upstream’s approach is driven by the large brokers on Upstream’s Board.

Effective January 1, 2019, Upstream RE, LLC will be responsible for 100% of all operation costs, with some dollars coming back to NAR.

I would caution everyone here to consider the context behind and genesis of stories like these. This particular article is clearly written toward a specific point of view and positioned to benefit the interests of some of the MLSs versus those of our members, who ultimately own this listing and intellectual property data.

Bob”

Emphasis mine.

Seems like Bob might be reading former NAR CEO Dale Stinton’s playbook…

RULE #1: Blame the MLS.

Value

If you haven’t read Andrea Brambila’s trifecta of articles on Inman News you should. Here are the links.

What Does Upstream have to show for itself?
Timeline: NAR’s Project Upstream then and now
Who is Actually Building RPR’s Tech?

The last article just dropped yesterday evening, and its a doozy. The article points out the fact that RPR’s uses a lot of sub-contractors to build their tech.

“But who is building that technology? An Inman investigation has found that — for the most part, it’s not RPR. The company has 85 employees, about 20 of which are devoted to tech. But few of those people are software developers or engineers — the “coders” that bring RPR’s software into being. From their LinkedIn profiles, most appear to be project managers and analysts.

Inman has found that the developers who work for RPR are nearly all independent contractors. At least 19 contractors from four different consulting firms are currently working for RPR, according to our findings, and there are likely more.”

Which by itself might not be such an interesting fact. The fact that RPR is so defensive as to the number of contractors they employ is what’s so puzzling. Many vendors use outside contractors. Big deal.

But, outside contractors can be expensive, especially if your outside contractors are based in Irvine, not India.

Look, I get it. I understand RPR’s challenges. I own a software company. This industry is very transient. Adoption is hard. Designing software agents will actually use is hard. Getting the word out is hard. W+R Studios has markets where Cloud CMA is less than 12% adoption. Really, I get it. And, it doesn’t matter if you have some of the smartest and most talented people in the industry working for you (and RPR does). It’s a freaking grind.

Here’s the thing. If you are set up to make “60 million to 80 million in annual revenues”, then spending 24 million dollars a year make sense. But that world doesn’t exist. The current solution of having NAR members take on that cost (instead of $60M to $80M coming from Wall Street) seems to be in question.

Newly appointed NAR CEO Bob Goldberg has stated that he is, “working closely with Realtor leadership and staff to review all programs and how we provide the best value to our members.

NAR’s Finance Committee meets this week and the question they must ask themselves is this, “Is RPR providing enough value to the membership to justify the cost?”

Point Counterpoint on “MLS of Choice”

“MLS of Choice” is really a poor choice of wording. I think someone at Inman News coined the phrase. It gives the wrong impression of what 7.42 and 7.43 are really all about. But lucky for us we have Tom and Stan! Tom Berge Jr., NAR’s current chairman of the Multiple Listing Issues and Polices Committee, did a great job outlining their recommendations in a video which served as a supplement to an F.A.Q. page.

As a counterpoint Stan Harke, CEO of Western Regional Information Systems & Technology, Inc., also created a video outlining their concerns over “unintended consequences” of the policy change. He makes a few good points (His “pocket listing” scenario is quite clever) if you can make it through the cheesy music.

Then there are some who believe this might be a giant conspiracy! Just don’t shoot the messenger.

Hook and Loop

Bob Goldberg and Katie Johnson need to start filming tomorrow.

Facebook Live Interview w/ the N.A.R.’s new CEO Bob Goldberg


Andrew Flachner, CEO of RealScout is doing a Facebook Live interview with Bob Goldberg this Tuesday.

“For the first time ever, Bob Goldberg, the new CEO of the National Association of REALTORS®, will answer your questions via live video about the issues that are top of mind for the real estate industry.

Tune in for this exclusive Facebook Live event on Tuesday August 15 at 3pm Eastern, 12pm Pacific at: https://www.facebook.com/RealScout/.

You can also submit questions for Andrew to ask on the same Facebook page.

Industry Relations Episode 12: Can NAR’s New CEO Bob Goldberg Elevate the REALTOR Brand?

We can all agree that raising the level of professionalism in the real estate industry is a good thing – absolutely necessary, even. But how do we get there? And who’s responsible for elevating the REALTOR brand? With Bob Goldberg assuming leadership of NAR on August 1, there is much discussion around what he can do to be an agent of change in the industry.

The gloves come off today as Rob and Greg debate the validity of the NAR CEO selection process and the best way to go about ridding the industry of incompetent, unethical agents. They discuss the strengths Bob brings to the table, how his leadership may facilitate cooperation among key players, and the likelihood of substantial policy change with Bob at the helm.

Listen in as Greg and Rob get fired up arguing who’s responsible for making the REALTOR brand meaningful. It is up to NAR to raise standards and differentiate between REALTORS and licensees? Or do brokers need to be held to a higher ideal when it comes to recruiting, hiring and training agents? Whether you’re Team Rob or Team Greg on this one, Bob has his work cut out for him as he takes over NAR this month.

What’s Discussed: 

Greg’s experience working with Bob through eNeighborhoods
NAR’s decision to choose someone from inside the organization
Greg’s sense of Bob as a leader
Rob’s take that hiring Bob may have been a ‘done deal’
Greg’s argument that employing a world-renowned recruiting company is ‘thorough’ as opposed to ‘clueless’
Why Rob contends that NAR should have named Bob as successor two years ago
How the NAR membership might have reacted to naming Bob as successor without selection process
How the interview process affords the opportunity for upfront conversation
Greg’s belief in the validity of the selection process
Why a succession plan is more feasible in the corporate world vs. a member-driven organization
Rob’s frustration with the lack of transparency demonstrated by NAR leadership
Greg’s assessment of how things will change with Bob at the helm of NAR
– Shift in tone
– Capacity to facilitate cooperation
Rob’s assertion that conflict in the industry is about policy rather than tone
Rob’s skepticism re: the probability of change in NAR policy
The relationship between personnel and policy
Greg’s assertion that bureaucracy comes from the association side rather than staff
The challenges Bob faces moving forward
– Elevating REALTOR brand
– Incompetent, unethical agents
Greg’s position that brokers are complicit in hiring unqualified agents
Rob’s counter that agents are not employees
– Only Redfin hires employee agents
– Agent pays broker, not vice versa
– Recruiting agents = sales (not hiring)
Why Rob finds it remarkable that any brokers institute standards
How NAR’s code of ethics runs counter to their acceptance of anyone with a license
Rob’s proposal regarding policy changes that would make the REALTOR brand meaningful
– MLS access no longer tied to membership
– Association staff allowed to take part in ethics hearings
– Remove 1099 exemption for real estate agents

Our Sponsors:
CSS
Corelogic

Resources:
Rob’s ‘Bob Goldberg Era’ Blog
Rob’s Response to Bill Brown’s Comment
NAR DANGER Report

Connect with Rob and Greg:

Rob’s Website
Greg’s Website

Bob Goldberg is the N.A.R.’s new CEO

NAR Senior Executive Will Be Next CEO

“NAR’s leadership team chose Goldberg after an extensive national search. He has been with NAR since 1995 and will be NAR’s 12th CEO since the association was founded in 1908.

“Bob’s vision, business acumen, and unique ability to successfully leverage NAR’s technology investments will ensure REALTORS® remain at the center of the real estate transaction,” said 2017 NAR President William E. Brown, a REALTOR® from Alamo, California. “With extensive knowledge of the association and real estate industry, Bob brings with him a strong track record for future-based thinking and enacting change, which is why the NAR leadership team is extremely confident in his ability to lead the association and membership to continued future success.””

Called it! Congrats Bob!

Is Upstream dead?

I heard the news in the air, while flying in to DCA. UpstreamRE had “pivoted”. Instead of brokers entering listings in what UpstreamRE CEO, Alex Lange described as a “Google Drive” in the cloud they could now enter their listing data through their MLS.

I sent out a quick tweet.

2 years and 12 6 million dollars later, the brokers had finally listened to what MLS executives have been saying all along. Use the MLS stupid!

When I landed the texts and calls came in about how Alex Lange presented the news at CMLS’ “Brings it to the Table” event.

Alex was there, along with Dan Elsea. Alex announced they had pivoted. He described that brokers could enter data via the MLS first, and allow UpstreamRE to receive those listings from the MLS.

After all the hubris from UpstreamRE, I can only imagine the mental energy it took to stop the collective eye roll of every attendee in the room. But this party was just getting started.

When Alex was pressed on why the “pivot” he made a statement that a big reason was MLS vendors had been uncooperative. At this point Michael Wurzer, CEO of FBS and a CMLS board member called bullshit. He described FBS’s interaction with the project, which contradicted Alex’s previous statement. To which Alex said it wasn’t really FBS and then proceeded to throw CoreLogic under the bus. Stay classy Alex, stay classy.

And then the shit show continued. Tim Dain stood up and asked Alex if the rumors were true that RPR had sent a team of developers to Portland to get a working demo of the system, and that the demos they were touting at the Midyear meetings were not a “beta” or “up and running” or really even “live” as they were being promoted thus far, but more of a “proof of concept”. To which Alex, handed the microphone to Portland RMLS CEO, Kurt von Wasmuth. To which Kurt confirmed everything Tim suggested. Oy Vey!

Also, is “pivot” even the right word?

I was chatting with Matt Cohen a bit and he thought that their use of the word “pivot” was really a poor choice. Here’s Matt…

Upstream has FINALLY realized that being “Upstream” – creating and implementing the technology / integrations – will take quite a long time. It’s still their goal to be upstream but they need to start getting users and generating revenue. That means, providing the “control” value of syndication next year, which requires MLS data – so, in the short/medium/medium-long term, they will need to accept listing data from MLSs. I don’t see that the long term goal has changed or their long term high-level strategy (no pivot) but in the short term there’s just an intermediate step on the way to their goal. To use examples of real pivots: Odeo was about finding and subscribing podcasts before pivoting into micro-blogging as Twitter. That’s a pivot to an entirely different end-product with no plan to ever return to a podcast business. Confinity was about beaming payments from a PDA before it pivoted into online payments as Paypal. That’s another pivot into an entirely different space. Again, I see Upstream not yet changing their end goal – just adding a step in how to get there

Yup.

Then Saturday happen. The N.A.R. approved an additional $9 million to project Upstream and Dale Stinton, the current CEO of the N.A.R. started pointing fingers and made some inflammatory statements toward MLSs and MLS Vendors. Don’t they realize that if they ever want to accomplish this project they are going to need the cooperation from the the same guys they are throwing under the bus? Good luck with that!

Can’t we all just get along?

I get it. Everything can get heated. Hell, the original title to this blog post was “SHITSTREAM”. So beyond my snarkiness I really do think there might be a positive side to this whole fiasco. When Craig Cheatham announced at the CMLS Conference in Boise that the MLS industry had “10 days” before they would feel the wrath of their brokers it really did wake up the industry.

Since then things have changed a lot. NAR core standards initiatives have contributed to less associations, Bright MLS kicked off a wave of consolidation the industry has never seen before. And data standards are gaining more momentum.

In a sense the brokers are getting what they wanted. They won.

But I think this progress has been stifled by hubris of Upstream, and now the N.A.R.’s stance that the MLS industry is a “cartel” and must be stopped.

We all need to press the reset button, and move forward.

Placester offers free IDX websites to N.A.R. members

Inman News’ Teke Wiggin on Placester’s new offering.

NAR offering free Placester websites to Realtors

“The National Association of Realtors is offering free property search websites to all members as part of a new deal with real estate software provider Placester.

The partnership makes it possible for all Realtors “to build an online presence they can control,” said CEO Matt Barba in a statement. And it could fuel Placester’s efforts to build a massive user base that could be receptive to buying upgrades.

A previous deal between the trade group and Placester made basic versions of Placester sites available to Realtors for $5 a month. Under the new deal, the two are offering Placester websites for no charge.

The free mobile-friendly websites come with features including IDX [Internet Data Exchange] listing integration, “global listings search,” homepage with slideshow, mortgage calculator, social media share buttons and editable listing search, about and testimonial pages.”

This is exactly why I’ve never had a desire to enter the agent website business, it’s a race to the bottom.

But it looks like it’s not “free” in all markets.

“For 60 of the 600 multiple listing services covered by the product, agents must pay a surcharge to activate IDX-powered property search.”

I wonder how many agents do those MLSs cover? Also, it’s well known that less than 90 MLS providers contain about 90% of the all the active listings available. So it will be interesting to see how “massive” their user base grows.

I written about this before but my take on these freemium models is the the TAM (total available market) isn’t large enough.

I do think this is a big win for N.A.R. members. But if you read the comments in Inman’s article you’ll see that agents are keen to look a gift horse in the mouth. Sheesh!

Bob Goldberg

“Talk about a dream. Try and make it real” – Bruce Springsteen, Badlands.

What you should know about Bob Goldberg — possibly NAR’s next CEOThe current SVP at the National Association of Realtors has a deep background in real estate technology

“It’s not hard to see why Goldberg would be an obvious choice.”

Agreed. This post on Inman goes on in detail about Bob’s many accomplishments since joining NAR in 1995. It’s beyond impressive, I had no idea about half of them. Simply put Bob is a guy that gets things done. Period.

I’ve heard many rumors about who is in the running. But in my opinion I cannot think of anyone else who is more qualified for this position. But, just because, lets break down a few of the biggest arguments.

“NAR needs NEW leadership, not more of the same.”
Bullshit. Just because a person works for the CEO, doesn’t mean he that when he/she becomes the new CEO he/she is going to lead the same way. Also, when did experience become a liability? Or loyalty? By electing someone outside the industry in franchise/finance/whatever industry (oh please NOT someone from the banking/finance world GROSS!) would be as stupid as appointing a brain surgeon to run HUD.

“Most REALTORS are women, so the new CEO needs to be a women.”
The new CEO for NAR should be the best person for the job.

“We need a big name to lead us”
A celebrity? How’s that working out America?

Back in the day while working at eNeighborhoods, we were a “REALTOR VIP partner”, which is now “REALTORS Benefits”. Over the years, we got to spend a lot of time with Bob, his staff and family. I got to know him and them pretty well. He’s the real deal. Smart, honest, and sincere. He has a great sense of humor, a good boss, and a loving father. He’s got a deep knowledge and passion for the industry. In short, he’s a leader.

Sponsored By MLS Reset