Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

Lundy, and the best product I didn’t see at CMLS 2022

I had been contacted by Shelley Fowler (yes, that Shelley Fowler) a few months back about some new tech I had to see. But “seeing” the tech wasn’t quite right. It was something different. The company is Lundy and they were working on an app aimed at “bringing data accessibility to your MLS”. Shelley arranged an introduction with Lundy’s founder Justin Lundy.

Basically, the app which they are now calling “Finding Homes” works with Alexa to help people who are blind or visually impaired access real estate data. Apparently, 12 million people over 40 years old in the US have vision impairment. 1 million are legally blind

Now there have been other products using Alexa for real estate, Voiceter Pro comes to mind. The difference with Lundy’s product is there are focusing on helping the blind and visually impaired, not a supplemental search tool.

Flash forward to CMLS 2022. Shelley once again greeted me to come to their booth and asked me to put on an eye mask and some noise-canceling headphones. Kinky!

With the mask and headphones on, they demonstrated on an iPad how blind people use “screen readers” on websites. It was terrible! The computer voice says stuff like “upper navigation”, “side bar-side bar”, and “vertical navigation bar”. Basically what I called “HTML out loud”. Just awful.

When that demo was over I was then asked to give Alexa a simple command, something like (I can’t remember exactly what I said) “Alexa, property details of 123 Main Street….” And voila! The device gave me an overview of the property without all the “HTML out loud” junk. I could ask it other simple questions, like “what is the lot size?”, “how many square feet”. Sweet!

I have to say, the way they demonstrated the app was really cool. It gave you an excellent way of understanding the problem they are trying to solve.

I will also say that while their focus may be targeting the blind and the visually impaired the experience they created is super well done. So well done they might have a bigger market than they think.

I believe they launched or are about to launch with Stellar MLS, MetroList, and a few others. You should visit their site to find out more.

Industry Update Video – CMLS 2022

Photo Credit: Sam Scott

Many thanks to John Warner for recording this video last week at the CMLS 2022 Conference. Enjoy!

Propy announces “NFT-powered home purchasing platform”

Real and virtual worlds converge with Propy’s NFT-powered home purchasing platform

“The idea is that prospective buyers can tour a home (in a metaverse environment or in the physical world), see an inspection report – and then purchase the house in just a few clicks. From there, the record of ownership gets placed in your secure wallet. Home purchases can be made in crypto or fiat.

When you’re ready to sell it, you can perform the same process in reverse. Or if your property has not yet had its NFT minted, Propy can connect you with a crypto certified agent to help get your house ready for sale”

I am not a cryptocurrency or Web3 expert but I am still fascinated by it. It reminds me of the early days of PCs, which had a fair share of weird naming conventions and acronyms.

I’ve been following Natalia at Propy for a few years now and they always seem to be coming up with new ways for Web 3 and real estate to converge. I know we all have a lot on our plates but I think this is something we should all be paying more attention to.

Industry Relations Podcast: Past, Present, and Future of PropTech with Spencer Rascoff

Episode #100!! Real estate is changing faster than ever before, so what do you need to know now to prepare for the pitfalls ahead? Enter Spencer Rascoff, co-founder of Zillow and Pacaso and considered by many to be the next Gary Keller of real estate. A PropTech guru, Rascoff discusses the past, present, and future of property technology, what to watch out for, and how to find success in the ever-changing world of real estate.

More with Spencer Rascoff!

Industry Relations is sponsored by NoteRouter

Listen to us on your favorite podcast player, watch us on YouTube or click the graphic below:

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Now that CoStar is a broker, is their way of “hijacking” IDX listings better than everyone else? You be the judge.

In an interview with Brad Inman, Andy Florance, CEO of CoStar said Zillow was “hijacking” listings and also compared them to the Mafia. His analogy was as follows:

“An agent puts up a yard sign, and then another company pulls up, spray paints over the sign, and puts a new agent’s name on the sign. Florance said no one would tolerate such behavior in the real world.”

Here’s what I’m picturing from Andy’s description.

In a recent post about the divorce of Homesnap and BPP Homesnap’s co-founder Steve Barnes stated…

“Homes.com and Homesnap.com will also offer paid preferred placement for listings in search results.”

Would this be tolerated in the “real world”?

Looking for a new gig?

Software Engineer – MLS GRID

“We are seeking Software Engineers to join our team in developing, testing, deploying, and improving software while managing deliverables and working with a tight-knit team to continue the growth of MLS Grid!”

The find out about this job or post a job, please visit the Vendor Alley Job Board.

Looking for a new gig?

Director of Multiple Listing Service Operations and Information Technology -Northern Kentucky Listing Service, Inc.

“The Director of MLS Operations and Information Technology is the primary staff person responsible for the oversight of the daily operations of the MLS and the IT systems used by both the MLS and Association. Ensures members are provided with outstanding customer support and training. “

The find out about this job or post a job, please visit the Vendor Alley Job Board.

Why CoStar’s Homes.com/Homesnap GTM might already be DOA

Andrea Brambila for Inman News, CoStar’s Homesnap and Broker Public Portal get a divorce

When real estate juggernaut CoStar acquired real estate tech firm Homesnap for $250 million at the end of 2020, Homesnap said it was committed to its partnership with the Broker Public Portal, a company formed by a large group of brokers and multiple listing services to launch the nation’s first national public-facing MLS website.

But nearly two years later, the two companies are going their separate ways. The National Broker Portal LLC, a joint venture owned 50-50 by the two companies since December 2016, will shut down on Oct. 31.

So much to unpack here in another great exposé by Andrea Brambila. If you haven’t read the whole article, go read it. I have many questions. Like, did MLS orgs and brokers (BPP) get played by Homesnap? Has anyone added up the amount of money Andy Florance has either given up or spent on this residential play so far? But I digress, what I want to focus on now is a glaring flaw I see in CoStar’s strategy with Homes.com.

Agent responsiveness.

Zillow learned this the hard way. When Zillow first launched any agent could buy leads from the company. Then they shifted. To “super agents” and “super teams”. Why? Because agents weren’t responding to leads, this was making Zillow look bad. When Zillow switched to a referral model the scrutiny got even more intense. Not just any agent/broker could buy leads from Zillow you must meet certain criteria in order to be a “Premier Agent”.

Zillow has also initiated a lead incubation program that makes sure every lead is followed up on. Zillow has made considerable investments to make sure that its brand is protected.

Keep in mind, CoStar’s experience with commercial real estate agents. When you call a commercial agent, they pick up the phone. When you email them, they respond quickly. When they show up for an appointment they most likely will be wearing a tie. Compare that experience with a residential real estate agent. The culture is completely different.

I don’t think the fact that leads are going straight to the listing agent is going to make a difference in the level of responsiveness. So if consumers go to Homes.com and ask the agent for more information and they don’t hear back within 30 minutes, they are gone baby gone.

Hopefully, Homes.com/Homesnap has already solved this (and I don’t think the Homesnap app solves this). But, If CoStar doesn’t have a solution for agents not responding to buyer inquiries on Homes.com at launch or shortly after launch all the reported money they will spend on advertising might as well be lit on fire.

You’re welcome.

Happy Birthday Mr. Coltrane

“I want to be a force for real good. In other words. I know that there are bad forces, forces that bring suffering to others and misery to the world, but I want to be the opposite force. I want to be the force which is truly for good.”

John Coltrane b. 23 September 1926

OneKey MLS names Richard Haggerty as new CEO

Next CEO for New York’s largest MLS is an insider
Richard Haggerty will be the next CEO of OneKey MLS starting Jan. 1. Haggerty will replace Jim Speer, who is retiring at the end of the year

” Richard Haggerty will be the next CEO of OneKey MLS starting Jan. 1. Haggerty is currently OneKey’s president and chief strategic growth officer and CEO of the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors.

Hudson Gateway merged with the Long Island Board of Realtors in 2018 to form the MLS, which was then called New York MLS. Haggerty spearheaded that merger and the formation of the regional MLS, according to OneKey. Haggerty has been Hudson Gateway’s CEO for 38 years, according to his LinkedIn profile.”

Lots of retirements this year. And seriously who could blame them? This industry is heading for some big changes. Hard to imagine Jim not being there, I’ve always enjoyed heading to LIBOR’s MLS Tech Fair and seeing Jim there every year. I remember when they made the big announcement about OneKey MLS. Such a huge accomplishment. I guess he and Mosey will have more time seeing hockey games together.

Big congrats to Richard for taking over the top spot.

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