In which I announce RPR is alive and kicking.
I’ve been a little skeptical about RPR‘s prospects. Other pundits have made the statement that RPR was dead. But, the deals signed with CRMLS, and now MRIS signify a major turning point. The critisims used to be that RPR had a lot of MLS providers but the coverage had a lot of holes. Slowly but surely that’s changing.
I think RPR is doing a decent job of implementing on their vision. As I’ve said I’m sure they would like things to move faster, but this is the MLS business and things tend to take their time.
Major challenges still remain:
1. They still need to get the coverage up. CRMLS and MRIS are HUGE wins but, they need to take advantage of this momentum and keep signing larger MLS Providers.
2. I don’t hear of many agents/brokers using any of the RPR tools. Granted a lot of these tools are new in my area but I just don’t hear about them. Of course their revenue model doesn’t need this to happen.
3. “60 million to 80 million in annual revenue”. And when, and only when, they get their coverage up they have to accomplish this lofty revenue goal. Ouch.
4. Runway. In the Inman article I caught something that I hadn’t heard before. “NAR must first recover roughly $21 million in RPR startup costs before it will discuss a revenue split, company officials have said.” You gotta wonder if/when RPR is going to have to go back to mommy (NAR) for more money.
Things that make me go hmmmmmmm: Does anyone think (despite what the Inman article stated) that Dave Charron/MRIS signed a deal with RPR that didn’t have a revenue share component?
Not me.
Inman’s Agent Reboot hits the OC!
This Wednesday Inman’s Agent Reboot Tour will hit Orange County at the Hyatt Regency Irvine. I haven’t yet attended this event but I plan on checking it out this week.
They’ve done a good job of getting some great national sponsors. Zillow, Lowes, Realtor.com and a couple Realogy brands.
It’s $49 to attend. The speaker line up looks good:
Nicole Nicolay – Very popular on the circuit.
Chris Smith – This guy is getting rave reviews, It will be interesting to see what the hype is about.
Stacey Harmon – She runs a great newsletter service all about Facebook you sign up for here.
Galen Ward of Estately is also going to be on a panel, “Plug In: Tools and Technologies You Need to Know About.”
Looks like there is a pre-party the night before (tomorrow night) at Pablos Cantina @ The District at Tustin Legacy (6PM-9PM).
See you there!
N-Play to give interactive presentation next week
I wanted to mention and thank N-Play for sponsoring this month’s Vendor Alley. Looks like a lot of you may get to see this new concept in action next week a the RETechSouth conference in Atlanta.
The concept is deceptively simple. It will be interesting to hear the feedback from the event.
Full Press Release Below:
———————————–
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Kristi Bolton
N-Play RE LLC
904.680.1283
904.564.1023
www.N-Play .com
Kristi at N-Play dot com
N-Play Hosts Groundbreaking, Interactive Presentation at REtechSouth
Attendees are in for an eye-opening experience on the future of real estate negotiations
Jacksonville, FL – N-Play is gearing up as Elite Sponsor for one of the largest real estate technology conferences in the country. RETechSouth (RETSO) hosts the most powerful conversations in the real estate industry and is about delivering the technological tools and knowledge to help Agents, Brokers and their referral network partners become more effective in their business. This is a Can’t Miss Event in Atlanta!
N-Play is hosting a featured session on Friday, April 1st at 11:20 a.m. Brokers and agents will experience first-hand how changing their traditional approach to the market will open up new buying and selling opportunities previously thought not possible or nonexistent. Through audience participation, N-Play will demonstrate how engaging consumers online in a real-time offer and negotiation process will ultimately deliver more and better opportunities to agents and with less hassle, stress and overhead.
Attendees will leave the session knowing that when the market thinks there are no buyers, there are. And, when one thinks they have the best price for a property, they don’t. The technology solution is here today and it’s an innovative approach every agent needs to know about.
For more information about the conference please go to www. Retechsouth.com
N-Play RE LLC
N-Play is the residential real estate industry’s first online offer management service where buyers shopping for homes can make and view non-binding, online offers on MLS properties. N-Play partners with real estate brokers and agents to offer the service through their Web sites via The Offer Centersm, N-Play’s featured search widget. The company uses full RETS feeds to keep all properties, agents and offices in sync with their Multiple Listing Service and all information is current. Buyers can also access N-Play through the company’s own search portal at www.n-play.com. N-Play is partnered with top brokerages in Atlanta, GA, Las Vegas, NV and South Florida offering over 100,000 searchable listings.
Head of Homes.com resigns
Peter Ill, president of Dominion Homes Media, who is responsible for Homes.com, eNeighborhoods, and Advanced Access has resigned his position. I hear his last day will be in early May.
Dominion Enterprises came in with guns blazing in the real estate technology space back in 2005, when they went on a spending spree aquiring notable companies, such as Katabat, Homes.com, Advanced Access, Number 1 Agent, Pullan Communications, and eNeighborhoods.
I was caught up in the eNeighborhoods acquisition and found Peter to be one of the hardest working men I ever met. A smart and a genuine guy who was very loyal to Dominion Enterprises. I believe he has been with the company over 20 years.
During the 2007/2008 timeframe Dominion Enterprises tried to sell itself but got caught up in the financial crisis and was unable to do so.
Peter held various positions at Dominion Enterprises and Landmark Communications (Dominion’s parent company), including The Weather Channel.
Good luck Peter! Anytime I hear the word “income” I can’t help but smile and think of you!
New edition of the Vendor Alley Private Newsletter has just been sent.
Nice scoop in the Vendor Alley Private Newsletter today.
Sign up is only $2.00 a month. To find out more click here.
Real Living gobbles up Windermere franchise.
Nice win for Real Living. Important for two reasons.
1. Momentum. After bringing aboard Dilbeck (1,000 agents) less than 2 months ago this deal with Windermere Exclusive Properties (400 agents) shows they might be on a roll.
2. Talent. Many of you may remember Steve Rodgers, the current president and owner of Windermere Exclusive Properties, from Prudential. He’s all about growth, and picking Real Living as a partner bodes well for them.
Looking for a new gig?
There are 3 job postings on the Vendor Alley Jobs Board:
VP of Operations (MLS)
Sr. Product Manager(Vendor)
Real Estate in Australia is a lot sexier.
After my post “Is this the future of listing photos?” many of you sent me a link to a video from “The Neo Property” real estate team in Australia (you can find the link in the comments of that post.)
Well the Aussies are at again. Once more they have found a way to take real estate video tours a bit more interesting….
Advertise on Vendor Alley
I’m increasing the size of the ads on Vendor Alley starting next month to 125 X 250 and adding two spots. I have two spots open for April. One in May and June. And a few in July and August.
For details check out the Vendor Alley Ad Sponsorships page. They are going fast!
“Early to bed, early to rise, work like hell and advertise!”
-Ted Turner