Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

FMLS chooses Lone Wolf in 5 year deal

Lone Wolf Technologies and FMLS forge strategic partnership to revolutionize transaction management for 60,000+ real estate professionals

“In a significant development for the real estate technology sector, Lone Wolf Technologies and First Multiple Listing Service (FMLS) have announced a groundbreaking five-year strategic partnership. This collaboration will bring Lone Wolf’s trusted TransactionDesk platform, including the industry-leading Authentisign eSignature solution, to FMLS’s more than 60,000 members. “

Absolutely huge deal for both parties. There’s been a bit of a logjam in deals like this in our space. I get to meet and work with a lot of great companies and talented people who love real estate technology and want to innovate.

I hope this is a sign that things are getting back to a place where we see more companies investing in the future so all this wonderful talent can be put to good use.

Inman acquires Blueprint

Very smart move. I had only attended Blueprint twice, but it was clear that there was a broader world of proptech that wasn’t being addressed by Inman or other real estate conferences and news sites. Blueprint covers a wide range of proptech companies, including innovations in how homes and buildings are constructed. It also attracted more of the venture/investor crowd, with a designated area where founders and entrepreneurs could pitch directly to potential investors.

When I attended the Blueprint conference last September, I ran into Emily Paquette, CEO of Inman, walking the trade show floor. She stopped, said hello, and we talked for a bit. At the time, I thought she was just scoping out the potential competition. In hindsight, with the residential side in such turmoil, it’s easy to see why Inman and their private equity partner, Beringer Capital, were ready to make expand their customer base and make an investment.

Arab MLS introduces Matrix MLS platform

Arab MLS and CoreLogic Collaborate to Revolutionize Real Estate in the Arab Region

“A comprehensive project was swiftly executed to extend the Matrix platform to support Arabic, ensuring the user experience meets the expectations of Arabic speakers for an intuitive, modern web application. This involved a complete redesign of the UX, including the layout of reports, displays, and screens. Arabic speakers expect navigation elements, icons, and various features to be oriented and function differently compared to English speakers. These capabilities were successfully introduced in July in the Egypt MLS, powered by Arab MLS and CoreLogic. Arab MLS plans to launch in the UAE before year end.”

I wonder if they added “Palace” as a new property type.

Rayse rising

Rayse Launches to 200 Brokerages, Transforming Transparency and Value in Real Estate Transactions

“Developed in collaboration with leading brokerages, franchisors, and multiple listing service (MLS) providers, Rayse has garnered significant industry support. “We believe in shared ownership of technology solutions to benefit both real estate professionals and their clients,” said Howard W. “Hoby” Hanna IV, CEO of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, an early investor in Rayse. Founding investors in Rayse completed over 1.1 million transactions in 2023, and the combined agent count among brokers and MLSs is over 470,000, according to data provided by T3 Sixty.”

What I appreciate about what James Dwiggins has so far done with Rayse is the shear number of industry participants who have invested real money to launch this new venture. The count of industry investors he has put together is amazing. It lessens the burden of having to rely on one or two big checks and also has the advantage of smart money. If you take a look at the list of people/companies that have invested they are the same people that can actively participate in helping the company succeed. And when Rayse does succeed they all can participate in its success. Love, love love.

REcolorado acquisition complete

MAZL, LLC Completes Acquisition of REcolorado

“We are committed to ensuring that REcolorado not only remains the foundation of Colorado’s real estate community but continues to set the standard for excellence and innovation as a subscriber-focused MLS,” stated Joseph Burks, President of MAZL, LLC. “As a market leader, REcolorado has always been at the forefront of delivering top-tier services. Our goal is to collaborate closely with its exceptional team to strengthen the company even further, ensuring it continues to deliver MLS services that bring unparalleled value to its subscribers and their clients, adapting and innovating to meet the evolving needs of today’s real estate professionals.”

Welp, I guess it’s official now. There are still many questions surrounding this deal. Including some brought up by the Notorious one.

Acquisition

Orlando Realtor Association switches to SentriLock

Orlando Regional Realtor Association Selects SentriLock as New Lockbox Service Provider

“Our members expect cutting-edge technology that effortlessly syncs with their mobile devices and other systems,” noted ORRA CEO Cliff Long. “After a thorough and lengthy evaluation by our volunteer REALTOR® leadership and members, we discovered that SentriLock is not only user-friendly, but also boasts top-tier security features, safeguarding both property access information and the agent showing the property. Given that our consumers trust us with their homes, it’s important we provide the highest level of security possible.”

SentriLock

Nice win. I’m hearing this could equate to over 35,000 lockboxes, Yowza!

The Queen’s Gambit

Annie Ives, CEO of VestaPlus

San Diego MLS Selects VestaPlus to Increase Data Integrity and Add AI Compliance with Checkmate

“The removal of offers of compensation from MLS represents a watershed moment of change for our industry,” Annie Ives, the CEO of VestaPlus, said in a statement. “As an MLS operator and vendor, it is vitally important that we implement new compliance tools that will enable the transition for real estate agents and brokers in the best possible way. We are anxious to partner with our MLS peers to implement these services for the benefit of our industry professionals.”

Annie Ives, CEO of VestaPlus

I’ve been working with a lot of MLS organizations that have been branching out into the vendor space. It can be humbling. You build a solution that really helps your MLS solve a big problem. The natural thing to think is, “I bet other MLS orgs have this same problem.” So you go to market. And that’s where the fun begins.

It’s hard to find a way to win. You need to have the right pieces in place. For Annie Ives, I think a key part is having a timely solution, and the addition of some key talent. Enter Kelly Robinson. It’s great to see their continued success together. The recent announcements of Staten Island and SDAR switching to Checkmate are good wins, and I’m hearing there are several other announcements ahead. It’s great to see Annie’s persistence pay off.

VestaPlus’s Checkmate adds new partner

VestaPlus™ and Staten Island Board of REALTORS® Collaborate to Propel Real Estate Data Compliance with Checkmate™

“Sandy Krueger, CEO of Staten Island MLS, said “Data integrity is the key to the service we provide to our subscribers and the consumers they serve. We look forward to enhancing our services using Checkmate™ and we are pleased with the working relationship we have already established with VestaPlus™.”

Annie Ives, CEO of VestaPlus™, shared, “We are excited to support Staten Island MLS with their goals of enhancing MLS data accuracy and streamlining internal processes.”

SIBOR and VestaPlus

VestaPlus is making some moves!

What does the “Z” in MAZL, LLC stand for?

Update on the Pending Sale of REcolorado to MAZL, LLC

“Firstly, as noted in our public FAQ, MAZL, LLC, is a private company formed specifically to acquire the MLS service. Joseph E. Burks is the sole and only purchaser of REcolorado. He created MAZL, LLC specifically to execute the Letter of Intent (LOI) and complete the business transaction. There are no other investors.”

Denver Metro Association of REALTORS(r)

Okay, I’m just having a little fun with the title of this post. I don’t think Zillow has anything to do with the sale of REcolorado MLS. But I do want to point something out, and it may be obvious already to some but I don’t know why more people are not talking about it.

One person, in this case Joseph Burks, is about to own the 16th largest MLS organization (by agent count) in the country. I don’t think anyone really understands what the second order consequences of this decision could be. 🍿

ARMLS adds Cloud CMA as a member benefit

Lone Wolf Technologies partners with Arizona Regional MLS

“In any market, and especially in one where buyers and sellers may not be entirely sure of what they can expect, it’s imperative for real estate agents to be able to demonstrate that they know and understand what’s happening,” said ARMLS’s James Marcus in a statement. “With this new Cloud CMA benefit from Lone Wolf, our agents will have a key resource in showing clients the expertise that will set them apart from the competition.”

ARMLS

What I think a lot of people forget is that Cloud CMA can be used as a lead generation tool. Congrats to Lone Wolf and ARMLS.

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