Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

Rene Galicia named COO of CMLS

Council of Multiple Listing Services Announces Rene Galicia as Chief Operating Officer

“He brings extensive expertise in business operations, legal counsel, and strategic industry leadership from his previous role as Executive Vice President, Policy Counsel & Strategic Partnerships. With a proven track record in real estate and MLS, Rene has driven operational excellence and policy innovation across several high-impact roles. Most recently, he led customer engagement (support, training, compliance, and shareholder relations) and policy initiatives at Bright MLS, earning recognition as a HousingWire Vanguard and RISMedia Newsmaker for his transformative contributions to the industry.”

Rene is a great addition to the team! His wealth of legal and MLS experience will no doubt make an impact as CMLS moves into the future. Congratulations to Rene and the entire CMLS organization!

Compass “reimagines” MLS books

Compass to debut physical, in-office book of private listings

“In a sort of throwback to the origins of the first multiple listing services, Compass is preparing to deploy physical books filled with private listings and viewable in company offices.”

I think they meant to post this on April 1st, not May 1st.

Metro MLS names Chris Lambrou interim CEO

METRO MLS APPOINTS CHRIS LAMBROU AS INTERIM CEO

“Chris Lambrou is a proven leader with a deep understanding of the MLS industry,” said Joe Horning, Metro MLS Chairman. “As we transition, we are confident that Chris will provide strong leadership and continuity while we conduct a thorough search for a permanent CEO.”

Lambrou has over 26 years of experience in the multiple listing service industry. Since April 2016, he has served as Metro MLS’s Chief Information Officer, leading the organization’s modernization efforts and driving innovation in technology and internal operations.”

Good choice.



Compass sues NWMLS

Compass sues Northwest MLS, pulling Windermere along for a ride

The 39-page suit in federal court claims the MLS serving 2,500 member offices in Washington and Oregon has “no meaningful competitors,” and that, as a broker-owned multiple listing service, its Seattle-area brokerage owners with controlling stakes have an interest in limiting competition from new entrants.”

Be careful what you wish for Robert.

“Long live the free market!”

Compass Exclusive Almost Became a $100K Mistake

“But the longer I sat with it the less happy I was. If only two people saw it and we hit this magic number, what if 50 people saw it?

Turns out, the buyer had the same doubts. Is it really worth this much? There are no comps… They backed out. And I felt oddly relieved.

We published on the MLS and Zillow.

Six days later we had an offer $100,000 above our magic number.”

Still perplexed how Compass agents are cool with this strategy.

Peter Shuttleworth RIP

Peter, sans red suspenders, I believe in 2011.

Word spread over the weekend, that we lost Peter Shuttleworth. Mike Wurzer, CEO of FBS, wrote a great post about Peter you can read here. Below is an excerpt:

“A lot of people throw the term partnership around easily but Peter was very intentional and selective when he used that term, which is one of the many reasons CMLS honored him by naming their annual MLS Executive of the Year Award after him (PDF). In creating the award, CMLS wrote: “Peter’s motto of, ‘You should always have a seat at the table to listen, participate and help shape ideas’ is an ideal that all MLS Executives should desire. When Peter retired he left a legacy of integrity, professionalism and resoluteness to serve as the standard for any MLS Executive to aspire to be.” Well said, CMLS!”

I like that word “resoluteness”. It means a strong determination to achieve or persevere something through challenges. With things being as they are now, I believe resoluteness is something we can all aspire to.

I have my own story about Peter and how he helped me. This was back in the days when CMLS was known as Northwest Council of MLS. “Northwest Council”, as we all called it, had two conferences a year. Perhaps it was because I would sit in on a lot of the meetings, or would love to discuss all things MLS in the lobby bars of these events, Peter once asked to speak with me. He told me there was an opening for a “business representative” on Northwest Council’s board and he thought I would be a great candidate.

I was accepted, and was the business representative for Northwest Council for about 10 years. It opened a whole new world for me.

Thank you Peter. Rest in peace.

Ben Kinney’s Place acquires Remine for $1.5

Place buys Remine at auction for $1.5M in cash

“Real estate tech and agent services company Place is acquiring real estate software firm Remine for $1.5 million, all in cash — less than 3 percent of what four multiple listing services paid to buy the company 3.5 years ago.

The deal is expected to close in about 14 days, Place co-founder Ben Kinney told Inman exclusively Thursday.”

“Less than 3 percent…” — ooof.

Probably the best outcome for Remine, though. Ben Kinney is legit. Still, a long road ahead.”

The consolidation continues…

FAFO MLS Edition

NWMLS shuts off Compass’ IDX feed amid private listing conflict

“The IDX suspension is only the latest chapter in an ongoing saga involving the country’s largest brokerage by sales volume and a powerful independent multiple listing service. The conflict began in late March when Compass CEO Robert Reffkin criticized NWMLS, describing it on Instagram as uniquely restrictive. Reffkin’s comments stemmed from Compass’ efforts to expand the listings it markets privately before posting them to an MLS.”

I gotta wonder how many Compass agents think this feud is productive.

Arizona MLS makes floorplans mandatory

An Arizona MLS Joins the Movement to Make Floor Plans a Standard Requirement on All Listings

“Kim Everett, CEO of WARDEX, shared her excitement about this major step forward:
“We are thrilled to be at the forefront of innovation in the real estate industry. Requiring floor plans on every listing is the right thing to do for consumers, who deserve complete and consistent property information to help them in their home search. At WARDEX, we believe in making our market work better by improving the quality and consistency of the data and media we provide. This initiative ensures that Western Arizona homebuyers have the best possible experience while also empowering our agents with cutting-edge tools to enhance their listings.”

Join the movement!!!

See you in Dallas!

I’ll be attending the 1000watt’s Brand and Marketing Summit this week in Dallas.

Drew Meyers, from Geek Estate, and I will be giving a talk about “How to break through the proptech noise”. If you are vendor in the space and attending the event I think you’ll enjoy this presentation.

Reach out if you are going to be there.

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