“Companies accepted to the 2024 REACH program are as follows:
Chirpyest(link is external): a social commerce marketplace that empowers real estate professionals to earn cash back when they shop and share their curated finds.
Final Offer(link is external): a consumer-facing, agent-driven negotiation platform for residential real estate, delivering clear, real-time offer alerts to all interested parties.
Kukun(link is external): a real estate data, analytics and applications platform for homeowners and the industries that serve them.
Notable(link is external): simple pay-at-close financing for everything a client needs to prep their home for sale and get the most out of it.
Purlin(link is external): AI tools that convert client conversations into transactions by simplifying business dealings among real estate agents and settlement service providers.
Scout(link is external): helping agents find and engage homeowners with AI-driven automated personalized email outreach.
Trackxi(link is external): a collaborative deal and task tracker for real estate agents, teams, clients and consumers.
Unlock(link is external): helping consumers unlock the power of home equity without interest charges or monthly payments.”
NAR REACH
No small feat. Out of 1000+ companies considered, 100+ applications, Trackxi is among the final 8 companies chosen for this great opportunity. Congrats to Vijay and his team! Good things ahead!
“I think I’ve figured out the solution. From now on, the last three digits in the list price represent the basis points the seller is willing to offer a buyer’s agent. $595,250 = 2.5%. It’s elastic from 0% to 9.99% and legal proof. Is the DOJ going to crack down on how sellers price their property? 🤯”
Vendor Alley Reader
The reader only wished to be identified as a “strikingly handsome and incredibly intelligent industry expert.”
Anybody else getting a ton of calls/texts/forwards from your “non-real estate” friends about the NAR settlement? My friends are saying that a lot of their social media feeds are crazy with anti-REALTOR messages. Mostly in their social media feeds, with a ton of memes and “quick takes”. I think all of us are still digesting these changes but in the end as Redfin CEO, Glenn Kelman wrote in a recent blog post (NAR Settlement: Kaboom!) “…perception is reality…”
“Even if the letter of the settlement allows for cooperation, how the settlement is perceived may still re-shape agent attitudes about cooperation, and consumer attitudes about fees. The result could be that agent-to-agent cooperation on fees is weakened but not killed. “
Glenn Kelman, Redfin
I want to say upfront that I think NAR did a tremendous job on the settlement for their membership. But, and I may be beating a dead horse here, this feels like another miss in messaging/marketing from NAR. Based on what I’ve seen on Twitter and elsewhere NAR took everyone by surprise, even at their own event, AEI.
It’s unfortunate that NAR kind of screwed their local and state association executives, tying them up in an AE conference today saying nothing until the news broke about the settlement, causing them to scramble to release communications to their members. While at a conference.…
How about pumping the brakes a bit? Create some good content that puts a positive spin on things. Give all those assets to share with your local MLS and associations (so they can pass it on) and mirror that with some sort of nationwide “we hear you” campaign.
But releasing the news when all of their association leadership was offsite? Plus, has anyone seen anyone from NAR in the national news?
“In light of this uncertain, ever-changing environment, a casual observer might ask, “What is the existential value of an MLS?” The truth is, the MLS has provided an abundance of value over the past century that explains its broad appeal and its continued relevance.
Being able to succinctly communicate the many benefits of the MLS in a modern environment—with historical context, and even from an international perspective—is critical for brokers and MLS leaders to ensure that transparent, liquid marketplaces continue to serve their communities. In fact, any professional who’s involved in the real estate profession should be prepared to describe the value of the MLS.
Still running through the docs. One reader tipped me off to this nugget; Check out #8 of NAR FAQ on the settlement:
“8. How does the settlement affect MLSs?
• The agreement would release association-owned MLSs from liability for the types of claims brought in these cases on behalf of home sellers related to broker commissions.
• While the release excludes MLSs that are not wholly owned by REALTOR® associations, the agreement provides a mechanism for those MLSs to obtain releases efficiently if they choose to use it…”
“We are honored to have the opportunity to work with more exciting property technology startups,” said Peter Schravemade, managing partner, REACH Australia and New Zealand. “These nine companies represent the largest number of companies taken on in a calendar year for the REACH Australia and New Zealand program. Regardless of your area of specialization, there is significant value within this group.”
NAR, National Association of REALTORS
Interesting mix of companies. If website design and illustrations were any indicator of company success then Milk Chocolate would get my vote.
“Mr. Umansky said that AREA will offer its members a nationwide database of home listings as an alternative, built from the technology he acquired for his own private listings service. That platform, which they’re calling the National Listing Service, is currently live with limited listings at theNLS.com.
“A centralized database with access to the full scope of listings across the country is better for everyone in the industry, and someone just had to do it,” Mr. Umansky said.
Debra Kamin, New York Times
A good question I would ask the two luxury real estate agents/brokers launching this new endeavor is this: “Will this new entity follow (or match) the Clear Cooperation Policy (CCP) guidelines?”
“NAR President Tracy Kasper informed NAR’s Leadership Team that she recently received a threat to disclose a past personal, non-financial matter unless she compromised her position at NAR. She refused to do so and instead reported the threat to law enforcement. Ms. Kasper felt that, in the circumstances, it was best for the organization that she step down. The Leadership Team is deeply concerned about any attempt to undermine its governance and, as a result, is taking steps to protect the integrity of the organization.”
If you haven’t caught our last episode of Industry Relations that just dropped today you hear Rob talk about the desire for industry entities such as NAR to stop the corporate word salad and speak authentically. This conversation made me think about an article and podcast that caught my attention. It was in relation to the letter (email?) Andy Florance, CEO of CoStar, sent regarding a few statements made at NAR NXT. The entire letter is available (and link to the podcast) so you can go read it here at:
He calls out Bob Evans, VP of Industry Relations at realtor.com, for making false statements “that Homes.com was working against real estate agent“.
He (Andy F.) takes full responsibility for CoStar News naming Sitzer/Burnett plaintiff attorney Michael Ketchmark, “newsmaker of the week” and states “It will not happen again.” [Small quibble; Ketchmark was named “Person of the week”]
He also points out the fact realtor.com and the WSJ is owned by the same company and then makes a damn good point. Here’s a quote from his letter:
“Many people mistakenly believe that Realtor.com is part of NAR. In fact, it is not, it was sold years ago and is now owned by News Corp. The Wall Street Journal and Realtor.com are sister companies. They work together closely. The folks that call the shots for The Wall Street Journal and Realtor.com are one and the same.
The Wall Street Journal has been prolifically writing more than most about theSitzer/Burnett class action lawsuit and the NAR defeat. They have published article titles such as “Home Sellers Take On the Realtors Cartel”, “Almost No One Pays a 6% Real-Estate Commission-Except Americans”, “The Upending of One of America’s Most Popular Professions”, “The Way You Pay to Buy or Sell a Home is About To Change”, “Jury Finds Realtors Conspired to Keep Commissions High”, “Real-Estate Commissions Could Be the Next Fee on the Chopping Block”, “Realtors Face an Antitrust Reckoning” and more.“
Letter from Andy Florance, CEO & Founder of CoStar
Zing! Pow! Authentic enough for you yet? Love him or not Andy Florance is not in his box seats, he is on the field, and I’m here for it.
As a prolific player of craps I have an analogy for you. In the game of craps you have the concept of “right way” and “wrong way” bettors. In simple terms “right way bettors” are betting on the shooter, and “wrong way bettors” are betting “against the shooter”. When a hot craps game is going on and a “wrong way bettor” shows up at the table everyone gets pissed off. They think having a “wrong way bettor” at the table brings “bad juju”. CoStar, in my view, has been perceived by the industry as a “wrong way bettor”. This was due to the fact that CoStar’s business model does better with the elimination or neutering of buy side compensation. And guess what? It’s looking like Andy made the right bet.
“7 OUT!”
Here’s the thing as these so called “portal wars” heat up. There are many things that we can argue about regarding the business models of all the portals. Dual agency, agent responsiveness, etc. But the Sitzer/Burnett ruling and all the copy cat lawsuits are making it very clear that the game has changed. CoStar isn’t the wrong way bettor any longer.
We need to move on. CoStar, Zillow, Realtor.com are all going to have to adjust. We as an industry are going to have to adjust.
We aren’t play craps anymore. Feels to me more like poker.
Join Rob and Greg on this episode of Industry Relations, as they recap the NAR NXT annual conference and explore some critical issues. Greg shares what NAR NXT’s atmosphere was like, and find out why Rob is worried about independent press commenting on NAR.
Also, discover the reasoning behind Rob and Greg’s beliefs that the real estate industry is way past prepping and the zombies are breaching the wall!
