Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

HomeServices to stop syndicating listings?

The shit just hit the fan…

Twitter was all a…twitter, I guess when Craig Kamman posted that Edina Realty (owned by HomeServices of America) was going to pull their listings from Trulia and other “3rd party aggregators” and possibly Realtor.com. The post is worth a read:

Edina Realty discontinues 3rd Party Sites like Trulia and Realtor.com

This was followed by a blog post by Jay Thompson who had his own take on the news, where he imagines a conversation between an seller and his agent:

“So Mr. Agent, you’ll put our home listing on the internet, won’t you?

Well, it will be on our brokerage site, but we’ve elected not to put your listing on some of the most highly visited real estate sites in the country.

Uhm, why is that?

Well, we want to be sure our agents get the leads your home listing generates. And those meanies at the third party site want to charge for them!

Uhm, isn’t the point to sell our home, not generate leads for you and other agents?”

Obviously Jay doesn’t think it’s a good idea:

Edina Realty pulling listings from Trulia and Realtor.com?

Then Rob Hahn went “Oliver Stone” or got “stoned” at one of California’s many marijuana dispensaries while he was out here for the 2011 NAR Convention in Anaheim. And I quote:

“There is, I believe, a real chance that in the next three to six months, we will see the splintering of the foundation of the industry: the MLS and the Associations. The world that comes next, a world without the Multiple Listing Service, will be one filled with unintended consequences.”

After reading Rob’s post I don’t know whether to hug my kids or ask him to pass the bong, because that is some good shit he’s smoking.

All kidding aside, I may be just whistling through the graveyard so his post is worth the read:

Extinction Event Horizon: Real Estate

This story is developing…

Today’s WTF Friday Edition: First American offers to buy back CoreLogic

“CoreLogic, whose stock is down about 40% since the split, said in late August it was forming an independent committee to explore strategic options, including a possible merger or a sale.

The timing of that announcement, coming amid a difficult real estate market and a rocky stock market, isn’t the best, according to a First American Financial filing made with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday.

A deal “could result in a sale of the entire company at a price that would not be beneficial to (First American’s) long-term shareholders,” the company said in the regulatory filing.”

My take on this is that First American doesn’t want someone else to own the company.

Via the Orange County Business Journal

Miami Associations Merging?

Teresa King Kinney

Rumor has it the REALTOR Association of Greater Miami (RAMB) and the REALTOR Association of Miami-Dade County are merging.  And it looks like CEO Martha Bullman of Miami-Dade will be retiring.  Long time CEO, Teresa King Kinney, of RAMB will be leading the new effort.

Rumor also has it happening as soon as August 1st.

This could have huge consequences and might result in a domino effect for other South Florida associations.  Who could be next Fort Lauderdale, South Broward, and/or Palm Beach?

Time will tell.

Holy Shit!! Big time rumor alert!

The Canadian winds are blowing all the way down to Southern California.

If this rumor is true the repercussions for some of the largest MLS providers in the country will be epic!

Stay tuned sports fans…..

Is Gary Joyner NARScandal.com?

You got to hand it to Vendor Alley readers they always get their man!

Is Gary Joyner the dumbass whack-job conspiracy freak knucklehead is part of NARScandal.com?  We think so.  It looks like Gary’s sub par tech skills may have outed himself.  Vendor Alley reader Brian Bell easily cracked his site by cleverly letting the site time out to reveal his identity. (click on image below)

Right there for all the world to see gary@idxstudios.com.  Now we know why the site’s favicon is a “G”.

Lets hope he does a better job locking down sites for his customers!  And speaking of his “customers”.  Gary has quite a client list on his site http://www.idxstudios.com/clients.php Seems like Gary likes to stretch the truth a bit himself, might this be a new “scandal” he and his “staff of writers” at NARScandal.com can write about?  His “client list” includes: HGTV, Century21, AOL, The Wall Street Journal, Lehman Brothers, and the NYSE.

The NYSE?  REEEEALLY Gary?  The Wall Street Journal?  REEEEEEEEALLY Gary?  What did you do?  Take a picture of their lobby?

One word Gary, BULLSHIT!

If you are an MLS Provider I would strongly suggest you check your IDX agreements for Gary’s companies, idxmedia.com, idxstudios.com and indigo sun studios (isun.net). Not sure why Gary has so many names for companies that essentially provide the same service, but it sounds like a HUGE red flag.

Don’t fear the ReaPeR?

Remember how you could play albums backwards and hear secret messages? On The Beatles album, “Abbey Road” many people heard the phrase “Paul is Dead”, which caused many fans to believe that Paul McCartney had died in a car crash.

Some messages are not so hard to understand. Take the 1976 hit from Blue Oyster Cult, “Don’t fear the Reaper”

“All our times have come
Here but now they’re gone
Seasons don’t fear the reaper
Nor do the wind, the sun or the rain..we can be like they are…”

MRIS sent a message to RPR that was loud and clear. “Thanks, but no thanks”. This is significant and symbolic in a lot of ways.

1. MRIS is the largest MLS provider in the country.
Not being able to get the largest MLS in country to sign up doesn’t bode well for the future.

2. Dale Ross, RPR’s CEO, is the former CEO of MRIS
If you can’t get the MLS you used to run sign up, then who can you get?

3. MRIS covers Washington D.C. the very place RPR hopes to sell the MLS data.
If you can’t get the local MLS to sign up, then how good is your coverage?

Plus 2 other significant developments have happen.

1. Laura Wolford has left the VP of marketing position or MRIS and has been replaced  by Rob Hahn (as a consultant), the blogger/consultant who declared “The death of RPR” is now running their marketing department. Not a great sign for RPR either.

2. Also, rumor is that MRIS is working on a home grown version of RPR, where they get to keep all the profits. Doubters might say that this will prove to be unsuccessful. These doubters are wrong and have not been paying attention to what MRIS CEO David Charron and his team have accomplished in the past several years.

“Come on baby…don’t fear the reaper
Baby take my hand…don’t fear the reaper
We’ll be able to fly…don’t fear the reaper
Baby I’m your man…”

Of course the MRIS board of directors could change their mind, but when you add all these factors up it doesn’t look good.

“La la la la la
La la la la la”

It’s clear now that RPR not offering MLS providers a way to share revenue generated from their respective data was a mistake.  Some companies are not only allowing MLS to “dip their beak” , but go for a swim!

So the solution is pretty clear, the MLSs have spoken…. MORE COW BELL RPR!!!


RUMOR: First American offers up to 40% rev share with MLS providers

Looks like First American in wake of the recent COVE meetings in Scottsdale have been offering a 40% revenue share deal to MLS Providers who sign with them exclusively .  15% for a non-exclusive deal.

This is in direct response to RPR policy of not sharing revenues derived from sale and use of MLS data.

The other interesting thing I’ve heard is RPR’s response.  Word is they plan to ignore MLS providers and go straight to brokers for permission.

Can anyone confirm??

Oh man this is getting verrrrrrry interesting!

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