Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

Calling all speakers

My good friend Audie Chamberlain is hosting a free workshop that I know many of you would benefit. He is going to show you how to submit speaker submission applications for NAR NXT and other events.

Click this link to register = > Lion & Orb Workshop: Speaker Submissions

NAR NXT Trade Expo pics!

Just a few random photos taken with my Ray-Ban | Meta Glasses

See you tonight!

Looking forward to seeing many of you for our NAR NXT Pre-Party/GEM Soiree tonight.

The fun begins at 5PM!

711 W. 17th St.
Unit J6
Costa Mesa, CA 92646

Hit me up on my phone if you have any questions: 714-240-3895

NAR NXT Pre-Party!

In collaboration with Drew Meyers of Geek Estate (GEM), I will be hosting in the work/car studio I share with Dan Woolley ( and my two vintage VWs) a NAR NXT Pre-Party. We’ll set up tables, have local brews and a few handles, snacks, cool music, a bubble top hockey table and a few surprises. Register here.

Very close to John Wayne Airport (SNA) airport if you are flying in Monday. Or maybe a kicking off point for some of Orange County’s finest restaurants. I’ve included a map below to give you some idea of the location in respect to The Anaheim Hilton and JWA.

Open to GEM members and you pioneers of proptech and organized real estate insiders.

Drew set up an Eventbrite page please click here to register = > GEM Soiree/NAR NXT Pre-Party

CMLS 2023 Industry Update – VIDEO

CMLS 2023 Industry Update with Greg Robertson and introduction (roast) by Andy Woolley

I know many of you have been asking for this. I’ve been looking for a good quality recording but hadn’t found one with both the introduction and my presentation. Enter, Mike Canova from GAMLS who shared this video with me at the recent RESO Conference. I took the video and edited it a bit by inserting the slides from both presentations. Still blown away how great Andy did on the introduction. Please share and enjoy!

Save the date! NAR NXT Pre-Party

Monday, November 13th (5PM to 8PM)

Join me for cocktails and conversation to kick off the week of NAR NXT! Mingle and enjoy time with real estate tech founders, execs, VCs, and practitioners.

This is a collaboration with Drew Meyers of Geek Estate (GEM), and will be hosted in the work/car studio I share with Dan Woolley. We’ll set up tables, have local brews and a few handles, snacks, cool music, a bubble top hockey table and a few surprises.

Very close to John Wayne Airport (SNA) airport if you are flying in Monday. Or maybe a kicking off point for some of Orange County’s finest restaurants.

Open to GEM members and you pioneers of proptech and organized real estate insiders. More information coming soon.

Beignets, Gumbo, and Gratitude: CMLS 2023

It was great to be back in New Orleans last week. From what I heard this was the largest attended CMLS ever. With so much going on in the industry it made sense everyone wanted to be together. Plus it was the “10 year anniversary of the 10 days session”.

I hadn’t been to New Orleans since pre-pandemic. Not sure if it was just me but the streets seemed a little cleaner, and the beignets a little heavier.

News dropped of Redfin “leaving NAR” on Monday while I was traveling. GFK certainly knows how to work the press and the timing of the release was genius. I think towards the middle of the week the initial shock wore off and left most of whom I talked to with more of a shrug. Same thing with the news that Anywhere (and RE/MAX?) won’t require franchisees to join NAR. Since it’s not a mandate I don’t think anyone will care. But I do think the optics from outside the industry is the real story here. With NAR‘s recent bad press in the New York Times, inventory shortage, affordability, and high interests rates may lead some people to believe where there’s smoke there’s fire. Especially when you read the misleading headlines.

I didn’t get to attend many sessions. But heard a lot of good feedback on the “What If Mindset” presenter. I did give a talk at the CEO Forum held Tuesday afternoon and was surprised at the level of interaction I got from the group, which in my experience don’t easily share opinions in public. But this is the CMLS Conference after all. One thing I heard afterwards from some MLS execs was the concern that over the years CMLS has worked more closely with NAR and how that might “bite us in the butt” in light of all the shenanigans lately. But, who can tell?

The lobby bar chatter was filled with vendors telling lies to each other, talk of lawsuits, joint ventures, and changing business models and dinner plans.

I ate like a king, and broke my rule the first night. I did manage to get to bed early Wednesday night in preparation for my Industry Update session on Thursday. I spent all Thursday morning creating the slide deck and rehearsing in my hotel room. Which if anyone had a hidden camera would look like an insane person making funny faces and saying the same things over and over in to a mirror.

I was backstage with Sunny getting ready for my session. Andy Woolley was set to introduce me. I was told that Andy would go out first, then introduce me and I would come out second. I had no idea what actually was about to happen. They announced Andy and my handler told me to go on stage as well. Then Andy delivered a masterclass in roasting. He had the crowd howling and he’s expertly delivered well timed cuts and jabs, all at my expense. It was hilarious!! Bravo Andy!

With so much going on in the industry, my Industry Update session was one of the best yet. And the last slide got a standing ovation (or so I’m told, I left the stage pretty quickly). I hope to have that video of Andy and I posted soon. The feedback I received was so kind and I’m glad I could bring a bit of levity to everyone’s day.

I left the CMLS Conference feeling a bit tired (NOLA) and also energized. I’ll have a few announcements due to meetings I had at the event in the weeks to come.

My thanks to Denee and the entire CMLS staff for having me and once again putting on such a great event.

“This is why you go to conferences!”

Jack Miller, CEO of T3 Sixty via LinkedIn:

“Our consulting team is in hundreds of conversations every month with brokerage leaders, team leaders, and executives in our industry – and there is no way to sugar coat this, there is a malaise over part of the industry right now.

Many people that would normally engage, show up to things, be present – they are simply not there.

This has been evidenced heavily by attendance at the late summer conferences that kick off the fall conference season. Attendance is 30-50% down, which in many respects, is not surprising.”

Go read the whole thing.

Blueprint

There has been a lot of great buzz around Blueprint, a relatively new proptech conference in Las Vegas. I’ll be attending and covering the event for the first time this year. The speaker lineup looks great with the likes of Pete Flint, Spencer Rascoff, Adena Hefets, Brian Bair, Dave Garland, Errol Samuelson, and many others. The lobby bar should be full of some interesting folk.

The people at Blueprint were nice enough to give me a link to share with Vendor Alley readers to get $200 discount of the normal price to attend the event. Just click here ===> Blueprint Event Discount

Hope to see you there!

Industry Relations podcast is a finalist to win an Inman Innovator Award for top video or podcast

Speaking of Inman Connect, Rob Hahn and I are a finalist for and Inman Innovator Award for top video or podcast. This was a complete surprise and grateful for those who nominated us.

I’m not sure when they announce the winners but we have some stiff competition.

Sponsored By Paragon Suite from ICE