Where Real Estate Gets Its Dirt

A Little Chat About ChatGPT and the Recent CoStar Move

Why is Andy Florance not acquiring Realtor.com? Could ChatGPT help us finally determine what the value of an MLS is? Just what is and isn’t copyrightable when it comes to real estate data? This episode of Industry Relations dives into recent Co-Star moves, how AI is infiltrating real estate, and whether Rob and Greg are just making a big deal out of nothing. Toward the end of this episode, Rob and Greg dive into Sam DeBord’s recent article “The Value of MLS: ChatGPT, Commissions and the Other 4Cs,” which you can read here!

Watch us on YouTube!

Connect with Rob and Greg: 

Rob’s Website

Greg’s Website

 This podcast is produced by Two Brothers Creative 2023.

Industry Relations Podcast: The Big Why, the Key Issue, and the Consequences of Commission Lawsuits

Lawsuits are on the horizon – but how will they affect NAR and the real estate market? Why are these lawsuits even happening, and what’s the one issue that they revolve around? In this episode of Industry Relations, Rob and Greg make their predictions for what the consequences of these lawsuits will be and whether or not you should be worried.

Watch us on YouTube!

Connect with Rob and Greg: 

Rob’s Website

Greg’s Website

 This podcast is produced by Two Brothers Creative 2023.

Industry Relations podcast: The Impact of NAR vs. DOJ

NAR wins a major hurdle in the DOJ antitrust probe. But what does it mean for the rest of the real estate industry? How will this affect other lawsuits? In this episode of Industry Rob and Greg do what they do best and take a deep dive into the impact of the NAR and DOJ antitrust probe. Why Rob believes that this is far from over and why Greg thinks there’s going to be a lot of industry mistakes made in the near future.  

Watch us on YouTube!

Connect with Rob and Greg: 

Rob’s Website

Greg’s Website

This podcast is produced by Two Brothers Creative 2023.

Listing Bits EP005: The Staying Power of MLS

You can subscribe to Listing Bits on iTunes.

Michael Wurzer is the President and CEO of FBS, Creators of Flexmls. FBS is a 100% employee-owned company, and every employee-owner is committed to exceeding customer expectations. Flexmls is a standards-driven technology platform connecting real estate professionals to their customers with collaboration tools that deliver timely and accurate information. Their products serve 185 organizations and 200,000-plus agents in the real estate sector.

Before taking over for his father at FBS, Wurzer enjoyed a seven-year career in law, primarily defending publicly traded companies in class action litigation. He also worked as the Assistant General Counsel for Aveda, a botanically-based hair and skin care manufacturer for beauty professionals. The method of thinking employed in legal analysis and writing provided unique preparation for his eventual work in the field of real estate tech.

Under Wurzer’s leadership for the past 20 years, FBS has worked to constantly evolve and embrace change. They were among the first to build a web-based system, striking a balance between the stability of being an established company and creating a culture of innovation. On this episode of the podcast, Wurzer examines the staying power of the MLS, real estate software product integration and the implementation of industry standards. Listen in to find out how building relationships provides the foundation for FBS’s success.

What’s Discussed:

– How a law background benefits Wurzer in the real estate tech industry
Talent in writing and communicating have been integral to his work with FBS
– The evolution of real estate tech community-building online
– The continued need for integration among real estate software programs
– Wurzer’s take on new initiatives like AMP and Upstream
– The source of anti-MLS sentiment
– The challenge of implementing standards in real estate tech
– How to solve the industry’s permissioning problem
– Wurzer foresees expanding agreements so that belonging to one MLS will provide access to a broader pool of data that can then be used
As long as the broker has permission, the vendor should have permission
– The necessity of reinventing yourself in the real estate tech business
FBS is actively developing leadership that embraces change

Connect with Michael Wurzer:

Twitter
Blog

Also, don’t miss Michael’s latest post

More Tired and Erroneous Propaganda About the MLS

Raising Standards in Real Estate – Listing Bits Episode 4

Special guest Rob Hahn talks about organized real estate

The Notorious R.O.B., Robert Hahn, is Managing Partner of 7DS Associates, a real estate consulting firm that specializes in developing and implementing corporate strategy including product management, brand marketing and social networking.

Hahn has a wide range of experience. His holds a BA in Philosophy from Yale and a graduate degree from NYU School of Law. After working briefly for a firm, he took a 98% pay cut to work as a magazine editor. Hahn’s diverse resume also includes positions at USA Networks, Inc., Kinesis Marketing and Realogy.

Hahn launched his consulting career in 2009 with the formation of 7DS Associates. He also writes a popular real estate blog, The Notorious R.O.B., and co-hosts the real estate podcast Trialogues which addresses technology, marketing and leadership in the real estate industry.

Hahn is a sought-after keynote speaker and change agent who thrives on speaking his mind and shaking things up in the real estate industry. On this episode of the podcast, he speaks to the nature of his consulting work, his candid approach to identifying industry challenges and the impending mood shift regarding standards for agents and brokers. Listen and learn what’s next for Hahn as makes an exclusive announcement about a new venture.

What’s Discussed:

– The pros and cons of consulting
The “eat what you kill” model means you must continually prove value
– The differences between commercial and residential real estate
– The “tyranny of politeness” in the industry and why Rob and Greg feel a responsibility to speak their minds

– Hahn’s take on the biggest issue in real estate
The preamble to the National Association of Realtors Code of Ethics outlines the fiduciary responsibility of agents and brokers
– Why it’s difficult for consumers to evaluate realtors
Lack of transparency
Infrequent contact
– How REALTORS themselves can help raise standards
– What’s next for Hahn and the details of an upcoming partnership

Connect with Rob Hahn:

Website

Twitter

 

Where the magic happens…

W+R Studios – Proof positive this is where magical software is created.

Bright MLS launches new website

Check it out. Looks good.

“A new era of MLS is here.

The real estate industry is undergoing exponential change. The physical,
political and philosophical boundaries of MLSs no longer fulfill what
brokerages need to conduct business. We are changing that.”

I just love the audacity of this copy. I have a feeling the scale of this will be a lot bigger than anyone thinks.

Swanepoel Power 200 includes over 10 MLS executives

Well its that time of year again. The 2017 Swanepoel Power 200 (SP200) was released today.

“Each year the Swanepoel Power 200 (SP200) holds a mirror up to the industry and asks: Who are the most powerful and influential people in residential real estate?

Power is an elusive concept, defined as “the ability or right to control people, companies or the industry.” But power can also exist even when it is not exercised. The concept is not easy or straightforward, so you can just imagine the healthy debate involved in creating this list every year.

But we all agree what power is not. It is not a popularity contest. It is not based only on a single criterion such as head count, office count or revenue. And it is never “pay to play.”

The list includes a lot of familiar names in the MLS industry.

Bob Hale is the highest ranked MLS executive on the list, coming in at #32, here’s the parsed list…

#32 Bob Hale, President and CEO, Houston Association of Realtors
#59 David Charron, President and CEO, MRIS
#70 Art Carter, CEO, CRMLS
#114 Teresa King Kinney, CEO, Miami Association of Realtors
#131 Tom Philips, CEO, TREND MLS
#133 Jim Harrison, President and CEO, MLSListings
#143 Merri Jo Cowen, CEO, My Florida Regional MLS
#145 John Mosey, President, Northstar MLS
#153 Rebecca Jensen, President and CEO, MRED
#159 Kathy Condon, President and CEO, MLS Property Information Network
#198 Matt Consalvo, CEO, ARMLS

Some notable vendors also made the list

#37 Dale Ross, CEO, RPR
#43 Chris Bennett, General Manager, CoreLogic
#57 Errol Samuelson, Chief Industry Development Officer, Zillow Group
#129 Marty Frame, President, RPR
#147 Gregg Larson, CEO, Clareity
#152 Marilyn Wilson & Victor Lund, Founders, The WAV Group
#175 Alex Lange, CEO, UpstreamRE
#177 Mike Wurzer, President and CEO, FBS
#179 Me : )
#196 Mitch Skinner, Managing Partner, Larson/Skinner

and last (#200) but not least, Marty Reed, Vice President, Black Knight Financial Services. Yay Marty!

Denee Evans from CMLS came in at #176. Also Kirby Slunaker, CEO of REColorado and former CMLS President, Shelley Specchio, new CEO of MIBOR was named on a list of “Trendsetters”

Congrats to everyone!

Sponsored By Paragon Connect