There is one solution that would solve everything – start a new club.
It was probably no accident that Mauricio ran this again on his Instagram yesterday, and it is a fantastic idea:
They are advertising it as a pocket-listing website, but it could go big and offer the industry a viable alternative to the current MLS system.
A wanted and needed alternative!
It might take a few months to catch on, but think of the effects:
- Privatize the marketplace, and force consumers to work with agents who are club members.
- Privatize the market data, so only the club members have the comps.
- No listing feeds to Zillow or other real estate website, resulting in no public access to listings.
- Brokers could only charge agents a reasonable admin fee, instead of big splits because all agents need is to be in the club.
- The N.A.R. and all other blood-suckers are eliminated.
- Club members in full control of market, with no rules or ethics.
Only agents can join, and let’s make club membership extremely expensive so only the top agents could afford it, which would eliminate the lousy agents. If the cost was $2,000 per month, it would cull the herd immediately.
The only reason there are so many pimps making millions off agents is because we let them. We should take back our listings, and control our own destiny!
All it would take is a celebrity realtor to create it, and off we go! Revolution!
The consumers are the unfortunate casualties of this swamp cleansing. But hopefully once the ship is righted, we can create a private consumer site too.
There will always be websites that show the sold transactions, because the basic data is public record. They would include a link to Google Maps for a drive-by view too.
A private club would retain and preserve the job of selling homes for the top professionals. It’s a win-win – consumers deserve excellent service.
I understand your position, but isn’t that one step forward and two steps back? The MLS kept consumers in the dark and this is just creating a new place to hide the ball. I think adding something new is a great idea if it is going to help the stellar agents such as yourself and the consumer. How about a binding home inspection report with insurance to cover any defects not reported? My experience found home inspection reports currently generated had so many exclusions and disclaimers they were worthless. Generate one report running with the sale offering. Make everyone happy, unless you are a bad inspector.
I understand your position, but isn’t that one step forward and two steps back?
Yes, but swift and decisive action is needed to clean it up before it completely spirals out of control.
Glenn Kelman was telling so many lies in that last video that he couldn’t stop laughing. In particular, he said his commissions are one-third of regular agents, which is a flat-out lie. He charges 1.5% in an environment that charges 2.5% at the most. If there are sellers paying 6% to sell million-dollar homes, they haven’t shopped around.
You’ve probably noticed that the mainstream media does no fact-checking – they will let anyone step up to the microphone and say anything they want, without questioning it. Because our only potential industry leader, NAR, refuses to help, the start-ups have a shot to clean our clock without much of a fight.
I’ll go further and say that the other industry titans, the big franchise companies, should be doing some talking too – but they are conspicuously quiet as well. Their less-experienced agents are the ones that will get driven out of the business first, so they could use some support.
All any of them have to do is convince the consumers to Get Good Help!
Why barrier would you impose for entry because not everyone is as fortunate as :
Kayla Klinge
Kayla Klinge, Vice President BRE#01941149
Realtor
760-434-5000 Contact Kayla
Richard Morgan
Richard Morgan, Realtor BRE#01341273
14 years experience, buyers specialist North County
619-200-3844 Contact Richard
Joe Johnston
Joe Johnston, Realtor BRE#01243064
18 years experience, county-wide
760-434-1137 Contact Joe
Jen Bell
Jen Bell, Realtor/Transaction Coordinator BRE#01457537
12 years experience, Johnston Team
760-224-3859 Contact Jen
Marilyn Landblom
Marilyn Landblom, Realtor BRE#01262783
17 years experience, North County Specialist
760-473-2302 Contact Marilyn
Bryce Lucore
Bryce Lucore, Realtor BRE#01300293
15 years experience, North County Specialist
760-415-6666 Contact Bryce
Copy/Paste was easier.
I’m just hoping we get into the club – no guarantees on how this could turn out!
This is already happening on a smaller scale. Agents get listings that they first expose to their other agent-friends, and if one has a buyer, then no MLS – to the detriment of the seller, other potential buyers, and other agents.
We see listings “sold before processing” every day, and it’s wrong. If there was a legit club where agents actually submitted every listing, it would give all buyers and agents the chance they deserve to compete.
The other swamp-cleansing choice is the auction format. Auction.com or similar could change the entire landscape if they spent enough money on advertising.
From Inman today:
Umansky, who recently launched ThePLS.com (The Pocket Listing Service) — which allows brokers to search for and share off-market listings — said the tool was meant to keep listings information away from the public and only available to agents.
“We are losing control of what is out there,” he said. “We have to keep listings to ourselves and protect our industry. Then agents can have a career forever,” he said.
“My experience found home inspection reports currently generated had so many exclusions and disclaimers they were worthless. Generate one report running with the sale offering. Make everyone happy, unless you are a bad inspector.”
That’ll never change as long as there is no accountability.
Most matadors are good at their job, because if not, they are forced to star in a bull’s muppet show. There’s no explaining, dismissing, begging or pleading after the fact. Juan will star in El Toro’s muppet review, to the awe of the crowd.
The insurers will enforce accountability. They will be your “bull”.