What might actually disrupt the current real estate brokerage model
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-Banks refusing to include commissions bundled into pricing. For example, valuing homes without commission included would severely change the rules and make consumers much more cost conscious.
This could be the one. Just like banks wont mortgage furniture with the house, they could simply decide not to mortgage the realtors commission too.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Brandon Hoffman
I wouldn't exclude some franchises from your statement. As a small, locally owned RE/MAX office we are free to make our own policies. I'm not saying...I'm just saying.
I can accept that.
Of course, you have a franchise nut to cover, too, right?
I can accept that.
Of course, you have a franchise nut to cover, too, right?
We do, but I'm the policy maker by and large. For the most part the corporate policies are in regards to not changing or altering the RE/MAX logo in our marketing.
Periodically someone here will mention some "new" kind of brokerage or scheme of doing business. Typically my response is that it's nothing new, etc.
As I was watching the news a few nights ago I watched a story about about a newer company. They use AI and Machine Learning to micro-target potential buyers online. They don't list in the MLS.
Maybe it's my current bias. I've been working with AI and ML experts for the past couple of months on a work project and have some understanding of how it can be used in business applications.
I also think if we've learned anything in the U.S. in the past 18 months it's that targeted advertising and content can certainly make people respond in a particular way.
That said, I do kind of dismiss one of their claims: shorter sales times. They are currently only in what I understand to be hot markets.
I would definitely seek out this type of company if I was selling my house and not just because of the lower commission.
Is AI and Machine Learning what will disrupt and change the way people buy and sell homes?
I don't know what form it will take, but it will happen.
The entire story of business over the past 30-odd years has been the destruction of the traditional, inefficient distribution network. Look at Wal-Mart. Look at e-commerce. Look at iTunes, Spotify, and Pandora. Look at Roku, et al. Look at Carvana.
Because anytime you have an antiquated, costly, and time-consuming method of connecting buyer with goods, someone, somewhere will come along with a better mousetrap.
Need a case in point? Uber. Mind you, I am perfectly aware that Uber is currently having struggles. Nevertheless, Uber, Lyft, or some equivalent will continue to make taxis obsolete. And the reason is simple: Taxis are dirty, expensive, and driven by guys who weren't attuned to customer service.
The issues real estate faces are often identical. And I say that as someone who has done A LOT of real estate marketing over the years. You have brokers who have traditionally controlled the distribution channel, as well as a group of real estate professionals of wildly uneven work ethic, knowledge, and reliability, and an inability to convincingly demonstrate value to the seller. Yet there is a wealth of information today available to the prospective homebuyer that will allow him to ultimately circumvent the middleman. Or at least today's middleman.
Mind you, there is a cadre of really good realtors. But surely you recognize that there is a huge turnover in the biz among people who take a course in the business in hopes of it being a cute little hobby job. So you have lots of so-called professionals who don't know how to get the best possible margin for the seller, don't know how to really zone in on the desired home for the buyer, and don't provide the needed comfort and support through the convoluted process of getting to closing.
So, somewhere out there, there's some guy tinkering with a way to successfully list your home in an easy-to-use way that will cost less than a 6% commission and will expedite a quick and easy process to get from the initial offer to the closing. And when he does, I'm not sure I'll want to be anywhere near a brokerage when that happens.
So, somewhere out there, there's some guy tinkering with a way to successfully list your home in an easy-to-use way that will cost less than a 6% commission and will expedite a quick and easy process to get from the initial offer to the closing.
I don't know what form it will take, but it will happen.
The entire story of business over the past 30-odd years has been the destruction of the traditional, inefficient distribution network. Look at Wal-Mart. Look at e-commerce. Look at iTunes, Spotify, and Pandora. Look at Roku, et al. Look at Carvana.
Because anytime you have an antiquated, costly, and time-consuming method of connecting buyer with goods, someone, somewhere will come along with a better mousetrap.
Need a case in point? Uber. Mind you, I am perfectly aware that Uber is currently having struggles. Nevertheless, Uber, Lyft, or some equivalent will continue to make taxis obsolete. And the reason is simple: Taxis are dirty, expensive, and driven by guys who weren't attuned to customer service.
The issues real estate faces are often identical. And I say that as someone who has done A LOT of real estate marketing over the years. You have brokers who have traditionally controlled the distribution channel, as well as a group of real estate professionals of wildly uneven work ethic, knowledge, and reliability, and an inability to convincingly demonstrate value to the seller. Yet there is a wealth of information today available to the prospective homebuyer that will allow him to ultimately circumvent the middleman. Or at least today's middleman.
Mind you, there is a cadre of really good realtors. But surely you recognize that there is a huge turnover in the biz among people who take a course in the business in hopes of it being a cute little hobby job. So you have lots of so-called professionals who don't know how to get the best possible margin for the seller, don't know how to really zone in on the desired home for the buyer, and don't provide the needed comfort and support through the convoluted process of getting to closing.
So, somewhere out there, there's some guy tinkering with a way to successfully list your home in an easy-to-use way that will cost less than a 6% commission and will expedite a quick and easy process to get from the initial offer to the closing. And when he does, I'm not sure I'll want to be anywhere near a brokerage when that happens.
One of the reasons that this happened already is that real estate laws vary from state to state. Ordering a cab, or a plane ticket, downloading a song is the same in every single state. Real estate is not consistent across the US and as a result, it is hard to create a national model that is flexible enough to deal with that. All of the disrupters come with caveats.
Redfin only goes into markets with a certain home price. It won't serve cheaper markets.
Open Door won't buy acreage, homes in flood plains, homes older than 1960, etc.
You can't really disrupt an industry if you don't have a model that works for everything. The commission model works for any and every type of property out there.
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