The Great Lakes Repository Expands Offers of Cooperation and Compensation Among 19 Participating Organizations Sharing Data

In the real estate industry, the collection and distribution of real estate listing data has been a hot issue for many years, and The Great Lakes Repository (GLR) has made tremendous headway toward solving those data issues. The GLR is comprised of a group of MLSs and REALTOR® Associations (participants) in Michigan that have agreed to share listing data with other participants using a repository method of sharing. Under this method of sharing data, all participants of the GLR run their own MLSs; enforce their own set of rules; manage their own membership; control their own MLS products, but cooperate [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:35-07:00September 21st, 2015|Main category, Press Releases|0 Comments

California Regional MLS Adds Black Knight’s Paragon Platform Allowing Brokers and Agents Front-End MLS System of Choice

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Sept. 17, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Black Knight Financial Services (NYSE: BKFS) announced today the execution of an agreement with the California Regional MLS (CRMLS) to deliver its Paragon MLS system to CRMLS' more than 75,000 members. With the addition of Paragon MLS, CRMLS strengthens its position as a leader in the real estate industry and demonstrates its commitment to its professional members who rely on fast and easy access to MLS information. Offering intuitive and straightforward navigation, cross-browser compatibility and multi-tasking capabilities – all of which are mobile-optimized, Paragon MLS will enable CRMLS subscribers to increase productivity and grow [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:35-07:00September 21st, 2015|Main category, Press Releases|0 Comments

REcolorado Joins Homes.com’s® MLS Partnership Program

Norfolk, Virginia (September 16, 2015) – Homes.com®, leading online real estate destination and provider of real estate marketing solutions, has announced the addition of REcolorado to its MLS Partnership Program. The new partnership will offer REcolorado’s 18,000 real estate professionals free exposure for their 9,500 active listings by gaining access to Homes.com’s audience of more than 13 million monthly transaction-ready consumers. REcolorado brokers can now offer their agents direct access to syndicate their listings on Homes.com, ensuring those listings are advertised accurately and updated regularly. Consumers visiting Homes.com will benefit from the improved quantity and quality of available listings in Colorado, [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:35-07:00September 17th, 2015|Main category, Press Releases|0 Comments

Tech Helpline Now Provides Support for One in Three REALTORS® in North America

Unless you are an agent who actually has Tech Helpline, you may not be aware of this agent-centric, genuinely friendly, U.S.-based tech support created by Realtors for Realtors. Here's a news release from the Florida Realtors® about their Tech Helpline services: “Friendly” U.S.-Based Staff Helps Agents Solve Computer, Software, and Smartphone Glitches Orlando, FL., (September 15, 2015) – During a hot real estate market, what happens when a real estate agent is printing a Purchase and Sale agreement and the printer freezes or the computer crashes? Today, nearly 400,000 Realtors throughout the U.S. and Canada now turn to Tech Helpline for [...]

Gurtej Sodhi Named Winner of the 2015 Chief Information Officer Award by Nashville Business Journal

Nashville, TN. – Crye-Leike Group of Companies congratulates Gurtej Sodhi on receiving the 2015 Chief Information Officer Award in Large Private Companies (501+ employees) category by the Nashville Business Journal. For Sodhi, who serves as Chief Information and Strategy Officer, Corporate Executive Vice President, this is his second consecutive year to win the award. The NBJ CIO Awards winners are the top technological executives in Middle Tennessee who are using IT in innovative ways to create a competitive advantage, optimize business procedures, enable company growth and impact the company's bottom line. Winners were selected by a panel of judges based [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:36-07:00September 4th, 2015|Main category, Press Releases|1 Comment

Earnest Money Spoils The Online Transaction

The Inman Connect conference does not often have many brand new ideas. But if you look hard enough, they are there.  A year or so ago I met a company that was focused on transforming home prices to Total Cost Of Living prices (TLC Engine). This year, I met Lynn Leegard who co-founded a company called TrustFunds, with the tag line of Earnest Money Made Easy. Coincidentally, both TLC Engine and TrustFunds are both services offered through NorthstarMLS, based in Minneapolis, MN. Northstar CEO John Mosey seems to have a knack for launching very unique services that solve significant problems [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:36-07:00August 26th, 2015|Main category|1 Comment

Rapattoni Makes Big Move in Association Management Software

Rapattoni has been the leader in Association Management Software (AMS) for decades. Historically an Association would host the Rapattoni solution, called Magic™, on hardware owned and maintained by the Association of REALTORS®. Associations did a pretty decent job of hosting, but managing hardware servers and security has become increasingly complex and expensive. Dallas based MetroTex Association of REALTORS® with 15,000 members was among the first group of five Associations to move to the new hosted solution. The new service maintains the name Rapattoni Magic, but adds the tag, Cloud AMS. Press Release Follows SIMI VALLEY, Calif., August 19, 2015 - [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:36-07:00August 19th, 2015|Main category, Press Releases|0 Comments

The Do’s and Don’ts of MLS System Selection

MLSs are growing again. Membership is up. Agents are making money again. Life is good.  In many cases, the upward turn in the market is allowing MLSs to once again focus on evaluating their technologies to ensure they are offering the strongest tools they can. Recently we have been involved in a few system selections and I thought I would share some of our thinking about the best way to make the process as successful as it can be. Turn on all of the relevant enhancements Before you even contemplate looking at alternative MLS systems, meet with your current MLS [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:36-07:00August 19th, 2015|Main category, MLS Insights|1 Comment

Why Millennials won’t buy Boomer McMansions

Self-confession: I love surveys. Data is my kryptonite. I got hooked in my grad school stats class and I’ve never looked back. At Great Western Bank, I created the Realty Confidence Index, which surveyed face-to-face broker-owners in 23 states. At Fannie Mae, I got to pitch to reporters nationwide the most comprehensive housing surveys of its day. At Imprev, I helped craft and launch the real estate industry’s first Thought Leader Survey and continue to spearhead that effort. This all means I know intimately what Mark Twain meant when he popularized the saying, “There are lies, damn lies and statistics.” [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:36-07:00August 19th, 2015|Main category|4 Comments

Unintended Consequences That Cause Spectacular Results

I just returned, as some 3,000 other folks have, from attending Inman’s Real Estate Connect in San Francisco. For many of the industry leaders whom I spoke with, it was one of the most successful Connects that they have attended and certainly the busiest. I found myself squarely in the same camp. I discovered something incredibly special about what I think makes Inman Connect unique: It fosters the creation of what I call “unintended consequences that cause spectacular results.” I have a few great examples from this most recent Connect to illustrate what I mean. Origins of Real Estate Connect [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:36-07:00August 19th, 2015|Main category|1 Comment

DotLoop and Zillow

As far as I know, DotLoop customers were happy enough with the product and service until the announcement that the company was being purchased by Zillow. That news, along with the $108M price tag of the acquisition was the fundamental buzz at Inman Connect conference last week. About the price of $108 Million. Typically companies’ sell for a multiple of profit – 6x to 10x profit is not bad. The last acquisition of this type was the Real Estate Digital deal, which sold for a much lower multiple than DotLoop. In the case of DotLoop, it looks like Zillow paid [...]

Broker Members of The Enterprise Network Hit Mobile Milestone

We have been talking about mobile in real estate for far too long now. Two years ago Trulia, Zillow, and Realtor.com all announced that mobile was passing other methods of accessing their site. As brokers began to adopt mobile solutions, the debate about mobile browser vs. mobile app went on for an eternity until everyone put down their guns and agreed that the answer is both. One of the broker website service providers that we have been tracking is Booj or The Enterprise Network. They offer a good benchmark because of their unique client base. If you are not familiar, [...]

By |2018-05-03T21:23:37-07:00August 19th, 2015|Broker Technology Research, Main category|0 Comments