Open Real Estate: The Brokerage and Franchisors are Bringing UpstreamRE Concept Back

On Monday, AGNT Inc. (eXp Realty and NextHome), HomeServices of America, Keller Williams Realty and Real REMAX Group announced Open Real Estate, a broker-owned national listing data-sharing initiative targeted for Q1 2027. If the pitch sounds familiar, it should. The industry has heard a version of it before, under a different name: UpstreamRE. The goal of this initiative along with BLX, Ocusell and historically, UpstreamRE, is the same - to better orchestrate  brokerage level listing management.  More of the details of this pain point is outlined below.

By |2026-10-29T14:54:20-07:00October 29th, 2026|Broker Information, Broker Public Portal, Real Estate Technology, Technology|Comments Off on Open Real Estate: The Brokerage and Franchisors are Bringing UpstreamRE Concept Back

Howard Hanna Partners with ARC Realty and Capstone Realty in Alabama

Howard Hanna has affiliated with Alabama's largest brokerage and kept its brands and leaders in place. On October 28, 2026, Howard Hanna Real Estate Services announced a partnership with ARC Realty and Capstone Realty. Both Alabama brokerages joined forces in 2022. The combined organization reports 875 agents across 12 offices and roughly $2.8 billion in 2025 sales volume on about 6,000 transactions. Howard Hanna is the largest independently owned and operated brokerage in the United States, with operations in 19 states.

By |2026-10-29T05:45:16-07:00October 28th, 2026|Acquisitions, Broker Information, M&A, Mergers & Acquisitions|Comments Off on Howard Hanna Partners with ARC Realty and Capstone Realty in Alabama

Inside AI – Episode 10 with Dominik Pogorzelski: Is AI Moving Too Fast for Real Estate?

What happens when one of the real estate industry's early AI pioneers says artificial intelligence may be moving too fast for its own good? That's one of the most interesting moments in my latest Inside AI conversation with Dominik Pogorzelski, President, MLS at Restb.ai. His prediction about the future of agentic AI is remarkably candid: "I think it'll get crazy before it settles down." Coming from someone who has spent nearly a decade helping bring artificial intelligence into real estate, that observation deserves our attention. Restb.ai is marking an unusual milestone in the world of AI: it's in its 10th [...]

By |2026-10-27T09:15:35-07:00October 28th, 2026|Artificial Intelligence, Inside AI|Comments Off on Inside AI – Episode 10 with Dominik Pogorzelski: Is AI Moving Too Fast for Real Estate?

Make SAFETY a Core Part of Your Association’s Value Proposition in 2027

Worried about your Association's value proposition? Many REALTORS® don't understand everything their Association does for them and frankly, many don’t care. There IS one benefit every real estate professional can appreciate: Knowing their Association is actively working to keep them safe. Imagine if every REALTOR® knew their Association was helping them avoid dangerous situations, providing tools to protect them when something goes wrong, and teaching practical ways to keep their clients and families safe, too. That's an Association value proposition that's personal, tangible, and hard to ignore.

By |2026-10-27T08:48:41-07:00October 27th, 2026|Associations, MLS, Security and Privacy|Comments Off on Make SAFETY a Core Part of Your Association’s Value Proposition in 2027

The MLS Was Built to Protect Your Data. AI Is Its Hardest Test Yet.

For 50 years, the cooperative kept listing data inside a black box. The internet opened the door. AI walked through it. Here is the roadmap back to control.

By |2026-10-20T07:39:36-07:00October 20th, 2026|Artificial Intelligence, Industry Observations, MLS|Comments Off on The MLS Was Built to Protect Your Data. AI Is Its Hardest Test Yet.

Serious About Merging? How a Letter of Intent Helps You Take the Next Step

Today, many REALTOR® associations and MLSs are getting serious about merging. They've had some productive conversations, recognize the potential benefits of coming together, and believe they could build a stronger organization by joining forces.

By |2026-10-19T12:19:45-07:00October 19th, 2026|Associations, Mergers & Acquisitions, MLS|Comments Off on Serious About Merging? How a Letter of Intent Helps You Take the Next Step

Kendra Murray Takes the Helm at New Mexico’s Largest Local Association and MLS – GAAR and SWMLS

Congratulations to Kendra Murray on her appointment as the new Chief Executive Officer of the Greater Albuquerque Association of REALTORS® (GAAR) and Southwest Multiple Listing Service (SWMLS)! I have had the pleasure of working with Kendra in several of her previous leadership positions, and I could not be happier to see her take on this exciting new opportunity.

By |2026-10-19T11:30:00-07:00October 19th, 2026|Announcements, Associations, MLS|Comments Off on Kendra Murray Takes the Helm at New Mexico’s Largest Local Association and MLS – GAAR and SWMLS

Your Listing Data Is Copyrighted. Start Acting Like It.

Nobody disputes that the raw facts of a transaction are not copyrightable. A house exists at an address. It sold for a price on a date. Those are facts, and facts belong to everyone. But an MLS listing is not a pile of facts. It is a curated work. An agent writes a property description that frames the home, chooses which features to emphasize, and crafts language designed to attract buyers. A photographer composes shots, selects angles, edits for light. The MLS compiles all of this into an organized database with fields, taxonomies, and search structures that took decades to build. That is editorial labor, the same kind of labor the court protected in Westlaw's headnotes.

By |2026-10-15T09:56:45-07:00October 15th, 2026|Broker Information, Legal in Real Estate, MLS|Comments Off on Your Listing Data Is Copyrighted. Start Acting Like It.

A Family Business Done Right: Peter and Mary Jo Hunt Join the Western New York Business Hall of Fame

Peter and Mary Jo Hunt will be inducted into the Western New York Business Hall of Fame at Buffalo Business First's 10th annual C-Level Awards and Hall of Fame ceremony on Wednesday, October 14, in the Golden Ballroom at The Statler Buffalo, honoring business leaders whose vision and accomplishments have made a lasting impact on the region. As Buffalo Business First put it, the husband and wife team have grown a $100-plus million family business while shaping Western New York through decades of leadership in business and philanthropy. For anyone who knows this industry, the recognition is long overdue.

By |2026-10-14T15:28:58-07:00October 14th, 2026|Announcements|Comments Off on A Family Business Done Right: Peter and Mary Jo Hunt Join the Western New York Business Hall of Fame

Want to hire the Best MLS Leaders? Stop Making Them Move.

With fewer MLS organizations and an increasingly limited pool of experienced executives, hybrid and remote work may be one of the smartest recruiting strategies available.

By |2026-10-14T07:50:03-07:00October 14th, 2026|MLS Insights, Recruiting|Comments Off on Want to hire the Best MLS Leaders? Stop Making Them Move.

Inside AI – Episode 9 with Meagan Fowler: Why an AI Leader Is Still an AI Skeptic

Inside AI – Episode 9 with Meagan Fowler: Why an AI Leader Is Still an AI Skeptic By Kevin Hawkins What happens when someone helping build AI for the real estate industry admits she still doesn't completely trust it? That's what makes my latest Inside AI guest, Meagan Fowler, Chief Operating Officer of Voiceflip, so interesting. She's spent more than 15 years in technology, co-founded a software company, helped bring new technology into real estate and now works with MLSs and associations deploying AI-powered member support. You might expect someone with that background to be among AI's biggest cheerleaders. Not [...]

By |2026-10-13T09:43:42-07:00October 14th, 2026|Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT|Comments Off on Inside AI – Episode 9 with Meagan Fowler: Why an AI Leader Is Still an AI Skeptic

eXp’s “MCP First, AI of Choice”

Here's the idea in one sentence: instead of building another AI assistant that agents try once and forget, eXp is opening standardized connections between its platform and the AI assistants agents already use.

By |2026-10-13T07:09:49-07:00October 13th, 2026|Artificial Intelligence, Broker Information|Comments Off on eXp’s “MCP First, AI of Choice”