What do agents want? Leads! When do they want them? Yesterday, probably, if they're like most real estate agents. Brokers hear it all the time—agents want help getting more qualified leads and referrals.
We're proud to announce that our founding partners, Marilyn Wilson and Victor Lund, were recently named to Inman's annual list of the top leaders in the real estate industry. The award recognizes their forward thinking visions about how the industry can and must adapt to change. Marilyn, according to Inman, is "an articulate spokesperson about the threats and the challenges faced by the industry," while Victor is "an advocate for big strategic initiatives that the legacy industry must undertake to survive." "It's interesting to be acknowledged as one of the industry leaders because we operate a very small business," Victor told [...]
Historically, the words, “location, location, location,” have guided the real estate industry; but today, a strong argument can be made to suggest that, “portal, portal, portal” has replaced location as a symbol of mysterious change and almost certain disruption. Forecasters and trend watchers such as Stephan Swanepoel, Jeremy Conaway, and Steve Murray have, for several years, warned us we were witnessing the final unraveling of our increasingly dysfunctional status quo. Our collective tone-deafness to broker concerns, including their desire to own profitable businesses and control their listings, the endless wave of new third party portal competitors and the ever present [...]
The Broker Public Portal announces that the Board of Managers has selected the first Executive Committee. Chairman: Merle Whitehead, CEO Realty USA Vice Chairman: John Mosey, CEO NorthstarMLS Secretary: Craig McClelland, Director Metro Brokers Treasurer: Paul Wells, CEO RE/MAX Barrington At Large: Cameron Paine, CEO Connecticut MLS At Large: Chris Heller, CEO Keller Williams Realty "It's an honor to contribute to this vital initiative," says Chairman Whitehead. "The resolve to introduce a new type of property search portal for consumers has never been stronger. Now that we have our new Board of Managers and Executive Committee in place, the talented [...]
Four Major MLS Firms Adopt Data Dictionary Morrisville, NC – June 4, 2015 – The real estate industry’s Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) is fast becoming the industry’s “innovation enabler and cost-saver,” as technology firms serving the real estate industry will be unleashed as property data becomes standardized by the nation’s estimated 850-plus Multiple Listing Service (MLS) firms. Driving the welcome change is the National Association of REALTORS® mandated deadline for the adoption by Realtor affiliated MLSs of the RESO Data Dictionary by Jan. 1 of 2016 – just six months away to ensure industry adoption on enabling standards. Four [...]
Written by: WAV Group guest contributor Lee Goldstein Recently a friend asked me to review some personal safety apps. Just to be clear, a personal safety app is an app that loads on to your smart phone and allows you to alert a handful of people, that you pre-defined, that you are in trouble.; or when you are overdue from an appointment. Additionally, some of these apps will also alert a call center that will then call the police. Finally, a variation on these concepts are wearable devices that do the same thing but are instead worn on your person. [...]
Arroyo Grande, CA – April 28th, 2015 – A nationwide group of leading Multiple Listing Services (MLSs) and real estate brokerage firms supporting the creation of a national property search portal have elected their first board of managers. The initiative, known as the Broker Public Portal, was launched in January and includes a cross section of participants from 37 MLSs and 39 real estate brokerages representing the interests of 826,000 agents. WAV Group project consultant, Victor Lund explains that MLSs have long provided regional consumer facing property search websites. In December of 2014, a group of likeminded MLSs and real [...]
Largest REALTOR® Event in San Diego County Explores Industry Changes SAN DIEGO, CA--(Marketwired - April 22, 2015) - With the recent Zillow-Trulia merger and changes to real estate listing syndication in San Diego, what is the future of online real estate search portals? That's the big question to be answered by a panel of real estate marketing heavyweights -- including Zillow/Trulia Vice President Curt Beardsley, WAV Group Consulting Partner Victor Lund, and Move/Realtor.com Vice President Russ Cofano -- at the annual San Diego County REALTOR® Expo & Conference on Friday, April 24. WHAT | The annual San Diego County REALTOR [...]
Jeremy Crawford joins RESO from MLSListings, where he has been Chief Operating Officer since 2012. He was responsible for all aspects of Enterprise Information Technology, including infrastructure, design, development, implementation, and management for MLSListings, Inc. Crawford has more than 15 years of information technology experience in the real estate, financial services and education sectors. Since 2013, he has served on the Board of Directors of the Real Estate Standards Organization. Crawford also serves on the DocuSign Executive Advisory Council, the Interop Advisory Board, and is the lead for the Council of MLS technology sub-council. Crawford was awarded San Diego’s Information [...]
It is with great sorrow that Rapattoni Corporation announces that Andy Rapattoni died April 8, 2015, at age 75 at Los Robles Hospital in Thousand Oaks, California, after complications following lower back surgery. Andy Rapattoni, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Rapattoni Corporation, a national software firm located in Simi Valley, California, became an industry icon in the world of organized real estate in the 45 years he headed the company. In 1970, Andy and his wife, Niki, founded Rapattoni Corporation to provide cutting-edge technologies to the real estate industry. Beginning with just the two of them [...]
Loveland, CO — April 8, 2015 — Colorado Real Estate Commission Position 21 (CP-21) was officially revised this week to include Listing Syndication within office policy manuals. CP-21 is a long standing position statement that covers a variety of topics suggested for real estate office policy manuals such as handling earnest money, contract review and, as of April 7th, listing syndication. Timing is perfect considering the recent changes between listing syndication giant, Listhub, and consumer portals, Zillow and Trulia. As of April 7th, Listhub and Zillow Group ended their contract with one another, leaving brokers and agents wondering how their [...]
JOB OPPORTUNITIESAccount Manager Down Payment Resource™ is seeking an Account Manager responsible for establishing and growing collaborative relationships with our customers and partners. With the goal of maximizing the growth and value of our existing client base, objectives for this position include strategic customer lifecycle management, customer adoption of Down Payment Resource products and services and customer satisfaction. Job requirements: Ability to work remotely Ability to travel frequently Thorough understanding of the real estate industry Knowledge of the home buying process, mortgage finance and homeownership programs 10 years of experience in real estate and account management Proficiency in [...]
