Rob Hahn

Managing Partner of 7DS Associates, and the grand poobah of this here blog. Once called "a revolutionary in a really nice suit", people often wonder what I do for a living because I have the temerity to not talk about my clients and my work for clients. Suffice to say that I do strategy work for some of the largest organizations and companies in real estate, as well as some of the smallest startups and agent teams, but usually only on projects that interest me with big implications for reforming this wonderful, crazy, lovable yet frustrating real estate industry of ours.

Adam Neumann’s Flow: Stupid, Evil or Both?

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I am a 100% free market capitalist. In fact, I’m an AnCap (anarcho-capitalist) with strong Austrian economics leanings. So it is rare that I run across a business model that I detest. Yet, Adam Neumann’s new company, Flow, might have achieved that feat. From The Real Deal’s article Neumann reveals his vision for Flow renters … Read more

What If Housing Affordability Is Not About Supply and Demand?

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I’ve been thinking about this topic for a few years now, but felt motivated to write on it after reading Ryan Gorman’s Medium post announcing what he’s working on now with btcRE. Gorman as the former CEO of Coldwell Banker understands real estate better than most people, and yet… there was something I felt was … Read more

What Does/Should NAR’s Victory in NAR v. US Mean?

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Since I posted my questions (really, more of a “I don’t get it”) about NAR’s victory in the NAR v. US lawsuit, I’ve gotten a few questions from brokerage CEOs and intelligent agents all over. More concerning are the victory laps being taken, and the idea that “The DOJ threat is now gone!” I beg … Read more

NAR’s Victory in NAR v. United States of America: I Don’t Understand It

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[This is a VIP post, but given its importance and the fact that I’d love to hear from antitrust experts outside of the industry, I am opening it up to the public for a while. But hey, if you dig this kind of thing, consider subscribing to VIP.] A while back, when this case was … Read more

CoStar + Realtor.com = ???

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I apologize for the lengthy silence. I’ve been heads down on final prep for launching a new project I’ve been working on for over a year now. You’ll hear about it soon enough, I promise. And I hope it’ll interest all of you. In fact, I know it will interest some of you. I know, … Read more

Housing Market 2023: Another Prediction Sure to Be Wrong

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I left out any predictions about the housing market in 2023 in my Seven Predictions post for a bunch of reasons. The most important being that it’s really kind of boring for people who are not super interested in the topic, which means just about everyone who isn’t a VIP subscriber. But now that 2023 … Read more

2023 Starts With Hopeful Signs, or Average People Are Smarter Than a Writer for The Atlantic

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A reader sent me this provocative article in The Atlantic, with the provocative title, “The Homeownership Society Was a Mistake.” At first, as I read through the damn thing, I was concerned that the writer had tapped into something real in the psyche of younger Americans who are getting royally screwed by the economy generally, … Read more

The Seven Most Interesting People in Real Estate in 2022

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Welcome to another installment of an annual tradition around here: the Seven Most Interesting People in Real Estate in 2022. I look forward to this post, as well as my Seven Predictions post, each year. As in earlier years, let me reiterate that Inman does the Influencers list, Swanepoel does the Power 200 list (I help out on … Read more

Burnett v. NAR Summary Judgment Opinion: Per Se Liability!

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About a week ago, the judge in the Burnett v. NAR case (formerly Sitzer v. NAR) handed down his ruling in the motion for summary judgment. It did not go well for the defendants. The Inman story by Andrea Brambila does a good job of covering the highlights, so read that in full. The result … Read more