This topic actually began during a video shoot I did with a couple of really cool real estate social media people, but at the NAR Convention this past weekend, it came up again. It’s an interesting enough a question that I thought I’d post about it. The issue is, How would you know if you’re … Read more
Back in September, when Move, Inc. (which operates Realtor.com, among other units) acquired ListHub, the leading syndicator of listings, there were a number of opinions and speculations on why Move would buy a syndicator of all things. Given that Move gets a direct feed of all MLS listings under the NAR Operating Agreement, it didn’t … Read more
This might be the shortest blogpost in history of Notorious ROB… because I’m just genuinely curious and don’t fully understand this. A recent Facebook update from a friend-of-a-friend said something along the lines of (and I’m paraphrasing here both to protect the innocent and because I’m too lazy right now to go take screenshots and … Read more
Thanks to my friend Jack Miller, I read this post by Drew Burks of Web Real Estate Marketing in which he laments the lack of leadership in the MLS and Realtor Associations: You see the associations are focused on the wrong things! The real estate industry is focused on growing membership and collecting membership dues; … Read more
At REBlogWorld 2010, I moderated a panel discussion on whether the real estate blog was dead or not. My friend Garron Selliken, a technologist and broker in Portland, wrote up a post that stemmed from a long discussion he and I had with several others in Las Vegas, in which he argues that the “real … Read more
My friend Matt Dollinger recently commented on a post by the longtime real estate expert Steve Harney. Both were commenting on the doom & gloom article from Time Magazine on how homeownership is overrated. Steve Harney rightfully takes Time to task: Again, they are simply arguing a miniscule point of an extensive research paper that … Read more
I’m in Austin, TX on personal business, and thought I would take advantage of the trip to visit with my friends Krisstina and Gary Wise, and Jack Miller, at the GoodLife Team. Well, it just so happened that Keller Williams was holding a huge conference in town the same week, bringing a number of people … Read more
[Note: This is a longer version of the original, which was posted on AOL Housingwatch a few days ago. I’m crossposting it because Notorious ROB has no space constraints and my readers are used to 2,000 word posts, heh. :)] In Part 1 of this series, where I laid out why I believe the 30-year fixed … Read more
Welcome to the first Carnival of Real Estate Policy. It seems impossible that the real estate blogosphere has gone so long without talking more about government policy given that real estate is a heavily regulated industry, and the more important organization in real estate is a industry lobby group (NAR). But for the most part, … Read more