I came across Pockettour this morning (source). It’s a travel agency built completely on top of Viber (a messaging app if you aren’t familiar with it). A travel agency and a real estate brokerage aren’t that vastly different. Both involve a professional with deep knowledge helping…

As I’ve written previously, the topic no one ever wants to touch in this industry is commissions. Yet I hear pitch after pitch from entrepreneurs on this topic. Changing consumer behavior is insanely difficult. I honestly have zero idea how long it will take (we’re talking years,…

I’ve long thought pocket listings is an opportunity that will be captured in a big way (see here as well as here for some previous writings). One thing I hadn’t thought through was the downside of pocket listings. It’s the same as the downside to…

If you’re an entrepreneur, I highly highly recommend reading the story of Elon Musk by Ashlee Vance. I devoured it within a week. Elon’s ambition, passion, perseverance, risk taking, and tenacity are on a completely different level that few will ever reach. That’s due to…

Pretty much everything is reviewed online now. Apartments. Restaurants. AirBnB hosts (& travelers). Hotels. Contractors. Books. Lyft drivers (and riders). Couchsurfers. Real estate agents. Etc. I saw an ad on TV last night for Apartments.com. The message was “rate your apartment on Apartments.com”. We’ve been thinking, and…

If you are a founder in the real estate vertical, trying to figure out where this industry is headed over the next decade — I highly suggest you read this analysis of WeChat by Connie Chan on a16z. WeChat is of course a messaging app…

Zillow is acquiring DotLoop. Fires are burning in real estate social media. Let’s get this out of the way. There are tons of brokers and agents who dislike Zillow. Call them what you want. They’re here. I’m a regular critic of the company when they (regularly) make…

[Editor’s note: Originally published on KWMayfair] No MLS. No buyer agency. No individual branding–everything is done in the name of the company and the company owns the customer relationships. No independent contractor status. You either form your own company or you are on a salary….

You should all read Brian’s Friday Flash (on Thursday) post before the holiday weekend. It’s worth the read. I agree with Brian, I don’t think it can be said that today’s real estate process is more efficient. In fact, it’s less efficient and more complicated….

It’s been well over 20 years now since then NAR president Bill Chee warned everyone of the “Lion Coming Over The Hill”. “Non-Industry competitors” and Microsoft were viewed as a clear and present danger. NAR leadership created RIN (the Realtor Information Network)  Shortly after it…