Creating a real estate version of ProductRED

Brad & Jessica,  brad@inman.com, Jessica Swesey <jessica@inman.com>

Hope you agree that the juxtaposition of this morning’s headline on
Billion Dollar Agents and Brad’s use of the biblical admonition "the
first will be last, and the last will be first" in his blog post, sets
the stage for Inman News to invite readers to consider how they might
use their real estate wealth to make the world a better place.

I believe that was Brad’s challenge to the audience in his closing
comments at ConnectNYC, and hopefully will be the subject of a panel
on real estate philanthropy at ConnectSF.

I’d love to see our peers, and consumers, brainstorm what it would
take to create a real estate version of ProductRED, either operating
independently or from within their campaign.  Can’t help but think it
would turbo-charge their mission:

http://www.joinred.com/manifesto.asp

Here’s my effort to help seed that discussion.  Did either of you see
Oprah’s "Building a Dream" television special on Monday night?  If
not, it will be repeated this Saturday night, see link in blog post
below:

Building a Real Estate Philanthropy Dream, ASAP

OFF THE RECORD:  I talked momentarily to Allan Dalton of Realtor.com
at ConnectNYC, and he invited me to send him ideas.  Another
conversation also took place afterwards with another serious player,
and the Harvard University Program on AIDS, which will be announcing a
new partnership with Habitat for Humanity International soon.
Subsequenlty, Mark Sennott, founder of http://www.HomeGift.com and
http://www.RealtyBridge.com, and I have been exchanging email.  He’s
got some big announcements in the pipeline and would be a great case
study if Inman News decides to do a mini-series / special report on
real estate philanthropy.


Bill Wendel
The Real Estate Cafe
realestatecafe@gmail.com
617-661-4046

Related Articles

Creating a real estate version of ProductRED

Brad & Jessica,  brad@inman.com, Jessica Swesey <jessica@inman.com>

Hope you agree that the juxtaposition of this morning’s headline on
Billion Dollar Agents and Brad’s use of the biblical admonition "the
first will be last, and the last will be first" in his blog post, sets
the stage for Inman News to invite readers to consider how they might
use their real estate wealth to make the world a better place.

I believe that was Brad’s challenge to the audience in his closing
comments at ConnectNYC, and hopefully will be the subject of a panel
on real estate philanthropy at ConnectSF.

I’d love to see our peers, and consumers, brainstorm what it would
take to create a real estate version of ProductRED, either operating
independently or from within their campaign.  Can’t help but think it
would turbo-charge their mission:

http://www.joinred.com/manifesto.asp

Here’s my effort to help seed that discussion.  Did either of you see
Oprah’s "Building a Dream" television special on Monday night?  If
not, it will be repeated this Saturday night, see link in blog post
below:

Building a Real Estate Philanthropy Dream, ASAP

OFF THE RECORD:  I talked momentarily to Allan Dalton of Realtor.com
at ConnectNYC, and he invited me to send him ideas.  Another
conversation also took place afterwards with another serious player,
and the Harvard University Program on AIDS, which will be announcing a
new partnership with Habitat for Humanity International soon.
Subsequenlty, Mark Sennott, founder of http://www.HomeGift.com and
http://www.RealtyBridge.com, and I have been exchanging email.  He’s
got some big announcements in the pipeline and would be a great case
study if Inman News decides to do a mini-series / special report on
real estate philanthropy.


Bill Wendel
The Real Estate Cafe
realestatecafe@gmail.com
617-661-4046

Creating a real estate version of (Product)RED

As real estate wealth has soared by trillions of dollars annually, the internet has made it possible for agents to realize unprecedented levels of success.  So maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise that a lead story last week discussing the book Billion Dollar Agent, asked whether that sales threshold has become the real estate industry’s new standard for success. 

Against that rising tide, other real estate innovators have chosen to compete on another measure of their success:  consumer savings.  In fact, a half a dozen who (like The Real Estate Cafe) have surpassed one million dollars in consumer savings were featured at a press conference hosted by the Consumer Federation of America in December 2006.

Could the industry’s next measure of success be business models that help homebuyers and sellers save money AND save lives?  What it would take for the real estate industry as a whole or individual innovators to create a real estate version of (Product)RED, the highly visible fund raising campaign for the Global AIDS Fund?  Whether operating independently or from within that campaign, wouldn’t donations from moneysaving or traditional real estate business models help (Product)RED turbo-charge it’s mission?

To help seed that discussion and build some momentum, The Real Estate Cafe would like to invite billion dollar agents, alternative business models, as well as real estate consumers to begin brainstorming about how they can respond to the AIDS pandemic.  One possible response — an annual, friendly fund raising campaign for AIDS orphans called "Million Dollar March" — is described in an earlier blog post, "Building a Real Estate Philanthropy Dream, ASAP."  My hope is that real estate industry and millions of consumers will be inspired by the vision and passion Oprah’s recent television special,"Building a Dream," to create and pursue their own philanthropic dreams.  Your ideas and examples of initiatives already underway are invited.

MLKing: Dreams of Real Estate Philanthropy

Martin Luther King weekend, celebrating I have a dream.  Boyhood hero, looked at image in spoon so my face looked more like his.  In 2006, The Real Estate Cafe achieved it’s goal of savings clients over $1 million dollars (based on savings from original asking prices and commission rebates, see Rebate Map for details.)

In 2007, extend those savings to save lives.  Introducing new fees, to make it easier for clients to work with us, and participate in our goal of providing shelter subsidies for AIDS orphans.  Hope this encourages others, both real estate consumers and professionals, to ask how they can participate in real estate philanthropy.

Link to Sellius blog post, and book Brad Inman encouraged real estate technology innovators to read:  What is the What?

Gates call for “creative capitalism” stirs real estate philanthropy dream

After delivering his challenge today at the Harvard commencement, wonder what Bill Gates would think of the viability and fundraising potential of "Discount brokerages band[ing] together" to raise funds for AIDS orphans?

We can make market forces work better for the poor if we can develop a more creative capitalism—if we can stretch the reach of market forces so that more people can make a profit, or at least make a living, serving people who are suffering from the worst inequities. …

If we can find approaches that meet the needs of the poor in ways that generate profits for business and votes for politicians, we will have found a sustainable way to reduce inequity in the world.

This task is open-ended. It can never be finished. But a conscious effort to answer this challenge will change the world.

Could start-up funds from the Gates Foundation seed a coalition of money-saving real estate business models, which could collectively capture a fraction of the estimated $30 billion dollars real estate consumers will save annually to save lives?  Here’s my own real estate philanthropy dream. What’s your response to Gates’ call for "creative capitalism?"

Building a Real Estate Philanthropy Dream, ASAP

For many, March 1st is the unofficial kick-off of the Spring homebuying season, but for The Real Estate Cafe it’s even more significant for three reasons:

1.  Twelve years ago today, March 1, 1995, The Real Estate Cafe signed it’s original lease at 221 Concord Ave, Cambridge, MA.  With that leap of faith,we became the nation’s first internet-based, walk-in housing information center.  At the time, high speed T1 internet connections were rare and no one — not even real estate agents — could access the MLS on the internet.

2.  We’d like to use that anniversary to take another leap of faith:  we’d like to invite you to help relaunch the Million Dollar March.  Originally submitted to the MIT Ideas Competition in September 2003, the proposed Million Dollar March is:

A friendly, annual fund raising competition to demonstrate how local communities across the United States and other countries can use real estate related revenues and savings from e-commerce real estate transactions to provide shelter subsidies for AIDS orphans through ASAP:  AIDS Shelter Alliance Partners.

This year we may use innovative collaboration tools like a wiki or SecondLife.com to invite thousands of homebuyers and sellers, as well as real estate innovators, around the country to participate in the campaign by (1) contributing their own ideas, (2) organizing their own local fund raising campaigns, and (3) signing donation pledges (see PledgeBank idea starters below).

Alumni fund raising model
Download ASAPledge_Harvard091906v3.pdf

Citywide fund raising model
Download ASAPledge_City091606v7.pdf

3.  For our part, The Real Estate Cafe is using our 12th anniversary to announce our new menu of fees, our first rate increase in approximately a decade.  But don’t let that discourage you:  if you agree to donate 10% of your rebate to non-profit organizations, you can lock into our longstanding rate of $100 per hour.  (A minimum of $1,000 must be distributed to one or more non-profit organizations serving AIDS orphans through ASAP:  AIDS Shelter Alliance Partners / Million Dollar March.)  Why focus on AIDS orphans?  Watch the rebroadcast of Oprah’s special "Building a Dream" this Saturday, March 3, or read this blog post on six "megaforces" facing the global community.

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