Time to create nationwide Rebate Map?

Even though Inman News published these excerpts from letters to the editor as an “Opinion,” those arguing that ‘Discount brokerages cost consumers money‘ could have strengthen their case by substantiating them with research or credible third parties. Without denying the validity of individual experiences and perspectives, here’s what the Antitrust Division of the US Department of Justice’s says about the benefits of using discount real estate brokerages, both buyer and seller oriented business models, on the section of their web site dedicated to Competition in Real Estate:

Discount Brokers Can Make Selling a Home Less Costly
Consumers Can Save Thousands of Dollars in Commissions

Rebates Make Buying a Home Less Expensive
Rebate calculator

Here’s a map of client savings totaling over $1 million during one recent 12 month period.  Any fellow fee-for-service consultants, rebate providers, discount listing services, and FSBO sites want to collaborate on a nationwide map of consumer savings? Mapping rebates alone could create a nationwide epidemic of “rebate envy.”

Can’t substantiate that with research — yet. It’s just my opinion.

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Will real estate “consultants” replace real estate agents?

Several days ago, a blog reader asked:

Anyone know of any national source out there promoting or aggregating discount/fee based real estate agents/brokers?

The question comes on the 6th anniversay of the first course "Consumer-Centric Real Estate Consultant" (C-CREC) training offered on October 1, 2000 in Orlando, FL by Julie Garton-Good, founder of the National Association of Real Estate Consultants (NAREC.com).  NAREC is one of two national organizations formed in the past six years to help promote alternative or fee-for-service real estate business models. 

Here’s my short history of attempts to aggregate alternative / fee-for-service real estate service providers:

1997-98:  Pat Rioux, of http://www.listforless.com, worked with an assistant to develop a nationwide database of alternative real estate services.  The same database was published on the International Real Estate Digest, http://www.ired.com, at approximately the same time because Pat also wrote for the site.  IRED was a pioneer in the online real estate world, nominated around the same time for a Webby Award.

July 1999:  The Real Estate Cafe (https://realestatecafe.com), publishers of this blog, hired Pat and her assistant to update their database.  The directory of over 500 companies was available to visitors to the Cafe, then a walk-in, internet-based housing information center in Cambridge, MA — the first nation when we open in 1995.

2000:  Julie Garton-Good founded the National Association of Real Estate Consultants, http://www.NAREC.com.  Their membership includes a wide range of alternative real estate business models.

November 2000:  The National Association of Realtors (http://www.Realtors.org) released a strategic planning committee report, written by consultants at Arthur D. Little in Cambridge, MA, which predicted that the use of the term real estate "agent" would be replaced by real estate "consultant" during the second half of this decade.  Think we’re on schedule?

Protect Consumer Access to Real Estate Listings

Change email address and post this iPetition to the main blog as well as RECALL:

Protect Consumer Access to Real Estate Listings.

“It’s all about the interest of consumers,” said Pat Lashinsky, vice president for marketing at the California-based discount brokerage, which does business in Illinois. “I’m glad the Justice Department is stepping in to represent the consumer.”

“NAR wants to allow brokers to pick and choose which listings will go on the Internet. But consumers want to see all homes on one site,” Lashinsky said Monday.

“Sellers want their home to be seen by the most potential buyers in order to get most for their home,” Lashinsky continued. “Consumers lose if the listing is not shown everywhere. I think consumers will take an interest in this NAR bylaws change.”

Fred,

Thanks for posting this! As ZipRealty told the Chicago Tribune and this iPetition foretold two years ago, real estate consumers — BOTH buyers and sellers — would be the real losers if NAR’s selective opt-out VOW policy goes into effect:

Protect Consumer Access to Real Estate Listings
http://www.ipetitions.com/campaigns/protect_mls_access/

What may be more difficult to foretell is the unintended consequence of the DOJ’s legal actions this week. “Could there be a Cendant MLS someday?” “Absolutely” says the chairman and CEO of Cendant’s Real Estate Services Division in this March 2003 article in RealtyTimes:

http://realtytimes.com/rtnews/rtapages/20030305_vowregulation.htm

My guess is that Cendant’s four brands (Coldwell Banker, Century21, ERA and Sotheby’s) have more than 50% of listings in many cities and town across Massachusetts. Put that together with the new designated agency legislation in Massachusetts that glosses over the conflict of interest when brokerages represent the buyer and seller in the same transaction and the DOJ could inadvertently create the ultimate in-house sales machine with anti-competitive implications that rival NAR’s flawed VOW policy.

What’s your take and what steps should be taken to insure an open competitive market place for buyers, sellers, and real estate professionals regardless of whether they are traditional or alternative brokerage models?

Bill

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