The Great Give-Away
The increase in the number of internet real estate sites that are capturing leads and selling them back to the real estate agents who do the work of the transaction is disturbing. Why do real estate people continue to allow this to happen? I have no issues with the sites themselves, but I do have a problem with most people who think that the access to the listing information is public record. It is not. The aggregated compiliations of real estate listings is a product that should be sold to the sites, not given to them!
Let me use an analogy of a clothing manufacturer. Ralph Lauren makes, or hires someone to make, a line of dresses. Ralph Lauren then sells those dresses to a clothing Wholesaler, who, in turn, sells them to a variety of Retail stores. Ralph Lauren may retain certain exclusive designs for his own retail stores, or may include the designs sold to others in his retail stores, too. Customers come in the various stores to look at the dresses, and hopefully buy them.
In real estate, sellers and their listing agents and brokers create a product (the listings.) Those listings are given to the Wholesaler (the MLS.) The Wholesaler gives those listings to the Retailers (real estate offices, real estate websites, and internet referral sites.) Customers come in to real estate "stores" or go to websites to look at houses and hopefully buy them.
The differences are that in the clothing manufacturing business, the maker SELLS the product to the Wholesaler, and the Wholesaler SELLS the product to the Retailer. In the real estate business, the product is being GIVEN AWAY!
The aggregation of the listings is a valuable product that many Wholesalers and Retailers want and should be willing to pay for. The people creating the listings should get paid for them, and the Wholesalers should get paid for aggregating them for the retailers. Why do we still insist on giving away this information?
It is quite possible that the Government may REQUIRE that the products be provided to ALL the retailers. That would be similar to requiring Ralph Lauren to provide his dress lines to ALL retailers, including his competitors. The reality is that the manufacturer can choose to provide his dress lines to as many or as few retailers as he wants. He can even choose to not make them available to any of them; he could open a boutique on Rodeo Drive and that could be the only place in the world to get the product.
Your thoughts?
Let me use an analogy of a clothing manufacturer. Ralph Lauren makes, or hires someone to make, a line of dresses. Ralph Lauren then sells those dresses to a clothing Wholesaler, who, in turn, sells them to a variety of Retail stores. Ralph Lauren may retain certain exclusive designs for his own retail stores, or may include the designs sold to others in his retail stores, too. Customers come in the various stores to look at the dresses, and hopefully buy them.
In real estate, sellers and their listing agents and brokers create a product (the listings.) Those listings are given to the Wholesaler (the MLS.) The Wholesaler gives those listings to the Retailers (real estate offices, real estate websites, and internet referral sites.) Customers come in to real estate "stores" or go to websites to look at houses and hopefully buy them.
The differences are that in the clothing manufacturing business, the maker SELLS the product to the Wholesaler, and the Wholesaler SELLS the product to the Retailer. In the real estate business, the product is being GIVEN AWAY!
The aggregation of the listings is a valuable product that many Wholesalers and Retailers want and should be willing to pay for. The people creating the listings should get paid for them, and the Wholesalers should get paid for aggregating them for the retailers. Why do we still insist on giving away this information?
It is quite possible that the Government may REQUIRE that the products be provided to ALL the retailers. That would be similar to requiring Ralph Lauren to provide his dress lines to ALL retailers, including his competitors. The reality is that the manufacturer can choose to provide his dress lines to as many or as few retailers as he wants. He can even choose to not make them available to any of them; he could open a boutique on Rodeo Drive and that could be the only place in the world to get the product.
Your thoughts?
posted by Realty Executives Int'l at 2:51 PM
8 comments
