Redfin Hits the Beach
Redfin announced today that it has opened three new offices in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego – something Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman hinted at last month’s Connect Conference (see Inman Connect Highlights Real Estate 2.0).
Redfin employee Matt Goyer claims with this launch, Redfin has grown by 340%.
San Diego Home Blog and BloodhoundBlog contributor Kris Berg snagged an audio interview with Kelman, in which he reveals, amongst the coffee house chatter, that this expansion is due largely to pressure to build their profitability.
What’s most interesting about listening to Kelman talk about his company, is that it’s very clear Redfin is morphing away from being a pure “tech” play and becoming more and more like a traditional real estate brokerage; albeit one that has a very non-traditional business model and a huge on-site development/engineering staff.
More coverage on the Redfin launch:
- Jon Lansner’s OCRegister blog
- John Cook’s Venture Blog
Update: Ouch. Kelman sure knows how to stir the real estate industry up. A quote from his interview in today’s Los Angeles Times:
“Soon the industry will be seen as bad as Big Oil or the tobacco companies”
5 Comment(s)
5 Trackback(s)
- From BloodhoundBlog: National real estate marketing and technology weblog | There's always something to howl about... | Feb 8, 2007
- From theresoldgumbootprincess | theresoldgumbootprincess | Nov 30, 1999
- From theresoldgumbootprincess | theresoldgumbootprincess | Nov 30, 1999
- From Matt Goyer’s Real Estate Blog » Blog Archive » Redfin grows by 340% | Feb 9, 2007
- From Redfin - News | Feb 12, 2007
Caleb Mardini | Feb 8, 2007 | Reply
Joel,
Great point about the pull away from tech. I was thinking that but couldn’t quite articulate it.
You’re right. The company was founded on a tech gimic. The latest conversations take it in a completely new direction.
Kevin | Feb 8, 2007 | Reply
The problem with the tech angle is that it becomes easier and cheaper every day to replicate somebody else’s whiz-bang features. Redfin’s earlier maps, for instance, were, I believe, built in-house using Flash. They were quite amazing. Now they’re using Microsoft Virtual Earth, partly because it’s a faster development platform for map-based applications. I’m not a programmer, but I’d be willing to bet a team of 10 experienced geo-coders could whack out something 75% as good as Redfin in 6 months, and “75% as good” as good enough in most cases.
Three years from now, there may well be off-the-shelf mapping and MLS widgets that will make it possible to put together that kind of a mashup in one afternoon!
If the tech angle is no longer the competitive edge, then it has to be the business model. In Redfin’s case, that remains to be seen.
Evan Gould | Feb 8, 2007 | Reply
Competition is healthy. There are plenty of buyers and sellers for all real estate agents in So Cal. I look forward to meeting more informed buyers/sellers, thanks to Redfin and it’s services. As an independent agent, it will make my job a little easier.
Rory S. | Feb 8, 2007 | Reply
Redfin is going to do nothing but help my business. They are raising the profile of technology on the real estate front. I already have a personal business model that leverages this angle beyond the scope of most local agents.
Redfin raises the awareness of sellers need to find a tech savvy agent. Those who are savvy will have no problem speaking from authority on the topic. For the other agents, this will act as a catalyst to make them either catch up or lose business.
I maintain that the ultimate combination is a huge dose of technology in marketing, along with traditional marketing that has worked up all along.
Marlow Harris | Feb 9, 2007 | Reply
If nothing else, it will encourage everyone to start using a Buyer’s Agency Agreement before showing someone a property.