RedFin is making a whole lot of noise for just coming up with the idea of being cheaper and cutting costs by doing less work. That is my frustration with them and other discount models. The only improvement they have created is being cheaper and that just is not worth getting excited about. When will someone actually create an new business model for real estate sales that the consumer will embrace? Cutting prices is not new, unique or diiferent. I closed my discount shop once I realized that being cheaper had no future ecxept really low profit margins.

I would love to see a new brokerage model that benefited the consumer but we may be waiting a long time for that. The consumer is holding strong to the traditional model and with the current market uncertainty I only see the hold being stronger than ever. The consumer is making a choice and they do have choices.

RedFin should focus on providing great service, being a positive force in the real estate community and win them by being better not by their current track of blaming the real estate community for their inability to be successful. Look in the mirror RedFin.

Good Tuesday to you!

Warmly,

Bryant Keefe

Just because they say they are representing the “little guy” and call it a Bill of Rights, doesn’t make it true. It seems to be more of a ploy to inject their model into the real estate world. I will not be signing the petition until there is an open discussion about what points will be in the Bill of Rights. We’ll see if that happens. Otherwise it’s just a Redfin Bill of Rights and no one will pay any attention to it.

I find it interesting that Glenn likes to use Political tactics for the Redfin PR campaign. I see a lot of similarities between their PR campaign and my days in politics.

Which little guy, Joel? The consumer of the maverick limited-service real estate company trying to gain some traction with a model which the general public has embraced only in limited doses?

#6 doesn’t address the consumer. It addresses Redfin’s rebate model, nothing more. The assertion that variable commissions exist to screw the buyer or Redfin is ludicrous.

#7 cuts to personal choice. Some sellers opt to sell homes on their own, without the use of a real estate professional. They’re choosing an alternative which by its nature leads to limited marketing. This is their choice. If these homes can’t be found by the buyer or his/her agent, whose fault is that?

#10 again cuts to Redfin’s model. I’ve never refused a showing to an agent simply because of the company they work for. But that’s not Redfin’s point. They want the listing agent to start the process and still pay Redfin for “representing” a client they didn’t represent at the start.

If this were more about the consumer and less about the PR splash, I’d step in line as well. But this is Redfin trying to codify its business model as the moral compass for the industry. And on that, I’ll have to pass.