Comments on: Creating the Ultimate Real Estate Disintermediator

By: The Odysseus Medal competition — The long list | BloodhoundBlog: Real estate marketing and technology blog | Realtors and real estate, mortgages, lending, investments

Sun, 30 Sep 2007 19:08:37 +0000

[...] With that, the long list: Jonathan Dalton — Real estate 2.0, Real Estate 2.0 and the Phoenix Real Estate ConsumerDan Melson — Sellers pays commissions, Why the Real Estate Buyers Agent’s Commission is Paid by the SellerTeri Lussier — Huber Heights 2.0, My life online and how you too, can create a Huber Heights 2.0Daniel Rothamel — Facebook, Why Your Answer to, “Are You on Facebook?” Will Determine the Fate of Your Business in 10 Years or SoonerDustin Luther — Make an impact, 7 Ways to Make an ImpactBrian Brady — Jumping off a cliff, Small Steps Today Prevent Jumping Off A Cliff TomorrowKevin Boer — Foxtons/AR/Move, Today’s Real Estate Gossip: Move.com Does A Microsoft; Foxtons Does A CountrywidePatrick Kapowich — Realtor licensing, Inside the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors’ Convention. Buyer beware? No. It’s Licensees Beware.Dan Green — Visa credit scoring, How Visa USA Tried To Scare Us All Into Using Its Credit Scoring Web SiteJeff Brown — Double-edged sword, Double-Edged Sword — OR — Planning & Discipline — What Does Your Retirement Look Like?Michael Wurzer — Standards and monopolies, Good Standards Break Monopolies, Not Make ThemBill Leider — Opportunity costs, Internet Marketing And Opportunity Cost – Connecting The DotsGreg Kilwein — Wireless MLS, Wireless Usage On The RiseDoug Quance — How low?, Ask The Broker: How Much Below The List Price Should We Offer?Morgan Brown — FHA bailout, A Bail Out is Still a Bail Out by Any Other NameKevin Boer — Reaping the fruits, Reaping The Fruits Of Others’ Labor? Or Adding Value To It?Ron Ares — Rent vs buy, Addressing the Rent vs. Buy ConundrumJonathan Dalton — Princess will come, Someday My Princess Will Come…Morgan Brown — Housing glut, Housing Glut, Lennar Revenue off 44%, Other GoodiesDan Green — Data is granular, Why Real Estate Data Is Granular And Not Mosaic, Or One More Reason To Stop Reading Real Estate HeadlinesBrian Wilson — Redfin, [Redfin] “I coulda been a contender…”Russell Shaw — Foxtons, Foxtons Almost Gone – About to Become a Footnote in Real Estate HistoryJim Watkins — Down market?, Down Sales Market? Think Outside the BoxJonathan Dalton — Sgt. Hulka, Sergeant Hulka and the Phoenix Real Estate AgentJeff Brown — Little things, Real Estate Investors — The Little Things Count — Big TimeBrian Brady — AR wuz robbed, Active Rain Wuz RobbedKelly Roark — Agent 2.0, Agent 2.0: not-so-clever play on ‘Web 2.0’ or the future of real estate marketing?Jillayne Schlicke — Deceptive advertising, Deceptive Radio Advertising in Mortgage LendingDan Melson — NegAm loans, Trying to Rehabilitate the Negative Amortization Loan – NOT!Joel Burslem — ActiveRain/Move, Move.com Tried to Buy ActiveRainLarry Cragun — Foxtons, A Darling Of Discount Real Estate Rides Into The SunsetMorgan Brown — Mortgage fraud, When people get desperate, all bets are off.Steve Leung — Hidden factors, Hidden Factors When Calculating a Home’s ValueBrian Brady — Advertising to Ashley, Advertising to AshleyDan Green — Fed Funds Rate, How Setting The Fed Funds Rate Is Like Shooting Free Throws With Your Eyes ClosedBrian Brady — Using AR for profit, Activerain.com v. Move.com: The Duplicity at Activerain.comBrian Brady — Debunking Guttentag, Debunking GuttentagTrevor Curran — Old is the new new, Everything That Was OLD is NEW again.Brian Brady — NAR and lending, Can the NAR Improve a Buyer’s Financing Experience?Erik Hersman — RealUmbrella, Creating the Ultimate Real Estate Disintermediator [...]

By: derherold

derherold — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 12:36:22 +0000

#7 Marc, very good comment !
I think there are many brokers/agents who forget, that “service quality” is decisive for the consumers. Instead of arguing against the “life cycle” of Umbrella&Co. we should concentrate on the *race of value*.

I come from germany. We have a fsbo-market-share of almost 50% – and there is no *industrial leader* who finds a strategy to fulfill the demands of these clients.

Redfin, Umbrella are not important. But the future will bring: more service, more quality, more value – on less commission.

By: Hojin

Hojin — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 22:41:36 +0000

I believe RealUmbrella has a good idea but I do not like the fact that you have to pay up front. Why can’t they get paid when they sell the home if its such a great tool.

Then again as a real estate agent, I’ve spent thousands of dollars on one home to advertise in fancy publications. They don’t guarantee a sale either. There’s just so many free choices out there such as vflyer, point2agents, postlets, etc. that I don’t see a reason to pay.

It will be interesting to see how they do in this market environment.

By: Marc Davison

Marc Davison — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 16:08:41 +0000

Yes, another entrant to the DIY real estate business adding yet another voice to the chatter about ridding the middleman from the transaction.

I wonder when will the middlemen start creating a more potent chatter of their own. From national advertisements selling “ethics” – something most Americans simply don’t believe that anyone has anymore – to agents promising to go the extra mile on websites thats are arguably 10 years old and full of forms.

I’d love to see a progressive move on the part of the entire industry to reclaim the hearts and minds of the consumer through a stream of powerful messages of its own that have meaning.

Forget ethics and top production – these are not strong branding components. Real estate is a service oriented industry. Find the diamonds in that rough and start having a meaningful conversation with the consumer.

By: Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill News September 2007 | Triangle Report

Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill News September 2007 | Triangle Report — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 15:43:02 +0000

[...] RealUmbrella, can you really buy and sell a home completely online? [...]

By: Emil E. Salisbury Jr.

Emil E. Salisbury Jr. — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 12:11:42 +0000

As a Real Estate Instructor and Associate Broker and Professional Witness. These companies have come and gone before. There is nothing new here. The liability of non disclosure is huge. The forms vary from state to stste. State statute’s vary regarding improvements done by the owner and if a building permit was obtained and if the work done even if it meets the code what needs to be in the sales contract. The City ordinances regarding building permits vary from City to City. Attorney’s will Nuke everyone and let the jury figure it out. As long as everyone is making money no one cares. Its when they lose money that they care. If you have to defend yourself in a lawsuit you’ve already lost. Anyone who thinks they can contract to violate the law better rethink there position. That addendum has not been written yet. Both parties need competent professionals who can guide them through the process. Anyone who wants to take on this challenge needs all the help they can get. One lawsuit will wipe them out. I wish them the best of luck in their endeavor!

By: Jim Lee

Jim Lee — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 10:58:09 +0000

As a 25+ year real estate veteran you know where my heart lies.

FSBOs (for sale by owners) and FSBO helpers have been around for all the years I’ve been in real estate.

Unfortunately for them their numbers continue to shrink. According to the Naitonal Association of Realtor’s latest stats, the numbers of FSBO sellers that were ultimately successful have shrunk to just over 12% of the market from a high of, I believe around 20% a few years ago.

Real estate transactions become more and more complex and with the financing crunch, difficulty in attracting large numbers of qualified buyers, and the attendant liability & safety issues, I see more and more sellers opting to use a real estate professional to guide them in their real estate transaction instead of going the “do it yourself” route.

By: Eric Dawson

Eric Dawson — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 08:07:42 +0000

Why can’t a company simply take the transaction online? To be integrated with free listings services, private sales, or a tool for brokerages and agents use?

Make the transaction – online – end to end – bringing all the different stakeholders into a digital medium as professionals. And from there make the process more efficient.

By: Dave Marron

Dave Marron — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 21:48:31 +0000

Every now and then you see this type of model pop up. When I started at zip in 1999 we thought that we could direct most of the transaction online. Eventually, we morphed into more and more of a traditional shop. I’ve heard Glenn Kelman say the same thing at Redfin.

RealUmbrella may survive, but it will ultimately be an insignificant player in terms of the overall competitive landscape and market share. I see their model as a discount broker with some transaction management software. Companies have been offering those services for years. RealUmbrella is just offering the same services without the benefit of the MLS.

I like new business models. Unfortunately, I don’t see anything new here.

By: Real Estate » Creating the Ultimate Real Estate Disintermediator

Real Estate » Creating the Ultimate Real Estate Disintermediator — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 19:07:02 +0000

[...] khowell wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptThe Real Estate Journal is reporting on a new real estate web product called RealUmbrella that positions itself as the one-stop-shop for FSBO transactions. My first inclination was to think, “is this a Redfin clone? … [...]