zipRealty Inc. (ZIPR)

All Comments on ZIPR

  • commenter
    hhffoo
    May 14 10:55 AM
    Google Real Estate in Secret Beta; Threat to Cendant, Move.com, HouseValues, ZipRealty (CD, GOOG, HOMS, SOLD, ZIPR) [view article]
    Hum!! Interesting, just after last post, it came a CBSNews article: "Realtors' Commission Fees Are Under Assault" keyetv.com/business/fi...
    By the way, to summarize what I tried to say. The need of a Realtor will always exist since the US laws requires that an agent opens the door at least once before it sells. But my point was that real estate agents are the ones responsible for the proliferation of discount brokerage claiming that is not fair to keep the whole 6% commission, since the buyers found all the information he needs online, thus they should give back part of its commission. Bringing all this to the topic of this thread, the problem rely on by feeding sites such as Trulia, Zip Realty, Google Base, or by giving online information about schools, neighborhood, map of the area, perfect sizes of the rooms, 20+pictures of the house, virtual shows, etc, etc… All the services that once were done by an agent in on-on-one contact, now everything transferred to an online service. Off course, agents can’t send the key of the house to the buyer go and see it, so they will always need a realtor, but this realtor will be the one that gives part of the commission to them.

    More article about this: CNN: money.cnn.com/2006/04/...

    NYtimes: www.nytimes.com/2006/0...;en=17e433c1e1651e1c&a...
    Other: www.nytimes.com/2006/0...;en=5892d422b169a166&a...


    And there are dozens more since the media loves to talk about the 6% commission.     Reply
  • commenter
    hhffoo
    May 13 09:09 PM
    Google Real Estate in Secret Beta; Threat to Cendant, Move.com, HouseValues, ZipRealty (CD, GOOG, HOMS, SOLD, ZIPR) [view article]
    I know this is an old thread but I will leave my opinion anyway.
    Well, First of all, Google base will hurt not only these sites mentioned above, but all real estate websites. We will see agents crying everywhere for so much time in Seo and online marketing to get the number 1 position in Google for nothing, since Google base own what I call number 0 position. Just search for "New York real estate" or "new York homes for sale" and see who number zero is. Just to remember, once upon a time we all choose Google as our main search engine and thus, Google base will be chosen as the main housing search over the net, no doubt of that.

    Ron Carpenito, I believe you might be wrong about your argument “of the need of a REALTOR”. (By the way, my wife is a realtor, and I have 10 years experience in marketing and marketing psychology applied to real estate, so I just want to give my opinion based on experience)
    Your opinion is biased on the people who are buying houses now, which are the x-generation people (30's and up). However, if you start thinking about the generation Y as the people buying houses today, then you and all real estate agents would be very scared. In marketing Psychology, the generation Y is actually called “Net generation”. And this net generation are the ones buying cars today, and believe or not, car dealers are amazed and surprised on how these kids arrive there, knowing every single button, car dimension, and everything inside the car. Car dealers no longer need to trainer their employees as before because these kids go over there just to negotiate and sign the papers anyway. So believe me, they will do the same thing in real estate. Now, who to blame? Oh boy! I blame all real estate agents and brokers who lack knowledge in online marketing and accept any thing offered by the snake oil ITs and web developers out there. Every single day, these people push you some sort of technology, and very few of them is good for the agents career. Trulia is example, what is going on with agents anyway? How come it’s possible to think that a map search is good for you? You need people to call you and ask you to drive them there, ask you if the house is located in a corner, or perhaps the house is located in a busy street; you just transferred the job a real estate agent is supposed to do to an online service. Is just like the stupidity of place a school information button on your website, area information button, calculator button, virtual shows and every day a new thing. The entire job that once was done by an agent is now done over the internet and that because the REATORS themselves are doing it, damaging their own career. And now you wonder why CNN, NYTimes and many others love to write a head line mentioning that the 5% commission is not worth it for its service. Well there is a bit of true on that, ALL THE SERVICE NOW IS DONE ONLINE anyway. Regardless this generation-Y, they will get all the information out of your site and buy with those online brokerage that give part of their commission to the buyer, such as sidebyside and redfin. So, in a near future, or you become one of these online brokerage firms and give part of your commission to the buyer, “by the way your salary will be as same as a Mcdonald employee” or the real estate agencies will disappear just like the travel agencies.
    Sad story.
    (didn’t proofread by the way)     Reply
  • commenter
    Kyle Else
    Nov 10 03:55 PM
    My Website
    Tribune's Online Realty Play (IACI, MOVE, SOLD, TRB, ZIPR) [view article]
    Another online realty play from the Tribune is OpenHouses.com Reply
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