Comments on: Is The Real Estate Industry Really Ready To Raise The Bar?

By: John Case

John Case — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 15:08:46 +0000

There aea a lot of reasons why DOM is a misleading statistic. Sure, I can sell homes more quickly if I lowball the offer price, it makes my DOM go down, but my client suffers. Where I decide to work is also a reflection. If I live in a heavily populated area (lets say, the Bay Area) there are lots of Buyer and Sellers and the pressure on availablity causes rapid turnover. If, however, I live in a small town far from an urban area, there are few properties available and fewer people to buy them.

If you are looking for a metric that works, simplistic answers like you show in you article will not solve the problem.

However, raising the bar is a good answer, if the DREs are willing to give up the fess they collect from sub-average agents that do nto produce a living or work part time.

By: Andrew Mooers

Andrew Mooers — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 23:42:25 +0000

The biggest need to raise the realtor bar a few limbo notches is to close the ever widening technology gap brokers are “blind folded but reaching for their wallets to stop” gap. You need to embrace the technology, give the buyer, seller what they want. Completely, quickly, consistently. You will never get everyone in the real estate orchestra pit to embrace it and build their own. But cookie cutter, throw $4000 at it options are not helping. This is the information society..and the “Global Village” wants information on community, properties, you the broker who they hope is real, warm, genuine and dependable. The world is the market, the globe is getting smaller and marketing in highly specific ways to capture more than your share of all the niche audiences is the sport, the game, the thrill. Unless real estate is just a 9-5 job, a surface experience for you.

By: Nozmo

Nozmo — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 10:37:31 +0000

This may be a different view, but in many ways the public are to blame for the proliferation of poor agents. In countless situations they hire their friends and relatives, people who have little experience, and then are surprised by the services they receive. Consumers make decisions about real estate agents completely different from how they would hire any other professional – maybe its because they don't consider RE agents to be professionals.

By: unworthyme

unworthyme — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 22:33:42 +0000

I have been an agent for 2 1/2 years – my wife and I “The Lee Team” are top agents. I am a licensed commercial pilot, 12 years electrical engineer and ordained minister… but after reading your blog I feel inferior and unworthy. I think I'll become a professional blogger and blog myself into being above the meandering crowd of mealy mouthed, less than average real estate agents and learn to worship the professional agents.

By: Gary Sattelberger

Gary Sattelberger — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 02:20:38 +0000

Very interesting point made you've made here, Jeff. I would be willing to participate in a agent/broker performance rating system.

But I think the main thing I take away from this is that we need to first define where the bar is now so we can begin to determine how to improve things across the board. After all, if we don't know where the bar is now how can we determine how and where to raise it?

By: JeffX

JeffX — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 23:34:11 +0000

Absolutely correct Ken…dead on. Its a shame, but I understand. Hopefully this is a conversation that can begin within local trusted groups and grow organically…

By: Ken Brand

Ken Brand — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 23:20:39 +0000

This would be a super cool conversation to have in person, with people you trust. The layers, eddies and whirlpools around this topic can't accurately be expressed and discussed by writing a comment, you could write a novella about it if you had the time.

Also, because of the public nature of comments, some of the candid thoughts, arguments for/against, fears and speculation on the matter prevent many from joining the conversation (IMHO).

A post as rich as this should have 500 comments, instead, it's as silent as a breeze.

Bummer.

By: robhahn

robhahn — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:49:53 +0000

Thing is, most brokerages in most markets have the ability to track performance within the MLS. There are software packages available, most of them built right into the MLS. It would take very little work to create a MLS average, and then show the agents within Brokerage XYZ and how they stack up.

Once you enter the murky waters of MLS governance, it isn't clear to me that the desired end-result would be what you're seeking. The motives for the MLS's to do this are rather unclear; they don't serve the consumer, after all, but the professional.

On the whole, I rather think it best if we left it up to the broker and agent and the profit motive to drive the change.

-rsh

By: Kathleen Buckley

Kathleen Buckley — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 18:36:11 +0000

Performance metrics are fantastic and I love to show off that my firm got a higher sale price to list price ratio *with* shorter market time than our competition in 2009, research that I was able to do with our MLS data. Still, it's easy to get distracted with performance metrics. I find consumers still want trustworthiness more than anything in their real estate professional.

By: dukelong

dukelong — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 14:46:30 +0000

Thank You Sir:) excellent and thought provoking post !!