The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) released a white paper on Wednesday calling for an overhaul of the system by which residential appraisals are determined. The group made a number of recommendations, some of which members of the National Association of REALTORS® have supported in the past, including the implementation of licensing and certification standards as well as minimum education requirements. However, another in their list of recommendations could have serious consequences for the role of the multiple listing service (MLS) in home sales.
A section of the white paper focused on data technology criticizes local MLSs for becoming “less reliable” in recent years. The solution to this, and the more general problem of a lack of data standards that apply across the country, is what NAHB refers to as “the development of a real estate superhighway.” The group proposed creating this in four sections:
- Terra.gov – NAHB proposed “a national real property registry… with access by all stakeholders.” They named this as the site of an “official record of the factual details of both the structure and the regulatory constraints on the land.” Some of the specific items mentioned as included in such a database were time stamped photographs, satellite images, and floor plans. As of Friday afternoon, the Terra.gov domain name remained unregistered according to WhoIs.com. Continue reading »
Chances are, you have heard of the Realtors Property Resource® (RPR) by now. But what is it, exactly, and how can it benefit you?
More than four years ago, the idea of a nationwide online database of comprehensive, high-value property information was conceived from an idea that came out of NAR’s Second Century Ventures (SCV) initiative. A plan was developed and approved by National Association of REALTORS® leadership to provide this as a benefit to members, and a very knowledgeable team was organized to execute the initiative.
During the past couple of years, RPR has partnered with about 440 multiple listing services throughout the United States. With those partnerships, about two-thirds of all REALTORS® are able to access RPR as of mid-October, 2012.
Even with that high level of access, as a member benefit, part of RPR’s core mission is to deliver this technology to all of NAR’s 1,000,000 REALTORS®. This is important because it allows “all members to take advantage of RPR’s high value tools, features and reporting capabilities,” says Dale Ross, CEO of RPR. To that end, RPR has announced that they are making the system available to all REALTORS® on Nov. 1, 2012.
“The RPR team is very excited about the opportunity to bring RPR to markets which have been waiting for access to the system,” adds Jeff Young, RPR senior vice president of operations. “We’ve been telling members for months that the wait is almost over.”
So what can RPR do for REALTORS®? Here are just three advantages it can provide:
1. Generate data-rich reports: RPR collects loads of data on individual properties and their surrounding communities. You can use the system to generate custom reports that can include as much of this information as your clients want. “I have never heard of any buyers and sellers who do not like the reports,” Ross says.
2. Connect with younger consumers: Homebuyers and sellers from generations X and Y are doing the majority of their property researching online, often before they contact a real estate practitioner. When they do reach out to agents, these consumers expect them to be able to immediately provide even more valuable information on certain homes. With its extensive yet user-friendly database, RPR allows REALTORS® to do just that. “REALTORS® who use RPR will certainly have more information on properties than consumers who do research online,” Ross says.
3. Provide insight into property values: With the fluctuating housing market during the past few years, it is often difficult to get a handle on a home’s value at any given time. But with RPR’s Realtor Valuation Model® (RVM), users of this system will have an authoritative source with which to provide information about property values using tax information, sale history, and comparables and other data sets. “RPR’s RVM offers best-in-class automated valuations which REALTORS® can refine with their local market knowledge to make it even more accurate,” Ross says.
Want to learn more about how RPR can benefit your business? Go to http://blog.narrpr.com/national-launch. Also, be sure to register for a free REALTOR® Magazine webinar, “A Look Ahead: RPR’s Launch to All REALTORS®,” taking place this Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012.
UPDATE: The webinar is now archived. Go here to download or playback the event recording.
By Brian Summerfield, Online Editor, REALTOR® Magazine
I’m back in Chicago after a weather-filled week spent in New York for Inman’s Real Estate Connect event, and I’ve had the long weekend to digest the tips, trends, and techniques discussed there. If I had to sum up the entire experience in a phrase, it would be this: The changes in consumer behavior over the past few years are nothing short of revolutionary.
Houston Association of REALTORS® CEO Bob Hale told a story about a man who went into a Best Buy store, found an electronics item, looked it over, then checked the price of that same product online using his smartphone. He found it was $40 cheaper on the Web, so he bought it there and left the store empty handed. A couple of days later, the item arrived at his house.
Here’s something else: According to REALTOR.com President Errol Samuelson, 2010 was the first year that more consumers found the house that they ultimately bought than their REALTORS®.
These two examples — and a few similar ones I heard at the conference — point to a transformation in how consumers make decisions in the marketplace. Continue reading »
By Brian Summerfield, Online Editor, REALTOR® Magazine
What makes REALTORS® relevant in the real estate industry? In a word, information. That’s why the REALTORS Property Resource™ is so important, Dale Ross, RPR’s CEO, told NAR’s Board of Directors Saturday at the 2010 Midyear Legislative Meetings in Washington, D.C.
“As REALTORS®, we have to know more about properties than anyone else,” Ross said. “Whatever has to do with that property, we need to have that info.”
The REALTORS Property Resource™, a database that will eventually cover every property in the United States, will pull in data from public records, prior transactions, MLSs, transfer taxes, and other relevant sources. It is one of NAR’s Second Century Initiatives.
In his update to the board, Ross said Continue reading »
By Brian Summerfield, Online Editor, REALTOR® Magazine
In a move bound to please real estate commentator Fred Glick, the National Association of REALTORS®’ Board of Directors approved a recommendation to adopt a statement of multiple listing policy pertaining to property pictures as a condition of inclusion in an MLS.
Here is the statement in its entirety: Continue reading »
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