I'll pick up a few books on the way home today.




To be brutally honest, I don't have the answer. But it's quite obvious there's a major disconnect between people and the interpretation of the same issue.

One side is discussing blogs and the other side is dabbling over agency. Both sides are clearly not discussing the same topic so it's quite obvious that one side will become dinosaurs.

One thing we do know for sure that is if you are hoping, praying, lobbying, and wishing for things to be the same using yesterday's translation in today's world, YOU WILL BE THE ONLY ONE LEFT STANDING IN THE OLD SCHOOL.

To understand where the real estate industry is headed ask yourself why isn't AT&T, MCI, QWEST, SBC, or PACBELL the leader in search engines?

Yahoo and google weren't even on the radar when yellow pages were invented. Yet, today's search engines are simply internet size yellow pages. But not just yellow pages, but interactive yellow pages.

That's the magnitude of the changes that are coming!



I can suit both.

Further, not only have the new yellow pages ( yahoo and google ) taken over, but they are slowly becoming full blown media and entertainment companies.

The digital divide between those that see what zillow is doing as agency violation and those that see it as blogs are worlds apart. YOU CANNOT EVEN BEGIN TO EDUCATE. You'll have to pass them by with people that understand.

One side is using horses to cross the ocean, the other side is saying the plane is coming...the plane is coming. It's not even a close race.

"One side is using horses to cross the ocean, the other side is saying the plane is coming...the plane is coming. It's not even a close race."
As the French Concorde proved.
Not everything new is superior, but you must have lived awhile to know the difference.

In one of the classes I just took, the instructor talked about an agent who showed a couple 3 houses. He was working as a subagent. They asked him which one he thought they should buy. The agent said they are all nice houses, but the last one was in the best condition, had a nice yard and fit your needs the best. that is the one you should buy. Somehow the other two sellers got wind of what he said and he was brought up on like 7 charges and fined. Why? Because he was supposed to be working in the seller's best interest and had badmouthed 2 properties. So I don't think your scenario works very well.

Have you ever been on a plane?



Can you show me a link to this court case or is this another fairy tale spread over the web? Which sub-agency agreement did the agent sign to have two sellers take him to court? IT MUST BE TOUGH TO HAVE TWO SELLERS SUE THE GUY. I BET.

I like how you describe in details "somehow" the other two sellers got wind of what happened too. It must be the next generation of communication.

Troy,
I am aware what the topic is and that was reporting a property that is for sale to Zillow when you are not the listing agent. You posted the exact wording from Zillows website. In the agent profile you have two distinctly different options. One is to post your Listings and the other is to comment, post or blog on a property you know to be for sale that is not your listing.

Since you posted the comment on the property it lists your information should anyone wish to contact you regarding the property. In that comment box it says if this is your listing and wish to take it over to click here so whoever sees this knows full well that you are Not the listing agent of the property in addition it does not show in your listings section.

I am definately not a fan of Zillow but what they are doing is not illegal nor does it violate COE. If it did I am sure you would have posted the statute or COE section it violated.

Artiste,
It is technically blogging or a forum post if you like that wording better and it is simply tied to a search engine of Zillows property database.

Looks like another company like Zillow will be going directly to jail.

With the launch of YourStreet.com today, Zillow's got some new competition when it comes to owning the buzz around local real estate.

Both companies have slightly different approaches; with Zillow chasing real estate professionals to start the conversations, while YourStreet is targeting real estate enthusiasts to jump in the fray.

I'm sure more are coming!

I think with so many internet companies suddenly jumping on this bandwagon its highly likely they will likely end up with the same difficulties as FSBO's have in that the information is spread all over the place. No central place to go to find information, unless one of them can eventually dominate.

Ever notice how all these companies come out of SF or WA?

This is not a new concept but it's a better execution then I've seen yet. I know of at least 2 other sites in alpha stage that want to do the same thing (as part of their overall offering)

So now you have numerous sites with varying opinions and like attys... there will always be someone who tells you what you want to hear.

Paul, I did not post a comment on the property, I told Zillow that the property was FOR SALE, and listed a price. You are talking about a TOTALLY different part of Zillow than what I was trying to demonstrate.

I have removed the "this house is for sale" option from the listing, but if you looked at it while I had it up there, you would know what I was talking about. Should I post it again so you can see it?

realting said: "have you ever been on a plane?"
Not only do I know how to fly a plane, but last September flying into Heathrow was a nightmare, some of my valuables were stolen out of my checked baggage (I never check baggage, but because of UK restrictions I had to, I'm just glad no one PLANTED anything into my baggage), going from one terminal to another took 2 1/2 hours causing me to miss a connecting flight.
Since 1964, I have flown dozens of times to Europe since I have family living there and this has been the worst experience ever.
Now, you tell me the progress we have made in over 40 years in this sector and I'll tell you I'd rather go back 40 years when seats were more comfortable and you could be fairly sure of arriving on time. So much for progress.

The question should not be whether allowing non-listing agents to "say" a home is for sale on zillow is legal (probably is) or ethical (under the current Code, questionable) but whether it helps to sell homes.
Will community Q&A help sell homes? I think not.
The flagging mechanism should give a hint why.

1. Owners & LA unaware of the Q&A will not be able to flag false of misleading comments. It will be as poison in the well. Only interested parties have any incentive to flag.
2. Owners can flag truthful but damaging statements (this home has termites)---who will judge the flag?
3. for Owners who do not use the internet,it will be IMPOSSIBLE to flag anything on zillow
4. owners and LA (who did not "say" it was for sale on zillow)are burdened to police the Q&A. Would you depend on strangers to flag?
5. This Zmechanism forces owners and LA to "claim a home" in order to remove the non-listing agent who "said" it was for sale. Then they are in the question box.


(TIC) BTW, I heard of a new site called "Buy a Home from the Bathroom Stall" where non-listing agents say neighborhood homes are for sale. Q&A is limited to available space in the stall. Other venues for "saying" homes are for sale are planned for porn sites and films. A spokeman for the company said" we're only helping the owner get a buyer and many buyers go to the bathroom or look at porn. Why would owners complain?"

Troy,
Maybe you better and this time take a look at the page yourself. To the right it showed your picture and mini profile and it said in that box what I stated in the previous post. It said to either contact you for more details or if this is your listing and want to take the thread over to click here.

[quote=realting]

Obviously you never lived in a small town. I will look for something to back up the story. I don't know why you can't understand how an agent is a subagent for two sellers. Here on Long Island we have been the subagent for ALL the sellers as we just got buyers agency.

There's always a bad apple out of the the millions of plane passengers everyday. You just happen to be one. Would you have preferred horses instead?