Deadpooled before end of 2009, perhaps even before summer of 2009.

Interesting post on getting a real estate license that I came across this weekend, which included…

Isaac W. Kyle
iwkyle@icitycondo.com

those who don’t value the service of experienced Realtors have either never bought/sold a home, or they live in a cookie cutter community where every home is exactly the same, or they hired a bad agent, mostly likely a HS friend or cousin who they didn’t bother to interview first

but the bottom line is that you can buy and sell stocks for $7 a trade online on your own, or you can pay hefty fees to top firms and pros. you really do get what you pay for IF you actually take the time to interview a few agents, which almost no Buyer ever does, but every Seller… the ones paying the commission… always does unless they use the one they’ve used in the past who they DID feel earned the commission and deserves it again.

Of course you have no choice but to defend your position, in spite of the failure to generate income according to your original business plan.

As we enter the new reality of buying and selling real estate, the value of a traditional agent has actually increased. Navigating the complexities of short sales, foreclosures, and evaluating individual homes and neighborhoods calls for the expertise of a trained real estate professional, not a facilitator whose only purpose is to fill in the blanks of a contract to satisfy the bargain hunter’s goal of paying the least amount possible for a commodity.

The internet has enabled us to gather information and often make purchases at prices not available at the local retailer. Attempting to apply similar principles to real estate was an interesting theory. Now that markets have cooled and significant challenges are the norm, to buy or sell prudently, “order takers”, as provided by limited service/discount brokers, are simply not equipped to provide the level of expertise consumers deserve.

Expertise often carries a higher price tag. The current real estate climate emphasizes the benefits and necessity of that expertise being applied to the majority of transactions. The public has a choice, as always, and many will experiment with the concept of saving money. Who wouldn’t consider it (if it works)?

Redfin is experiencing the reality that those who have experimented have now found that there is real value to working with an experienced agent that truly represents their interests. Redfin’s only chance for survival is to attempt to insert themselves in that income stream.

We still offer direct service in the areas we always have, with the same commission refund of 50%.

We were founded with the idea that an online real estate broker could be more efficient, but not that you could avoid a broker. The company has been, from day one,a real estate broker.

In areas where we have never offered service, we are now connecting people with partner agents instead of our own agents, but only after consumers can see the reviews of partner agents, and with the commission refund that you say we are abandoning.

Of course you want to be skeptical of any new business initiative from a company following a layoff, but it is just hard to see expansion as a repudiation of our business model.

Regards, Glenn

Glenn Kelman
Redfin CEO

Could the answer be found in the following definition of co-dependency.

“A set of maladaptive, compulsive behaviors learned to survive in an emotionally painful and stressful environment”.

Markets are cyclical. If you do not have a model that can make it through the tough times – you will go out of business in the tough times.

Glenn Kelman is an exceptionally bright guy – he saw the writing on the wall and made a move before it was too late…and unfortunately for them, proved their original model was not a winner.

I used to be a salesman, its a tough racket *sip, sip*