ByOwnerPros.com | Goodbye MLS, Hello BLC
Goodbye MLS, Hello BLC |
By Lawrance Morrissey & Angie Mager
Knowledge is power. And in real estate, knowledge is money. That's why we spend a great deal of time educating consumers. Last week we held yet another successful three-hour seminar giving homeowners the tools and resources to sell their properties by owner thereby saving thousands in commissions. Unlimited support is and has always been a hallmark of our services.
Realtors represent most buyers and sellers throughout Indiana as well as the United States so it's fair to ask what they do to inform and educate the public and what they are doing to broaden consumer choice. The sad answer is very little. In fact, we see their efforts as trying to keep consumers uninformed and limiting consumer access to homes for sale. Lobbying efforts and organizational changes and rulings by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and the local affiliate, Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors (MIBOR), are mostly designed to restrict consumer choice. So much so that they are currently being investigated by the Department of Justice and constantly criticized by the Consumer Federation of America. Angie's List, intervened locally when they asked the Indiana General Assembly to repeal or modify the state's new minimum services law, calling the law anti-competitive and saying it limits the choices consumers have for selling their home.
It may seem counterproductive for realtors to restrict access and consumer knowledge until you consider what has happened to the travel agencies and small full-service financial investment companies since their on-line competitors virtually obliterated their business models and made it much less expensive and easier for consumers. As one of the most powerful lobbying groups in the country, NAR is spending millions to ensure that they protect their business - far greater than their efforts to protect consumers.
Consider their significant efforts to halt questionable sub-prime lending now that those practices are hurting the economy and their business. Yet in the 2004 Indiana forclosure report, mention of these lending practices and builders' increasing practice of no-money down, variable rate buydown loans was nowhere to be found. (See my previous article at www.ByOwnerPros/news). Realtors were among the chief benefactors of those practices that were blatantly hurting individual consumers. Now that they are affecting the market as a whole, NAR is taking notice.
Protecting their turf is one of the things that realtors do best. Consider Mibor's quiet announcement last month of changing the name of the popular Multiple Listing Service (MLS) to the Broker Listing Cooperative (BLC). A MIBOR paper | explains that "The concept of MLS has become misunderstood and outdated. The proliferation of free information has created confusion among consumers that what they see on public sites is the full detail of the Multiple Listing Service. The result has been a blurring in the public mind of what an MLS is and should be." Okay that's the official reason. The public is confused. Lucky for us, a think-tank figured out that creating a brand new three-letter acronym is the solution to all the confusion that the MLS is owned by local brokerages and is not public information that everyone has a right to view.
The reality is the term "MLS" has become the "Kleenex" of real estate. A sub-brand name that is synonymous with real estate in general. Over the last few years, much to the NAR's dismay, many savvy brokers have created companies and websites that promote "MLS." In an effort to protect what's rightly theirs, numerous lawsuits have been filed, but lost by Realtor associations around the country. Why? Because the "MLS" trademark is owned by Major League Soccer. So at the end of the day, it all amounts to MIBOR wanting to protect their turf. They figured out they can't protect the phrase "MLS" so they had to start from scratch. As other lawsuits are lost around the country over the acronym MLS, other Realtor boards will follow suit. The big question is, will it be done by the National Association of Realtors on a national scale, or will it be left to the smaller local affiliates to create their own. Imagine every major city having a different acronym for their local MLS; now that's something that would truly confuse the public. An article in the August issue of NAR's own Realtor magazine may enlighten you as to why realtors continue to make real estate transactions appear complicated, scary, mysterious and full of legal pitfalls. The magazine cites that only 36 percent were knowledgeable about "real estate agents and brokers and their consumer services." The more consumers know about the industry, the less value they see in a realtor's services. And when informed about specific common real estate practices, the satisfaction rate goes alarmingly down.
We may appear to be coming down hard on realtors but let me remind you that I am a realtor. We offer full-service realtor services to our clients who need those services. I think that some realtors offer ethical, valuable services. However, the business model as a whole, is not the best choice for most people. That's why our clients choose to sell by owner about ten to one over full-service MLS options once they are informed about the costs and benefits of both. Remember, knowledge is power, and in real estate, knowledge is money.
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