real estate trends: A Decade in Words: What Words Describe... - 12/08/10 07:14 AM
The decade 2000 – 2010 is all, but over. In many regards, this has been a very eventful decade with many highlights, disasters, sorrows, unique personalities and innovation.
In your opinion which single word(s) – OK, not more than two word phrases and also acronyms – personify and will forever identify the first decade of the 21st Century?

To get your juices flowing, let me start us off…
9/11 WMD facebook tweets Obama bailout foreclosures green BP wikileaks … (7 comments)

real estate trends: Commoditizing Real Estate and Disintermediation of Real Estate Agents - 11/16/10 04:59 AM
I am surprised that this discussion has surfaced again… that speculation on whether the real estate transaction will be completely automated and that like travel agents and book retailers, Realtors® have become a dying breed and will disappear completely.
Not true.
Yes of course, Technology, the Internet, Social Media, Mobile Media, Real Time, QR codes, Augmented Reality, and Location-based Services, etc, etc. have already and will continue to play an enormous role in the future of the real estate business. Few people have been a stronger proponent and a more prolific writer about the value of technology, change and innovation, than … (10 comments)

real estate trends: NAR New Orleans 2010: The Good, the Bad and the Interesting - 11/11/10 11:12 AM

I attended my first NAR convention in 1987 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Pity we have outgrown that location. This year’s event was however in a great location, New Orleans. It has been five years since the devastation of Katrina and you can see that the buzz in the French Quarter has returned with the beads, bars and Bourbon Street leading the way.
 
Here is my snapshot of the highlights of NARdigras 2010:
 
VIRTUAL BECOMES KING
Both the presence of Gen X and Y as well as various online boomers flexed their muscles to make social media a powerful mainstream … (9 comments)

real estate trends: Calling All Trend Spotters: Social Media facilitates your Input - 11/03/10 07:58 AM
Last year as we approached the annual National Association of Realtors® (NAR) conference discussion, the residential brokerage industry was centered around the Tax Credit, the growing number of firms that were struggling to stay in business, and the exploding number of Realtors® that had dual careers.
Then the surprise announcement in San Diego was made and RPR (Realtor® Property Resource) and AVM (Automatic Valuation Models) became the buzz of not only the convention, but also for the rest of the year.
Since then, we’ve seen that RPR has celebrated various milestones, we’ve seen mergers and acquisitions of real estate firms is … (0 comments)

real estate trends: Swanepoel Trends Report Opens Research for New 2011 Report, New Business Models at Top of List - 10/11/10 07:07 AM
Ever since the introduction of the Internet in real estate in 1995 speculation about a new business model for the real estate market has been rampant.
There was a surge of innovation in the late 1990s touting disintermediation, reduced commissions and a more automated and streamlined transaction by using the Internet. Most of that did not materialize as a result of the now infamous “dotcom” crash of 2000. Most of the new business models at the time disappeared although a few interesting companies made it through to the new century.
Then came Web 2.0 and the flood of innovations caused a … (30 comments)

real estate trends: Realtors® are NOT stupid, just slow… - 09/30/10 06:34 AM
Realtors® are not stupid, just slow to adapt to new technologies. Not because they cannot, but rather because in an industry comprised of independent contracts, the majority chooses to use the Frank Sinatra style – “My Way.” Looking back through time clearly shows most real estate professionals are up to the task of adapting and implementing new technologies successfully. For example in 1973, almost 40 years ago, Electronic Realty Associates, a new real estate franchise at the time, (today known as ERA Real Estate) became one of the fastest growing franchises of the 1970’s by introducing new a technology into the … (17 comments)

real estate trends: Google Goes Instant - 09/08/10 08:02 AM
Just launched. Google Instant is a new search enhancement that shows results as you type.The big benefit is that by scanning results as you type, you can get to the page you are looking for with greater ease and at much quicker pace as you no longer need to finish what you are typing.  By predicting the correct results, Google claims that Google Instant will on average save 2 – 5 seconds per search.

Before you had to type a full search term, hit return, and review the results. Now with results appearing as you type you can zoom into … (15 comments)

real estate trends: The Step Child of Real Estate, Cyberhomes.com, Changes Hands - 08/03/10 08:45 AM
 
Cyberhomes.com
The Darling Step Child of Real Estate
 
One of the coolest and catchiest domains in real estate – cyberhomes.com – has just changed hands … again.
This successful national real estate website providing property data and valuations is in many regards one of the best real estate websites around. Yet somehow it has remained a step child in our industry, floating from one foster home to another.
Let’s explore its unique journey and the reasons why, at the age of 15, this time it may be different.

The Inside Story
Cyberhomes was launched in 1995 … (25 comments)

real estate trends: From Trees to Tablets: The Evolution of Reading - 07/23/10 08:10 AM
In the Swanepoel TRENDS Report I regularly discuss trends in the printing and publishing world. For example trend #1 in the 2006 Report was titled “Electronic Devices Take Center Stage”, the 2007 Report extensively discussed “Web 2.0” and the in 2008 trend #3 covered “The New Digital Currency.”
My recent blog on ActiveRain titled “Is Print Finally Dead” drew over 150 comments with opinions from both sides of the isle, with the majority predicting the demise of newspapers.

Although it is true that newspaper circulation dropped from 62.6 million in 1990 to 49.2 million by 2008, it’s interesting to note … (10 comments)

real estate trends: First Major Australian Real Estate Firm Enters US - The Aussies are Here! - 06/21/10 05:18 AM
Trend #8 in the 2007 edition of the Swanepoel TRENDS Report discussed the likelihood of non-US real estate brokerage companies expanding to the United States. Countries that were identified to lead the charge included Australia/New Zealand, Canada, Germany and South Africa.
Harcourts Real Estate
This week, Australian-based Harcourts, with over 630 offices and 4,000+ agents in nine countries, became the third major non-US based company to validate this forecast with the announcement of a joint venture with one of California’s large real estate companies, Altera Real Estate.
Harcourts was founded in New Zealand in 1888 by John Bateman Harcourt, the … (8 comments)

real estate trends: Battle of the AVMs: An Online Real Estate War - 05/28/10 05:59 AM
Last year November, the Realtor® Property Resource (RPR) announcement by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) shook the industry. NAR had just reached an agreement with Lender Processing Services (LPS) and announced their plans on launching the Realtor® Valuation Model (RVM) in hopes that it will become the “gold standard” used by financial in the majority of online valuations.
For a detailed account on Automatic Valuations Models (AVM) and the events that led up to the creation, the structuring, the benefits and the concerns of RPR read the latest edition of the Swanepoel TRENDS Report. In the Report we also discussed … (14 comments)

real estate trends: World’s Largest Real Estate Group Shows Positive Signs of a Recovery - 05/14/10 12:40 PM
Realogy Corporation, the world’s largest real estate franchise group, last week reported their results through March 31st. The one-liner is that the Q1/10 revenue of $819 million is up 18% over the same period last year.
The growth is principally attributed to the move-up, higher priced markets and a comparatively weak first quarter in 2009. According to Realogy president and CEO Richard A. Smith, the company also saw gains in the average home sale price during the last year.
Smith said that increased momentum in terms of home sale contracts opened during the months of March and April, due to the … (17 comments)

real estate trends: Google on High Alert : New Strategy Changes the Rules! - 05/07/10 05:44 AM
Could a Social Media Web site be a threat to the dominance of the Google Search Engine?
Facebook has introduced a new revolutionary shift in the evolution of the Internet with its announcement last week at the f8 developer conference of their soon-to-be-ubiquitous “Open Graph” initiative - a new form of “social links.”
The launch of this new platform allows Web sites to drive traffic from Facebook by including a "Like" or “Recommended” button on their pages. Facebook's Open Graph allows readers to like a topic or article, thereby sharing it with their Facebook friends and in some cases, creating a … (115 comments)

real estate trends: IS PRINT FINALLY DEAD? Read all about it!! - 03/08/10 01:17 AM
December 2009 saw the demise of Editor & Publisher Magazine, which had been around since 1854. It lays claim to being the chief chronicler of the American newspaper industry and has presided over the business for 125 years and is a clear signal that an era is rapidly drawing to a close.
NEWSPAPERS
Daily newspapers have been losing between 2% and 5% per year of their circulation base during the last 10 years. In 1940 there were 1,878 newspapers in the U.S. with a total circulation of 32.4 million. While the number of newspapers continued to decline — 1,611 in 1990 … (158 comments)

real estate trends: Real Estate Newsmakers of the Year 2009 - 01/08/10 02:54 AM
Every year as part of the new edition of the Swanepoel TRENDS Report also looks back at the passing year and the people that made deadlines. We remember and salute them for their contribution during 2009. 
Here are the Newsmakers of 2009:
 
# 10 John Bearden
As one of the most beloved executives of a national franchise, John’s sudden departure this year as President of GMAC Real Estate — shortly after the sale of the company to Canada-based Brookfield Residential Property Services — came somewhat as a surprise. Not because he has cited health reasons, but because his departure … (0 comments)

real estate trends: Events of the Year 2009 - 12/30/09 04:24 AM
Every year as part of the new edition of the Swanepoel TRENDS Report the 160 page Report also looks back at the passing year and lists those events that transpired during the year that made headlines and captured the industry’s attention and imagination. The 2010 edition is due for release on February 8, 2010.
Here are the top events that during 2009 made headlines in the residential real estate brokerage industry.
 

 
#10 Houston Becomes #1 REALTOR® Association
In August 2009 the Houston Association of Realtors® (HAR) officially became the largest local Realtor® board in the United … (59 comments)

real estate trends: It’s Confirmed. It is the Next Big Thing! - 05/13/09 06:15 AM
Following the crash of the initial dotcom bubble in 2001 many people claimed to have created or coined the phrase Wed 2.0 as we in subsequent years the industry grappled with what would come next. By 2004 the term Web 2.0 was appearing everywhere and euphoria reined with this next phase of the Internet that included all sorts of "second generation" web developments. Information sharing became hot as did collaboration, hosted services, blogging, wikis, video-sharing and of course social-media sites.
In 2003 MySpace grabbed our imagination, followed in 2004 by Facebook and in 2005 by YouTube.  They quickly emerged as the … (69 comments)

real estate trends: Realtors What Are You Doing About Green? - 05/06/09 06:01 AM
The recent Earth Day gave the green revolution another shot up the arm.  When Earth Day started in 1970 a large number of people (20 million people one country) had already committed to celebrate it. Since then that number has exploded to 500 million (175 countries); about 7% of the world's population.
But even prior to 2000 "building green" still remained outside mainstream awareness - but has that changed, and for many good reasons. Elevating the profile of "Green" has been added to the agenda of movie celebrities such as Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, music stars like Radiohead and of … (10 comments)

real estate trends: Banks in Real Estate Business - War Ends - NAR Wins by Technical Knock Out in Round 8. - 03/18/09 04:04 AM
Rarely has pending legislation suggested changes to the financial services arena as controversial as the recent Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLB Act).  The proposed rule would declare real estate brokerage, real estate management, and employee relocation to be activities that are "financial in nature" or "incidental to a financial activity" under the GLB Act. This would allow financial holding companies and national bank subsidiaries to enter these businesses.
The impact on the real estate brokerage industry has escalated and this GLB Act has become one of the most highly profiled public, advertising, social media campaigns and debates on main street, the grapevine, Chicago … (10 comments)

real estate trends: Survival Tips: If You Wish To Succeed In 2010, Here Are 10 Golden Rules - 03/06/09 08:07 AM
Whether you own a small real estate office or a franchise with multiple offices, real estate brokers have much in common with other small business owners during these difficult economic conditions.  This economy affects all businesses and it doesn't really matter if you are the local hair salon or the major department store, current market conditions are tough. 

For real estate brokers, owners and managers the focus revolves around how to recruit quality agents, how to retain quality and productive agents and how to increase overall profitability.  This is analogous to the farmer who must plant, fertilize and water before … (5 comments)