Makes you wonder if real estate agents will become obsolete. Find your house on the net, negotiate a price via email, sign up with a net-based mortgage company, same with insurance and other services, then get an online lawyer to help with the contracts which you email, fax and FedEx back and forth. (Why do I get the feeling this might be a slightly controversial idea?)
For the record I have a little experience in this area. Ten years ago, I helped start a company involved in writing software for real estate agents. Back then, the big controversy was just putting photos of houses on the web. Would it do away with agents, etc. Now you have 3D virtual tours and much more on the web and all this doesn’t seem to have cut the number of agents as far as I can see. — Dave
The Justice Department sued the National Association of Realtors on Thursday, claiming it unfairly limits competition by allowing real estate agents to withhold home listings from Internet-based brokers.
The antitrust lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago, follows lengthy negotiations in which the government pressed the Realtors to drop restrictions designed to protect traditional brokers.
Justice Department Files Antitrust Lawsuit
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Justice Department sued the National Association of Realtors on Thursday, claiming it unfairly limits competition by allowing real estate agents to withhold home listings from Internet-based brokers.
The antitrust lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago, follows lengthy negotiations in which the government pressed the Realtors to drop restrictions designed to protect traditional brokers.
The association announced changes to its original plan Thursday, but the new steps were insufficient to ward off the lawsuit because the organization kept in place brokers’ ability to discriminate against competitors who post listings online, said J. Bruce McDonald, deputy assistant attorney general in the Antitrust Division.
Internet brokerages operate in the top dozen real estate markets in the country and their numbers are growing, Justice officials said at a news conference to announce the lawsuit. The online brokers often charge lower fees and allow consumers to review listings at their own pace.
The Realtors’ policy prevents brokers who rely on the Internet from being able to show customers all the houses that may be for sale in the locations and price ranges they’re seeking, McDonald said. It “allows a broker to target his Web-based competitors,” McDonald said.
The association said its new policy took into account Justice Department concerns. Initially, listing agents were allowed to withhold available homes from specific Web sites. The revised policy says that, when an agent chooses, listings will not be displayed on any Web site.
“The policy does not discriminate against any brokerage model, including discount brokers,” said Al Mansell, president of the Realtors’ association.
Trying to protect outdated business models is not new. What is new is that the government is actually trying to set things right? Usually the government bends over backwards to protect the status quo.
I don’t believe Realtors are going to be gone any time soon. The internet was very valuable in our search for a home, but we didn’t end up finding it there. It was during a drive through the country that we noticed it the same day the FOR SALE signs went up.
When we bought this house 2 years ago, our agent was invaluable. Maybe I could have done my homework and did it myself, but our agent already knew the ropes and how to deal. She got all the various players together: finance, seller, inspection, title search, insurance, and closing all together to make it work.
I’m in the middle of a house sale. I have to agree with Pat that a Realtor is useful in getting the word out about a home for sale, and in ironing out the icky little details about a home sale (or purchase). Trying to sell or find a home in a large city can be pretty frustrating.
We did sell a home once without a Realtor. However in that case the buyer was a relative of a neighbor, so no sales help was needed. Both sides used knowledgeable lawyers to prepare the papers, arrrange for title insurance, and so forth.