MLS4owners.com is a real estate advertising syndication firm. By providing cost-effective near real time market exposure through listing syndication we enable our customers to take ownership of the home selling experience and be the center of the real estate transaction.
I'm not sure what argument Mr. Lane is making. MLS4owners.com is licensed and regulated the same as any other real estate brokerage, and we have been for many years. We are members of our local, state and national REALTOR(r) associations, and our customers have sold more than $850 million in listed properties. Agents from more than 300 different brokerages have represented buyers for our sellers, and they have earned millions of dollars in the process. On those purchases it is very clear that the buyer agent represents the buyer, just as he or she does in any other transaction. There is no issue of to whom the buyer agent owes a fiduciary responsibility. Many of our customers otherwise would be FSBOs and we bring them to the REALTOR(r) community. Far from taking a free ride, we pay the same as any other member, and we do not compete with agents to double-end the sale. Buyer agents never have to worry about having the listing broker snag their buyer and claiming the buy side of the commission. I don't understand the question about real estate websites being cluttered with listings. We display all listed properties from all brokerages in our geographic market, as do most brokerage websites. We believe in the value of full service representation for those who want it (both buyers and sellers). We also believe consumers should have choices about the services they want and the nature of the fees they will pay, and there are many good options available. Ken Whitney MLS4owners.com
The petition of the Great Falls Association of REALTORS® regarding the ability of real estate brokerages to offer a la carte services to homesellers is an effort to quash competition and defend the status quo of high costs and limited choices for Montana’s residents. The Petitioner claims that offering these services is in violation of Montana law. Of course, it is not. Petitioner appears to claim that definition 4(a) in 37-51-102 (which refers to “negotiation”) is the only definition that should be considered for a broker. However, paragraph 4(c) and others include definitions under which providers of a la carte services would fall, including charging a fee for promoting a sale with no mention of “negotiation”. We are not familiar with the company to which the Great Falls Association is referring. In fact, we don’t even know who they are. However, we are very familiar with the tactics used by those who want to put out of business those who practice non-traditional business models, and the Petitioner’s goal is to keep companies like ours from offering services to the people of Montana. We offer Exclusive Agency listings similar to those described in Paragraph 2 of the Petition. Our customers have closed more than $800 million in sales since 2001, and we are one of the largest single office brokerages in Washington. We have had more than 4000 customers, and not one of them has filed a complaint against us with the state, a REALTOR® association, or any multiple listing service. This is an unbeatable track record of customer service excellence, and there are many other non-traditional brokerages around the country that beat or match the consumer satisfaction offered by traditional brokerages. We believe in the value of full service representation for those who want it (both buyers and sellers), and agents from more than 300 different brokerages have earned commissions by representing buyers for our sellers. We also believe consumers should have choices about the services they want and the nature of the fees they will pay, and there are many good options available. The Petition is an effort to block those options, and Montana consumers will be hurt if the Petitioner gets the ruling it wants. Ken Whitney MLS4owners.com REALTOR(R)
"The fact is everybody is on their knees now. Nobody has escaped the trauma of this market." While it is true that the real estate industry has faced challenges over the last two years, it is not true that nobody has escaped the trauma of this market. There are niches that have been highly successful at providing value to consumers, as evidenced by our continued growth in both hot and cold markets. MLS4owners.com has enjoyed seven straight years of double-digit gains, grew 10% in 2007 and is up another 17% year-to-date in 2008.
