List and search is old school. List, Match, Search, Share, Tweet, Like, and Link are new school and We are the Dean.
Pocket listings sales (“off MLS “) are becoming the new school of thought for real estate in different markets and states across the U.S. Until recently, off-market sales were typically luxury listings, uber wealthy and celebrity trades. Although that demographic is still the most active in the pocket market, it’s quickly expanding to everyone and it’s more than a trend. So what’s behind the shift?
First and foremost, technology is rapidly changing the landscape of real estate, not as quickly as other industries, but it’s happening. The days of sharing real estate information only through MLS are gone, long gone. Real estate professionals must use the new channels of marketing to stay relevant, have a competitive edge and keep their sellers happy. By channels, I mean digital and mobile: email marketing, social media, sharing, SMS alerts, visual (Pinterest, Instagram), augmented reality, video, blogging and so on. Real estate marketing of today is about sharing, engagement, interactivity, and story telling with rich and relevant content. It’s far beyond the days of just posting your listing to the MLS.
For the professionals that swim in the top agent pool (and use that as a selling point) their membership networks allow the sharing of listings amongst their group and again, not searchable to anyone outside of that network. It’s doesn’t offer much more of a benefit than a ineffective mass email or sharing at an office meeting.
Lastly, brokerages and agents are increasingly frustrated with the inaccuracies of listing aggregators like Zillow and Trulia and the “ownership” of their data by these sites. Without cutting off the listing feed (which would be detrimental to most), brokerages will never fully own their data, unless they buy it back from the aggregators. Brokerages and agents that “get it” will A. never buy back their own data and B. inevitably seek alternate and supplemental listing dispersement solutions and new technology. These alternate/supplemental solutions to bridge this gap are few and far between; and that’s where PocketListings.net comes in.
PocketListing.net Founder, Alexander Clark:
“The argument for skipping MLS is always the same, “You gotta expose your property to MLS to get the best price.” We’ve heard it a thousand times over. It’s simply not true. That is the old way of thinking. The new way of thinking is that a good price is what a buyer is willing to pay, and what a seller is willing to accept, and exposure can come from any number of online or offline channels (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, email, etc.) None of these companies or “social networks” existed when MLS was created, neither did the Internet! MLS was designed prior to the internet and the free and open exchange of information and and WAY before social networking. We envision an age where licensed real estate professionals are connecting through multiple channels and creating relationships with colleagues and clients alike that foster transactions from one person to another regardless of whether it’s “on” or “off” the market. If your home or property is for sale, it’s “on” the market. It’s as simple as that. And if you get the price you want, the rest is irrelevant.”
At PocketListings.net we are simply redefining the meaning of a pocket listing, by creating a simple solution, that’s proven to work.
*For a recent study of the inaccuracies of listing aggregators by the WAV Group, click here
