Right there in the Realtor’s remarks section of the listing is the conversation-stopper, the quill-puller, the objection-obliterator:
The stately home you’ve always dreamed of with a completely unzillowable view…
That’s a mean meme, mama. If it spreads, the deal is utterly undone. The concept focuses the mind, and the word calls forth the concept. The coin Sellsius&176; has struck enriches us all…
Technorati Tags: blogging, disintermediation, real estate, real estate marketing
jf.sellsius says:
Greg,
That’s a very clever use of the term to distinquish your listing. If it ever makes it to a listing headline, it may get attention and gain entry to meme land. Even if you get a call & the person asks “what’s an unzillowable?” you have a conversation started.
BTW, we’re running a zillow poll and encourage bloggers to pass it around to get the vote of buyers & sellers, the ones zillow was created to serve.
http://blog.sellsiusrealestate.com/?p=1718
You can see the results on the post and the map indicates the voters’ locations. Interesting results so far.
August 15, 2006 — 9:20 am
SoMdRenter says:
“unzillowable”?
How about uncommisionable?
The reason for the brugh ha ha over zillow? The RE industry is not getting a commission from it. No, zillow doesn’t have “secret shoppers” out collecting carpet and air quality samples. Anyone who thinks they do/should simply does not have a firm grasp on the internet nor the potential data spigot that has been opened.
Zillow is one of many tools. Just as:
http://www.mris.com/reports/stats/
http://tinyurl.com/kk8gj (mapable tax records)
http://tinyurl.com/ohrlq (Washington Post link)
http://www.mdlandrec.net (Must have a password, but registration is free)
Are tools.
It’s almost to the point where the only thing one would need a realtor for, is to open the lock box.
The last vestiges of a realtor? How about a new poll? If you’re a buyer would you rather use a realtor and pay the commission based on the sales price of a house, OR
For a small fee, full (read only) access to the MLS?
August 25, 2006 — 3:06 pm
Cathleen Collins says:
Considering SoMdRenter’s handle, I assume this commenter likes to rent. Would this commenter be surprised to learn that many, many people prefer to own their residences? Would SoMdRenter be surprised to learn that not everyone has the very same preferences and tastes that SoMdRenter has? Then, might SoMdRenter be surprised that many who prefer owning their homes over renting also prefer using the services of a Realtor over handling the home-buying process themselves? Of course, there are many people who prefer handling the entire real estate purchase process without a Realtor. Those people aren’t my clients, nor should they be. I’m too busy and happy helping people who want my help.
Real estate consumers (among whom the renter is probably not included) are involved in possibly one real estate transaction every three to ten years. So the typical home buyer has a vested interest in having really accurate evaluations of a home’s value only a few times in his lifetime. However, a good Realtor has a vested interest in correctly evaluating houses several times a day. Now most people believe that practice makes perfect. But, an unsuspecting consumer might believe that Zillow actually has made a practice of accurately determining a house’s value… the type of accuracy that Realtors must be able to hit if they are to stay in this business. (We don’t have the deep pockets of venture capitalists to dig us out if we’re very wrong very often.) And this is the danger. Zillow is a lot of fun. It’s really user friendly. And it’s not intrusive. But when it comes time for the typical consumer to make what will be one of the most important investments in her life, she should be aware of Zillow’s shortcomings, before placing too much confidence in this particular AVM. Of course if she is using a Realtor who is doing nothing more than opening doors for her, she should be aware of that Realtor’s shortcomings, too.
August 25, 2006 — 7:43 pm
SoMdRenter says:
” However, a good Realtor has a vested interest…..”
Exactly. A vested interest in the buyer paying as much as possible for a home. After selling in ’05, then going through a plethora of realtors to buy, I now do my own research. Realtor after realtor “misinterpreted” the DOM, used the sellers comps (for the next neighborhood over) and the classic “we can’t ask less that 10% of asking”.
It’s no surprise where the vested interest lies.
Do your homework. If you continue to be spoon feed via the “vested interest” crowd, you will pay top dollar in a falling market.
August 26, 2006 — 10:54 am