Of Listings and Lovers

Time and time again I said I’d leave you
Time and time again I went away
But then would come the time when I would need you
And once again these words I had to say

Take me back, I love you
…I need you
I know it’s wrong, it must be wrong
But right or wrong I can’t get along … Without you

I thought of this song – performed most famously, with searing emotion, by Frank Sinatra – as I read about the launch of Terabitz this morning. 

See, it’s a great idea. And the Ajax is cool. But the bottom line is no matter how many listings feeds you drag and drop, you’re still not getting a clean, clear and complete picture of your selected market. And if I don’t get that, it’s useless to me as a consumer. I might as well stick to the IDX feed on my local agent’s vintage 1997 Advanced Access website.

For all the millions invested and intelligence applied to making home search easier for the consumer, I, and millions like me, must return to the MLS.

One of two things needs to happen. Trulia (or Zillow or Terabitz or someone else) must succeed in filling in the gaps in their coverage by amassing enough users to make it imperative for brokers to place their listings with them. Or, the MLS world needs to start thinking big and come up with a way to better leverage, distribute, syndicate and monetize its core asset.

Until then, I am thrashing around, getting excited for a moment, then returning, chastened, to my old flame.

– Brian Boero