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August 30, 2006 - Moving Truck Rentals

Larry Cragun posted a hilarious moving experience on his "Real Estate Undressed" blog.  It wouldn't be so funny if it weren't for the fact I have experienced several similar experiences.  Professional movers are no more professional, in fact they may be less so, than I am.  In all the moves we have done ourselves, we have not broken anything including the antique mirror without a wood backing. Larry neglected to bare a few other lesser known facts about moving.  We had the pleasure of helping our friends move back from Kentuckiana (the southern portion of Indiana just across the border from Kentucky).  Being prepared and organized people, they called ahead to U Haul to reserve a truck for moving day.  There were a limited number of the big trucks available so a reservation was imperative.

Early on moving day, the men went to get the U Haul truck.  Too quickly they returned without spare wheels.  Early arrival was moot. The men were informed that no truck was available and probably would not be availabe that day!  It seems the fine print on the contract states that there is no guarantee that a truck will be available.  The reservation only applies if a truck is available.  Pray tell, what is the use of a reservation then?  Needless to say we were frantic to find another rental.  Traveling a little further afield produced a less convenient but quite servicable big truck.  The moving plan contined.

It was a good lesson for all of us.  Read the fine print on the contract if it's new to you!  Not every reservation guarantees a spot!

(c) Bonnie Erickson 2006

August 18, 2006 - The Cow Is Out of the Barn

"Yep, the barn door's open and the cow is gone.  It's too late to close the door now!"  That's what my grandma used to tell me when I mistakenly left the barn open as a young child.  The two of us would go to the field and try to coaxe ol' Bessie back into the barn.   I was thankful for fences, otherwise a certain backside might have been warmed!

Maybe the powers that govern the MLS didn't have grandmas to tell them the cow was out of the barn.  Maybe they didn't learn that lesson.  I couldn't say for sure, but the cow is definitely out!

The MLS rules and regulations were changed last March to prohibit all members of the MLS from using the terms "MLS" or  "Multiple Listing Service" in their web sites or advertising when they offer the ability to search listings to the public.  When the public searches listings on my web site or any other web site, they think they are searching the MLS, but they are not.  They are searching a data base provided by REALTORS® for public use, but it is not the true MLS.  That's why properties that  are not active can not be found on any REALTOR's® web site.  Only the active listings are available to the public.  This ability to search listings is provided by individual agents and companies as a means to market listings.

The true MLS can only be searched by REALTORS®.  It is a security protected site and one must be a member of the Regional Multiple Listing Service and pay fees to gain access.  Much more data is available from the MLS than what is given to the public.  Archived listings, total number of days on the market, sold listings, mapping, tax records, and more are availabe to REALTOR® members of the MLS.

Too late the governing board of the MLS decided to restrict use of the term.  They want to protect the public from being confused into thinking they are accessing the MLS when they use our web sites.  The irony of this restriction is that the very people who have access to the MLS, the REALTORS®, are the ones who cannot use the term.  Others, who do not have access to the MLS, can use MLS to describe property listings on their site and in their domain names, but we can't.  The board can police its members, but there is no ability to police non-members.  So, if I put "Search the MLS" on my website, the penalty will be to be cut off.  You heard it right.  I would be thrown out of the MLS and no longer allowed secure access to their online MLS.  Essentially, that would end my career.  I would not be able to do comparable market analyses, find homes for buyer clients, check market activity, or market my listings on the MLS.  That's a hefty penalty.

If the MLS authorities didn't want to confuse the public into thinking they had access to the MLS, they've made the policy too late.  The public already is confused and considers their access of listings to be the true MLS.  This is especially true for real estate offices that placed "MLS" in their company names, like The MLSOnline.com.  It's a company name and the public believes when they use that company's website, they are on the MLS online!  That company's name will be "grandfathered" in so they can continue to use their website and their name with disclaimers.  Who reads disclaimers? 

Hundreds of agents will have to shut down their websites that have names like "SearchTheMLS.com" or "TwinCitiesMLS.com".  Other, non-members can buy and use those domains giving them an advantage over the true MLS members.  Of course, the non-members can't access the MLS, but they can get people to their web sites under false pretenses.

I hate to say it, but the cow's out of the barn and it's too late to shut the door.  In this case, I'm not sure Bessie will ever return to the barn!

(c) Bonnie Erickson 2006

August 15, 2006 - Copy Cat

The bad thing about the internet is it's so public.  The good thing about the internet is it's so public.  So where does one go with that?  The ultimate compliment among bloggers is to be quoted and a link placed on another person's blog.  This does not, however, include cutting and pasting the entire post to your own blog and claiming it as your own!  That is called copyright infringement and it's a very serious issue on the internet.

Late last week, one of the entries on my blog was copied complete with my hand created Paint illustration of a spilled milk bottle.  No credit was given to me for authoring the article.  Nor was any attempt made to camouflage the theft.  The copy cat created her blog the day after I posted the entry.  Three days after creating her blog on which Copy Cat posted my entry, she had published somehing not hers!  The kindergartener in me started yelling,  "Copy cat!  Copy cat!" 

The copied entry has been deleted today.  It makes me question whether I, as a consumer,  would want an agent that plagiarizes others's blog content without attribution.  My totally biased opinion is that if someone is unethical enough to steal your content from a web publication, that same person is probably not going to be ethical in their business dealings on your behalf. 

(c) Bonnie Erickson 2006