Sometimes you need a smack "upside" the head to jolt you into reality.  Well, it was two smacks for me today to be precise. Delivered via virtual space long hand in a couple of blog posts.  Mark Eibner, the Real Estate Zealot, writes a blog post  entitled "Are You Gearing Up for Gen Y Business?" in which he links to a recent  CNN article about the 17 year old kid who unlocked the I Phone's tether to AT & T; making it possible to use the phone with other carriers.  This was big news on August 24, 2007.   Although I did hear about it on the national media, I didn't fully grasp the implications of what had happened. 

Reading the CNN article clarified things for me.  The code that tethered the iPhone to the At & T network was one of the most closely guarded secrets on the face of the earth. The system was programed to be be unbreachable by some of the most brilliant computer experts on the planet.  It also represented potentially billions of dollars of proprietary business; blocking out other would be competitors. 

The fact that the code and process could be unraveled so quickly was astounding...but by a 17 year old kid!  After accomplishing this monumental feat, the kid posted all his "how to instructions" on-line for other would be hackers;  apologizing that it was such a cumbersome process. He also gave "assistance credits" to two individuals from Russia whom he didn't know apart from their on-line monikers.  Thus heralding, a new concept in collaboration...networking to create solutions across the globe by collaborating anonymously with others on-line towards the accomplishment of a shared goal. Talk about kicking the concept of Free Shareware up another gigantic notch. 

This is how Gen Y thinks.  And this is why they won't do real estate the way their parents did.  They have this insatiable desire to share...everything.  On-line music, blogs, games, movies, shopping....The fact that we can obtain real estate information anywhere for Free is baseline for them.  That's par for the course. 

They also have a radically distinct view of "ownership."  The kid (of iPhone hacker fame) felt that his solution to the "problem" faced by many who were held "prisoners" to a proprietary system was ultimately the property of the world.  This is the generation which created major headaches for the recording industry with pirated music from Napstar and thought it was cool to allow everyone to listen to music for Free. Will this approach to ownership and proprietary information make the current process of broker aided real estate transactions seem archaic if not downright draconian?

Perhaps we are about to witness a radical transformation of the meaning of the word transaction...how it's executed, how it's paid for and what it is.  The Real Estate Transaction of the near future will embody elements that cannot be imagined today. It is certain that there will be a re-definition of the meaning and value of professional expertise.  We can also anticipate that the relationship with the "expert" will be much more collaborative and interactive than it is today. Real Estate Blogging represents the primary swing into the first portion of the arched curve around this track. 

This also underscores why 111 Million Gen Y's (1982 - 2000) connecting to the real estate market within the next decade will make the real estate transaction of today feel like viewing the relics of a dinosaur.  I quote from the Mike Eibner, the Real Estate Zealot..."All media is moving to the palm of your hand and this includes real estate."  Are you ready for a revolution that's aims with the precision of a pinpoint to transform the world with the gentle side swipe of a finger?

Stay tuned for the next installment of My Second Slap Upside the head!

photo by Personeelsnet's on flickr.com

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