May. 13, 2007 - Redfin on 60 Minutes
Well I just finished watching the virtues of listing your home on redfin.com versus using a Realtor. I bill myself as providing state-of-the-art representation and using technologically advanced marketing, so my mind was open when I began watching. I'll be the first Realtor to sign on with redfin.com if they truly provided superior service for buyers and sellers. From what I saw, they're not there yet. They showed a testimonial from only one satisfied client who was able to afford to feed the guests at her reception because she chose to use redfin over a traditional real estate agent.
The segment on 60 minutes would have you believe that many Realtors are money-grubbing salespeople with no regard for their clients' best interests. Guess what, some Realtors really are money grubbing, unethical salespeople. So are some doctors, tax preparers, lawyers, etc. etc. On the other hand, I know many honest, diligent, hard-working Realtors that put the interests of the client above the money. I truly feel that no matter what profession you are in, if you treat the client well and put their interests above all else, the money will follow.
Just to be sure I got the full picture before I made my mind up about the redfin services, I immediately visited their website. Uh oh. Their server was down. They did offer a few documents for viewing that gave a synopsis of their services. Again, I wasn't impressed. You truly can save money by using their services, but this means you do a large part of the work on your own. You hold your own open houses and arrange for private viewings on your own. (And I hope you don't have a full time job that makes it impossible for buyers to view your house while you are working). It appears your listing will show up on a few Internet sites with redfin. Their flyer states that the traditional agent does not do Internet marketing. With the marketing that Beth Ganem, my colleague, and I do, our listings show up on well over 50 Internet sites.
I think consumers were well served when we could book our own hotels and flights on the Internet and bypass, for the most part, the traditional travel agent. Real estate is a huge investment for most consumers. Flying to Disney isn't. For now, I think consumers are best served by the hands-on care given to our buyers and sellers. When that is no longer the case, I'll join redfin.
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