Google Base and Real Estate

iviebaker · #**1 Google Base and Real Estate** 10-22-2006, 11:13 AM

I have been hearing a lot of debate about Google Base lately. I am currently on my local MLS Board. Our MLS Host has just offered our board the option of having all of our board listings placed on Google Base, (for a fee). For those of you not farmilar with it, here is a link: http://base.google.com/base/search?a...=9&hl=en&gl=US Or you can go to Google.com and punch in the words "Real Estate" and it will take to to a page that can access Google Base by letting you search by Zip Code and type of listing.

The debate is whether this service would be helping or hurting us as Realtors? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?

Many people have been saying the Google will get this system to a point that they would end up being like a referral service and Realtors could sign up to pay for leads. (Just like many people say that Zillow will end up doing the same thing).

Will it hurt the Realtors that are really working at it... like those who have built and put a lot of time into the web sites?

Right now you can pretty much have your listings posted for free on sites like http://homes.point2.com/ . You'd sign up on the agent site to get you listings in for free. However, you can also pay for a Professional or Premium account for a monthly fee. Sounds like a pay for leads thing to me...

Are these the types of web sites Google will allow to dominate their data base of home listings? Sounds like the same things as HomeGain.com or RealEstate.com or any other pay for leads site. Our listings would also be mixed in with FSBO homes too.....

I'm wondering that if we do decide to have our listings submitted to Google Base through our MLS board, that it might be a bad thing?

Anyone else have any feelings on this? Do you think it might affect your web site importance on Google? Will people shy away from contacting a Realtor though their site, when they can find all this information on Google Base and go through some referral service instead? Would we as a board lose control of our listing data? Hmmmmmm.....

I am still researching this option and was wondering what other peoples feelings were about this issue...???

KarenR0823 · 12:02 PM

Do not do it. We need to stop giving the MLS away. If individual agents choose to advertise their listings on base like they do in newspapers, magazines, personal websites, etc that is one thing but to turning over the entire MLS is one step closer to a public MLS. We do not want that under any circumstances. We are very close to loosing control of something we built, pay for and maintain. It belongs to us, not google or anyone else. Promote your local MLS site. Don't give these people any more ammunition to use against us. Our MLS systems are not and never were inteded to be advertising, period. Individual agents advertise. The MLS is an offer of coopertion between members only. Please don't do it.

BTW, I can advertise my listings on base for free. Why in the world would you consider paying for it?

AaronSOLD · 10-22-2006, 07:51 PM

I agree with Karen

Eric Blackwell · 10-23-2006, 06:13 AM

There was a rather lengthy thread that discussed G!base when it first came out...many of us offered rather pointed opinions both for and against. I come down on the against side for many reasons offered in this thread...

http://www.realestatewebmasters.com/thread6733.html

Hope this helps

Best;

Eric

iviebaker · 10-23-2006, 07:39 AM

Wonderful! I was actually trying to find a discussion about Google Base on this forum. I will be sure to forward the link to that thread to the MLS board to review. We are trying to make an educated decission on what to do. I am not comfortable with G*Base from what I am reading. I think the MLS board should read that thread to get an idea of what might be going on.

I see that my visual tours are on there. I didn't put them on, myself. It must be a new thing....

Thanks for pointing me to this useful thread!

Calgary Agent · 10-23-2006, 07:52 AM

Ivie -

I can't imagine an MLS freely (or otherwise) giving G their entire inventory of listings, regardless of what arguments are made for the action.

Google is an aggregator, and what do you suppose they intend to do with all these listings once they become a "go to" source for local MLS listings?

iviebaker · 10-23-2006, 08:24 AM

That is why I am doing the research. Many people on the board do not understand what Gbase is (or what it could become). It was presented to us through our MLS Provider/Host as a new option.... (and now it's up for discussion). For most (if not all) of the people on the MLS board, this is something they hadn't heard of yet and we had a meeting (debate) about it last week on whether this would be a good thing or a bad thing. Now I am checking into this issue to see how other Realtors feel about it and learn more about what Gbase is.

I personally don't think it would be a good idea at this time to submit the MLS to Gbase. The more I read about it, the more hesitant I feel about it. I think it will take people away from contacting us for more information, in the long run. We WANT people to request information from us. We want them to ask to be contacted when new listings become available in our MLS. That's what auto email is for. People can contact us and request to be put on auto email alerts through the use of the MLS through the agents they contact. If we throw it on GBase, then what reason do they have to contact us, other than to get an agent to take them through the house? I think that is some cases, it might cause people to work with multiple agents instead on just contacting one and sticking with them.

I also don't like the idea of our listings being mixed in with FSBO listings.

There are others against it too, but not all. It's kind of split right now. I think we all need a better understanding of what Gbase is and could be in the future. Will is help or hurt us? Hmmmmmm...... And we can only guess about where it's going at this point.

I feel that our board should hold off at this time until we research it farther.

iviebaker · 11-04-2006, 07:33 AM

Update. Good news. Our board decided not to put all of our board listings on Google Base. Thanks for your input!

Eric Blackwell · 11-04-2006, 07:41 AM

Ivie;

That is great news IMHO. Thanks.

I hope that all MLSs follow the example of yours when it comes to these decisions.

Have a great weekend!

Eric

RonnieG · 11-04-2006, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iviebaker

Right now you can pretty much have your listings posted for free on sites like http://homes.point2.com/ . You'd sign up on the agent site to get you listings in for free. However, you can also pay for a Professional or Premium account for a monthly fee. Sounds like a pay for leads thing to me...

The Point2Agent Professional ans Premium sites offer additional features and functionality way beyond the free sites, and the monthly fee has nothing to do with buying leads. All listings on Homes.Point2.com are agent entered, so it is simply a way for listing agents to better advertise their listings to a wider audience as a result of those listings being shared with other Point2 members.

One of the major problems with what your board had proposed is that it would be to the benefit of the listing agents only, and would tend to cut buyer agents out of many transactions. IMO, the consumer is better served working with an independent buyer agent instead of listing agents on their own properties. So, not doing it was a good decision for many reasons.

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