I’ve never been a believer in the Coming Soon concept, because it’s not in the best interest of the seller or buyer. It erodes the urgency that sellers enjoy as a hot new listing that just hit the MLS, and buyers can’t buy it today – at least that is how it is being presented, as a pre-marketing strategy.
It is the same as when a listing agent inputs a property on the MLS but won’t allow showings for a week or two. By the time that happens, you’ve been forgotten.
But I had a chance to test drive it this weekend, so I gave it a spin. The ‘Coming Soon’ feature is four days old, and there are only five listings in SD County utilizing the opportunity – and most of them are waiting weeks before MLS input:
I prefer to MLS-input the same day that the home can be shown, so hot buyers can rush right over. We had already planned to wait until after Father’s Day to allow for some extra spruce-up, so Kalpati will be on the MLS tomorrow.
But because this new Zillow feature could become popular, I initiated the “Coming Soon’ feature late Saturday afternoon to test it out – figuring that anyone who responds won’t want to see it until after Father’s Day anyway.
Here were the results for the first 24 hours (Father’s Day):
One person contacted me through the Zillow website for more information. If the offering was a 3,000sf house in Carmel Valley for less than $1,000,000, the responses would probably have been substantially better. A red-hot listing will have buyers demanding to see it, and wanting to make offers in the first few days. Will those agents wait the full 30 days and then insist on MLS-input so the seller receives maximum exposure?
Presuming that their stats are accurate, this demonstration helps show how powerful the Zillow machine can be. So far, they only want to capitalize by selling advertising to realtors so we can take advantage. What we do with it will be left up to each agent, and you can’t help but get the feeling that many listings may never make it to the MLS.
The industry is on a crash course with single agency, and/or transaction brokerage, like they have in Colorado. This describes their definitions of brokerage relationships, and includes a link to a pdf that has full descriptions:
http://cdn.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/DORA-DRE/CBON/DORA/1251627670231
The rest of us should admit it, and properly disclose to consumers.
The latest salvo:
http://www.inman.com/2014/06/13/zillow-coming-soon-listings-threat-to-the-mls-or-a-chance-to-evolve/
Zillow didn’t invent pocket listings or coming soons, and the practice would continue if Zillow gave it up.
It is how agents employ the practice that is in question. Do you let buyers see the house prior to it hitting the MLS? Will you sell it to a buyer prior to MLS input? Any buyer, or just one you represent?
If the spotlight was on the implementation, then we could get somewhere. Check the comments in these articles – just a bunch of realtor whine.
No one is paying attention JTR, their watching soccer
Smart move on Zillow’s part. If people got used to checking Zillow first for these exclusive coming-soons they will become the de facto national MLS.
90% of agents don’t add any value. So in the grand scheme of things single agency is not terrible.