Top Agents feature is no longer on Streeteasy

Hi @moscowhea: We have restructured this program and replaced it with the Building Experts program, which is currently a pilot program designed to increase contacts for agents and improve the consumer experience on StreetEasy’s building pages. StreetEasy PRO membership did not affect whether or not an agent would be featured in the Top Agents section. Top Agents in a building were calculated using an algorithm that factored in the number of sales and recency.

The reason for this shift is because the Top Agents program lacked clarity around agents who were truly qualified to represent buildings as “experts.” StreetEasy’s Building Experts program does that by identifying agents who have previous experience transacting deals in respective buildings, which is a better consumer experience.

You can learn more about the Building Experts program here: http://streeteasy.com/building-experts.

I know that on Street Easy, one broker was listed as the top agent for the building. However, he was the WORST agent. He just sold more because he lived in the building.

I went to see an apartment he was showing. He proudly showed how he brought in his people to "upgrade" the apartment for showing, one of which was crown moulding. I pointed out that there were gaps; he said the wood shifts and needed caulking. I opened a closet and found some of the left over moulding. It was like a STYROFOAM PLASTIC. People I knew who lived in the building said this guy was more like a used care salesman than a broker.

"Worst" for whom? He moved the apartments didn't he? If I want a Ford, but see that the salesman has hung fuzzy dice from the rearview mirror, I buy the car and remove the dice. If I think the salesman is sleazy or incompetent, I use my agent to deal with him, and minimize my contact.

Thanks for your explanation, StreetEasy support. Yes, StreetEasy Pro membership would not make one a top agent, but if a StreetEasy pro had a closing in the building - his/her name would be displayed next to the top agents. Part of the $75 fee would cover this service for added exposure to buyers and sellers in the building, and now this service is gone. The pilot program you are mentioning only covers 250 buildings in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens. How about thousands of other buildings? This change is a punch in the stomach for all StreetEasy Pros, IMHO.

"The reason for this shift is because the Top Agents program lacked clarity around agents who were truly qualified to represent buildings as “experts.” StreetEasy’s Building Experts program does that by identifying agents who have previous experience transacting deals in respective buildings, which is a better consumer experience."

Previously, a top agent was only listed if they had conducted a transaction in the building. As far as I can tell, the building experts program does the same thing. But let's see how this new program truly benefits the consumer, which according to the above SE post is the "goal":

1.) agents are now charged to be part of the pilot program. I can only assume this will continue when the full roll-out starts. If you truly care about the consumer, what does charging an agent have to do with who is best qualified in a certain building? What if an agent who has conducted 70 percent of the business in a particular building refuses to pay to be recognized? Does that mean the agent who has done one deal is the true building expert? I think not.

2.) I assume the "experts" will be questioned about their familiarity with the building, so that the consumer can truly feel comfortable that they are dealing with a building expert. My experience in obtaining more information on this program is that this is not the case. I was told I qualify for X building and that the charge would be $300-and change through May.

3.) well jeez. This just feels like a slightly shinier version of Trulia's zip-code buying. I have to imagine, at the very least, the algorithm or system in which a participating broker is assigned a building is actually based on their history in the building, since you are using no other information related to their "expertise." When I sent my inquiry to streeteasy, I received a response that I qualify for X building. I have sold one apartment in this building, and it was about 6 months ago. ONE. In 2014 alone, I can think of three buildings in which I sold two apartments in each. There are 2-3 buildings where I regularly sell anywhere from 1-3 units a year. For two of these building, I KNOW for a fact no other broker has sold more over the past few years and no other broker has the intimate knowledge of the building which I have.

So apologies to you SE, but you are not trying to enhance the program for the benefit of the consumer. Nothing I have discovered or seen about this program has anything to do with the consumer. It's about making money. Which is fine. I'm all about making money. But let's not dress it up as anything else than what it is and make claims that it's all for the consumer. The day Zillow bought streeteasy is the day I knew things were changing. The question was how quickly it would happen. Question answered.

Hi @Mets79 - Thank you for feedback on the Building Experts program. As with all our products, we are constantly evaluating them to make them the best they can be.

We do a lot of testing at StreetEasy in order to provide the best experiences possible. Consumers loved the idea of contacting an expert, but did not feel as though this was accomplished through the Top Agent experience for a few reasons:

1) It was not understood why the agents were listed or what qualified them to appear in the box.
2) There were too many agents (often up to ten) and consumers found the list hard to compare and navigate.
3) It was difficult to find contact information for the agents listed.
4) Many of the agents listed did not have completed profiles and consumers were frustrated when they clicked through to find out more information that was not available.

With the Building Experts program we wanted to limit the number of experts shown on the page at a given time, better showcase the agent, their qualifications, their photo, their brokerage, their contact information and most importantly, make the agent as easy to contact as possible.

The pilot only launched a month ago, but we are seeing incredibly positive feedback on all these fronts, including very high quality contacts. Higher quality than with the old Top Agent experience.

To more specifically address your questions,

1) Even if an agent has done fewer deals than another agent in a building, they have still done two transactions in the last 24 months (or have one active listing and one transaction in the same time period) and are still very much an expert who knows the building and can get a buyer or seller to the closing table. This is the most important part.

2) Every building has a different CPM cost based on amount of inventory, cost of inventory and a few other factors. It is not “one size fits all.”

3) The pilot only included 250 buildings, so there are lots of building experts who did not have the opportunity to participate in the pilot. As long as agents are claiming their deals, we will have very accurate information on their expertise and will be reaching out to them as we release more buildings.

We thank you for your feedback and we're happy to answer any other questions you may have.

Hi Streeteasy Support, I honestly find the criteria you are using as quite frightening. I have met brokers that have done multiple deals in a building that are barely competent. Just because they have gotten a couple of deals of deals to the closing table doesn't mean that they are an expert (in the industry or even in a particular building). Have you considered creating an industry qualification? I believe you have an excellent business opportunity here to raise the bar of brokers in this town. Just because there is a required program brokers must complete in order to sell- that bar is set ridiculously low. New Yorkers have the expectations set ridiculously high on everything else- but when it comes to the broker community very few stand out as experts - perhaps it is time to change that, and Streeteasy is positioned to assist in that.

WTF is a "building expert"?

Thanks for clarifying some points streeteasy. I am still unclear how charging agents for the right to be a "building expert" is a benefit to the consumer. To me it would appear to create a conflict of interest. If the intent is truly to create a "best of the best" list, it should not be simply determined by the agent who is willing to pay for the privilege and who has happened to do two deals in the past year. "Building Knowledgeable," maybe. Building expert? Not so much. Not when you introduce a charge to be one of those "experts."