Hauseit vs RealDirect

I've represented buyers on these fsbo listings by Real Direct. I've had no issues with it, other than it can be a little awkward when they hand you off to the owner (depending on the owners proficiency at managing and negotiating a sale). As long as you're offering buy-side agents at least 2.5%, you will have zero resistance from the agent community.

Keith Burkhardt
www.theburkhardtgroup.com

RStenta - this is what I'm talking about. The SE community doesn't exist anymore. It's all these discount brokers constantly slandering each other back and forth. Creating threads about each other.

This is what happens when you have too much time on your hands and can't face reality. Sorry, all you sketchballs continue to be blocked by my spam filters!

Meanwhile, another deal at 432 Park. Shall we?

LuxuryBroker - Not sure if you meant to write this in a different thread, but I am not a "discount broker" trying to slander another one (if anything, my post above mentioned pros and cons for each company...). I am truly a Condo owner who is having trouble deciding and wanted to see if anyone on Streeteasy could help make my decision!

Keith - Thanks for your response! But, I do know that you offer discounted services as well... My fears/concerns about RealDirect are based on traditional brokerages and agents who may not be as inclined as you are to work with them. For example, I have read that a major brokerage (Corcoran I believe) won't work with FSBO listings at all and not sure if Corcoran agents would avoid working with a company like RealDirect?

My only experience with Hausit is them constantly coming on here and shilling for themselves and when I raised a valid concern rather than answering it, they made a false personal attack. Not an indication of thr

The type of people I would want to work with.
Also their claim of working with the "top agents" seems spurious, and when questioned about it rather than answer they went into "Attack Mode."

You're correct I do list properties, we do have what I guess would be considered a discounted commission rate. But let's keep in mind that by law commissions cannot be fixed.

That said we provide a full service experience to our clients.

I don't see why any agent would not show a for sale by owner if you were offering a 2.5 to 3% Commission? if the agent doesn't show it the client will find it and call you directly.

We did close to 100 million dollars in sales this year. last year I was the 188 top-producing broker by gross sales in the country according to real Trends Wall Street Journal. And obviously I'm not hiding behind an anonymous moniker here on streeteasy. I've also been doing this year for 30 years.

Either direction you go best of luck!

Keith Burkhardt

Luxury broker is probably a big wannabe. Every one sets their own terms for their service. It is upto the consumer to decide who they like to do business with which is what the original poster to trying to decide.

I'm a boutique broker, so I probably am working lower volume than anyone else on this thread. However, I do have a decent sense of the current market, and the problem in the market right now is pricing. Buyers and sellers do not agree on the impact of the tax bill (which is, frankly, different in different price ranges) but, as a general statement, sellers who want 2017-dictated prices are watching their properties sit.
So I would say, go with whatever agent/firm you think will give you the most pricing assistance -- you don't want to go out pre-emptively too low, but you do want someone who will help you adjust if your first attempt doesn't work.
ali r.
{upstairs realty}

Im surprised how few people post a Zillow MMM

- https://www.zillow.com/homes/make_me_move/pmf,mmm_pt/globalrelevanceex_sort/40.703595,-73.980582,40.686772,-74.008048_rect/14_zm/

Eg for a few clicks...if you are thinking of moving it seems to make sense (though not if you are in a rush).

I was always thinking Streeteasy was going to go that way and take over the market but the new owners seem to be doing everything they can to screw it up....so i suspect it will be another startup that changes the industry seeing the original founders have longmoved on.

agree with 30years on Hauseit. I've seen so many of their promoters' posts on streeteasy and they seem so sketchy.
Three years ago I was going to list our condo myself and talked to Doug (realdirect) on the phone. He spent half an hour walking me through their services. He seemed very knowledgable and straightforward. He clearly didn't say things he knew I would want to hear so that I would sign up on the spot. I would have gone with Realdirect, except that we lucked out and sold our apartment to a neighbor before even listing it. Would not hesitate to go with Realdirect in the future.

The bottom line is if you're using a rebny member broker, all listings go into the same pipe and are found the same way by agents. And I don't think you can find any New York City property buyer or seller who is not aware of streeteasy. The most important part of all this is to find a broker who is knowledgeable and will work on your behalf, not just theirs.

There may be certain firms who shy away from dealing with owners directly, however I'm unaware of any such policy. And I've worked for many of the large firms in the past. However I think the reasoning would be they don't have any commission agreement in place. With the assisted sale a rebny member broker has an agreement with you and then lists the property on your behalf.

Just as we do on the buy side we provide a full service experience for sellers and offer a reduced commission rate. We're able to do this because we virtually have no overhead and I'm the broker. Anyone who criticizes this model doesn't understand free markets. We all always shop for not only best service but best price in all aspects of our Lives. From Financial Services, travel, buying food and jewelry. This is what smart consumers do. I've simply created a model to offer consumers a choice in what was once a one-size-fits-all market.

Keith Burkhardt
The Burkhardt Group

Well said. Consumers have a right to shop around for best combination of price and service in their judgement. A broker has a right to charge whatever they like for their service. As a consumer, I really like the discount model.

When I first got my RE Salesperson's license I was competing with about 1,500 agents selling coops downtown (say below 23rd St). Today you've got over 50,000 chasing those listings and an awful lot of them came on line when all you had to do was throw the door open and say "So, you want it?" so they know very little about how to sell or Real Estate in general and have no experience or even the concept of a true down market (the 2008 blip was nothing).

If the market does what I think it's going to do, most sellers will be hurt worse than they should because their Real Estate "professionals" aren't going to be firm enough in laying our what they need to do because they will be more worried about losing the listing than doing the right thing.

Agree, 2008 turned out to be a blip for the real estate market (at least in NYC). But as far as a financial crisis goes I think it was quite severe. I hate to come off here sounding like we're different or it can't happen here. But I feel like the contemporary New York City real estate market has been extremely resilient.

Other real estate markets post 2008 took quite a beating. The New York City Market barely missed a beat, basically just provided an opportunity for Savvy buyers to swoop in and make some deals.

I'm not saying that we are bulletproof, but we seem to have built up quite a resiliency to adverse Events. I think today is appropriate to mention and pay our respects to those lost on 9/11. Yet another significant event that New York bounced back from.

Unless part of your thesis on this potential upcoming crash has some protracted, devastating and far-reaching economic destruction. Wouldn't you agree the lessons learned have been sit tight and let it pass? Since ultimately you're not relying on your home for income, as long as you have a job that allows you to pay your mortgage, it's more of a psychological trauma than an actual long-term financial trauma. Because at the end of the day you've got a house your family somewhere. I think the big lesson learned is buy within your means, be a bit conservative sew-in that inevitable down cycle hits, you're in a position to ride it out.

Keith
TBG

'So when that inevitable'

In the early 2000s when NASDAQ crashed Alan Greenspan testified before Congress about the shape of the economy. On member asked a very smart question (I'm paraphrasing here): Since you've been telling us the economy has been sailing based on the Wealth Effect, what will happen now with Consumer Spending since everyone's stock portfolio is diminished?
Greenspan's answer shocked me. He said that their research showed people were not spending based on stock market gains but instead were largely using the equity in their homes, doing cash out refinancing, and spending that money. The statement sent a chill up my spine and I knew that any correction would lead to a crisis - and it did in much of the country.
Will NY Dodge a bullet again in the next downturn? I don't think so in part because prices "not coming down enough" last time has led to a bigger bubble this time, but we obviously won't know until it happens.
As far as what I would advise people:
If you are planning on staying where you are for 10+ years, ignore it - short term ups and downs shouldn't worry you.
If you were planning on selling in the 1 to 3 year horizon, seriously consider selling now instead.
If you are planning on buying in the next year, hold off and see what the market does.

Yea I'm a wannabe. That's why I spend all day on my couch posting paragraphs upon paragraphs on SE.

One man bucket shops calling each other sketchy, and creating threads about each other while the rest of us in the industry (who don't work for free) eat their lunch.

Business must be tough guys because this chat room reeks of desperation.

It doesn't get any better than this!

I agree 30, those were indeed some troubling times. And I knew many people who were using their houses like piggy banks, literally months after closing! I was building a house in Costa Rica at the time, entire developments that had been sold out (land) simply failed when all the North American buyers realized they could not use their home equity to build their home in CR.

No doubt the market is slowing, but the crash that was being set up in 2006 with so many glaringly obvious signs, even I was able to recognize something very bad was going to happen (so I started the Burkhart group and offered reduced commissions for rentals).

I remember selling a place at 124 Thompson Street, and then it was resold six months later at a 50% increase or something like that. We're just not seeing anything like that right now. And money is easier, but nothing like it was in 2005 6 7 Etc. I've always been very conservative, I remember in 2007 we were looking for a house, I was shocked at how much money the mortgage Banker told me I could borrow. I literally told him I would not lend myself that much money if I was my own Banker! Lol.

Personally I worry more about Equity markets, that's where most of my money is. As long as I can afford my house payment, I can ride out any real estate storm. And I follow a very good Market timer, who's kept me out of the worst of the storms.(Dan Sullivan)

I've been advising sellers the same, most likely better to sell now then wait a year or two. After this long bull market Run in real estate prices, it's hard to make an argument that things are going to continue along those lines. I'm thinking we see prices declines, but I don't see the kind of Crash You're Expecting.

Keith Burkhardt
The Burkhardt Group
#188th in the US /sales Wall Street journal/RealTrends

Keith,
I think we are largely in agreement except for the effects of market inertia which tend to be signficantly greater in Real Estate than the equity markets. Except for the last event, and even then only in our area, once the RE market starts receding it keeps doing so until it has well overcorrected, just as on the upswing it almost always continues to rise well past the point which could be justified ecenomically.

well, you know I hate to agree with you guys.

I am historically inclined to be quite bullish on the NYC market. I pulled back on that a little last year, guided by Digs' data that 2016 had been the peak.

And then... the tax bill. That was a middle finger to NYC properties! Buyers are certainly seeing opportunity in some market niches. $1mm- $2mm is as open as its been in awhile. Values have probably fundamentally changed, and that's an argument for sellers to take their profits and move on.

However, I don't know if that applies at all price points. Rates are still, historically, ridiculously low. I just had a buyer quoted 3.5% on a 7/1 ARM. Equities are bouncing around, but the Dow's still up 5% for the year, and most of my people look like they're going to have a nice bonus year. Properties that need a lot of work seem to have that work priced in -- if you're willing to buy an estate condition place, prices aren't bad. So I'm swinging around to being (cautiously) pretty neutral again.

ali r.
{upstairs realty}

Which bank Ali? 3.5 is very good. Properties needing gut Reno are clearling at $500 per sq ft discount to nicely finished.

300: Chase.

That is a very good rate.

To be fair to the Hauseit team, the original creator of this thread did end up working with a Hauseit partner broker and the listing now has an accepted offer:

see https://streeteasy.com/talk/discussion/44386-have-to-send-out-deal-sheet for the below:

"This is a genuine post from a Hauseit customer, not a different company. I ended up choosing to go with Hauseit because I thought that the anonymity of the fact that it was truly FSBO listing was the whole reason for paying for a flat fee listing service. If I went with Doug or Keith (who were both extremely nice when I spoke to them), I just felt that there may be some pushback from larger brokerages who don't want to work with "known" discount brokers. I think they would be extremely helpful for people who may feel less comfortable than I was in doing all of the work on my own."

Honestly, I'm a bit surprised that StreetEasy removed the popular thread on the above service's reviews. Perhaps because it got too popular. Very curious indeed.

If you want to see some actual reviews from customers on StreetEasy, interspersed from comments from other brokers and their various usernames, you can still see it using the WayBack Machine which is just awesome:

https://web.archive.org/web/20170624205251/https://streeteasy.com/talk/discussion/41463-hauseit-reviews-for-nyc

Not sure these comments matter at this point, it seems like no actual customers had a chance to put a word in before various brokers flooded this thread with off topic comments mixed with slightly negative comments (i.e. haven't worked with them but they seem sketchy LOL).

Also, why was this thread about someone's brand created in the middle of the night?

Let's play nice guys! No one needs to lose for you to succeed.

IP check on aisle 3!