41. Do You Trust an Algorithm As Your Fiduciary?

from Disruptance Hosted by Eric Forney

What is the future of real estate and technology? In this episode, Eric Forney and Michael Bounds discuss Zillow's recent acquisition of ShowingTime, not long after their acquisition of DotLoop, and the repercussions this has on the real estate industry. They explain how the home buying process has friction in it for a reason, because it is a large, important transaction that has massive impact on the buyer and seller. While it might soon be possible for the consumer to book a showing immediately on Zillow, what that doesn't include is the filter of someone working with an agent, where the agent has qualified this person as someone interested in buying, and it's not a random person just being easily allowed into a listed home. They discuss how Zillow isn't innovating anything really, just acquiring companies in other service areas to real estate, and how it's so important to be at a company that owns its technology so your CRM and CRM data don't also get bought up by Zillow. They share all the work Keller Williams has done over the last 4 years to prepare for this shift in real estate where data and tech have become the most useful and combative part of the job.