Welcome to Charleston Real Estate Blog Sign in | Help

No registration required, what's the catch

One point of debate in the real estate net is whether to require registration to search the Charleston MLS. Some Charleston real estate agents think that if they don't require registration, real estate consumers can use their site to find a home but they won't make any money because they didn't capture contact information and convert them to a client.

Others, myself included, (and I've gone back and forth on the subject) feel that it's better to provide you with the information you are looking for without requiring registration (and that you can find elsewhere anyway) and if and when you're ready, then hopefully you'll choose to use them (me) as your real estate agent.

So there's no catch.

A perfect example. I was with a client the other day who told me how much they enjoyed searching the MLS on my website. And that registration wasn't required because if it was, they would never have done so and would have found another real estate website (and agent) to use.

As it says on the front page of my website:

I'd love to work with you and help you find the perfect home in the greater Charleston area. But I'd prefer to start our relationship on the right foot by not asking for your personal information so that I can call you on the phone and bother you. After all, you came here to search for homes, not be hassled by another real estate agent. There’s no catch so happy house hunting! When you’re ready, let me know how I can be of help to you.

And there are two points I'd like to highlight in the above paragraph. After all, you came here to search for homes, not be hassled by another real estate agent & when you're ready, let me know how I can be of help to you.

Because finding a home is the easy part.  

Getting a contract negotiated and ratified, obtaining financing, dealing with inspections and so much more are the elements where the experience of a real estate professional is of the most benefit to a real estate consumer.

So unless you want to save a favorite, save a search or get listing alerts when a property that meets your search criteria comes on the market, you don't have to register to search the Charleston MLS. Charleston real estate, search the Charleston MLS with no registration required

Because after all, you don’t really want to be a lead, do you?

Published Monday, August 31, 2009 6:28 AM by Howard Arnoff

Comments

# Would you rather be a client or a lead

The answer should be obvious. Of course, you'd rather be a client rather than a commodity being sold.

Tuesday, September 01, 2009 7:22 AM by Charleston Real Estate Blog

# re: No registration required, what's the catch

I find myself constantly questioning this issue too. My site serving Denton County Texas is a No Registration Required site too, and even before all this recent chatter debating the matter came up the last few weeks I really started questioning it again.

You see, I have discovered, mostly by the voluntarily registered users informing me that "their agent" did not have a MLS search similar to mine, and that their agent suggested they come use mine. I don't even know their agent. I will be writing more about this more soon, and I am all for helping folks out, but people need to understand that after 10K page views on my MLS search I start getting charge per page. So I am paying for their agent that is not making services available to their client.

Regardless, Keep Fighting the Good Fight Howard!

Friday, September 11, 2009 11:32 PM by Jay Myers

# re: No registration required, what's the catch

Jay, thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts but it isn't much of a fight to provide a search with no registration required, to quote someone on a different subject, let the chips (or clients) fall as they may.

Saturday, September 12, 2009 5:24 AM by Howard Arnoff

# re: No registration required, what's the catch

You sound like a desperate Stealtor.

Saturday, September 19, 2009 4:40 PM by Paul O.

# re: No registration required, what's the catch

And Paul, when you get a call on your listing, do you always only show and sell your personal listing or ... in that (sarcasm ahead) once in a great while when that person doesn't like your listing, do you show them other homes that other realtors might have listed. Stealtor, huh!

As to requiring or not requiring registration, it isn't desperation, it's simply based on my understanding human behavior.

Sunday, September 20, 2009 4:31 AM by Howard Arnoff
New Comments to this post are disabled