posted by Mike Madison at 5:22 PM /
A very small number of real estate agents and brokerages dominate the market for home sales in Mt. Lebanon. I've been reading recently about Redfin, an online brokerage for the DIY crowd that seems to offer more service than a pure DIY setup yet still cuts commissions pretty dramatically -- "If you buy a property through Redfin's electronic service, Redfin Direct, Redfin refunds two-thirds of the commission that it receives from the seller back to you." The company is three years old. It started on the West Coast but has expanded to the Washington, D.C. / Baltimore area, and it's moving into Chicago next.
Check it out at Redfin. The company says that it plans to be in all "major markets" by the end of 2008. Is the Pittsburgh market "major" enough to make a push to bring Redfin here?
Check it out at Redfin. The company says that it plans to be in all "major markets" by the end of 2008. Is the Pittsburgh market "major" enough to make a push to bring Redfin here?
Labels: real estate
10 Comments:
I don't know why such services have not had more success in the Pittsburgh area. We used one to sell our home in Minneapolis - where they are very popular- several years ago with great success. The key factor I would look for is that the FSBO-service gets your house listed on the MLS. Then buyers will be able to find it when they browse realtor.com, etc. Good luck to those who try this one!
Everywhere in America these things are pretty successful. Keep in mind, we are in Mt. Lebanon. Check out that Foodland in the Lebanon Shops. We are living in the past.
Times have changed. Realtors must change with these times. They can still be successful without giving 1.5% of every sale to a huge Corporation like Prudential or Howard Hanna.
Um..what's wrong with the Foodland in the Lebanon Shops?!?
Foodland is a convenient and quick alternative to GE and Shop 'N Save. The charm of its distinct early 60's vibe is lost on some folks who expect something more upscale to serve Mt. Lebanon. Foodland itself, however, is in Castle Shannon (I think).
You mean besides the fact that its actually in Castle Shannon?
Well that's OK, we have the Market District...wait, that's Bethel Park. Ok, Shop n Save...still Castle Shannon. Hmm. Why dont we have a grocery store? Never thought about that.
The Lebanon Shops, while they have a bunch of great places that I like to shop, are not the most attractive storefronts in the area. I think that was the point of the other poster.
*CitizenA*
We do have the Giant Eagle in Virginia Manor Shops.
Speaking of discount realtors, Envirian is also available, while relatively new to the market. My neighbor listed her home through Envirian, and she said a challenge was that realtors from other agencies kept asking if it was legit and she suspects they may have been making less than positive comments about it to potential buyers because the realtor would earn a lower commission if they sold an Envirian-listed house.
Building a brand can be challenging, especially if those in the industry don't see the change as necessarily positive! With the Internet, though, it seems like many buyers do a lot of their own searching (a little of the realtor's work) anyway!
Roth Carpet used to be a grocery store.
The MTL Post Office used to be a grocery store.
Dollar General used to be a grocery store.
I went into the Foodland in Lebanon Shops (I guess that is Castle Shannon, I don't know, nor do I care)
Anyways, it hasn't been updated in at least 30 years. I don't know of any other place in Pittsburgh that hasn't been updated at least once. The store should be a Historic Landmark. It is totally unchanged! The butcher there looks like he has had the same job for 50 years. The freezers are loud, the floors are vintage and beat up....totally amazing.
The owner of the Foodland is also the new(about one year) owner of the Shop N Save on Castle Shannon Blvd. He also owns a couple other Foodlands and I have heard from the residents near those stores that he does little to update those stores either.
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