Doyal Hodge is President and Chief Executive Officer of MarketLinx Solutions, a subsidiary of The First American Corporation and the nation’s leading provider of Web-based MLS services. Mr. Hodge has over 27 years of business management experience in public and private corporations. The last 10 years have been spent in the “hi-tech” industry.
Prior to founding MarketLinx Solutions in 1996, he was Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Celerity Systems, Inc. where he was a member of a management team that led the company through a successful IPO. He has also served as Vice-President and General Manager of Theta Systems, Inc., a computer services firm supplying technical services to companies such as Lockheed-Martin, Boeing and the U.S. Department of Energy.
Mr. Hodge, who is a CPA, is a graduate of the University of Tennessee with a B.S. in Business Administration.
I am flattered to be categorized as an “industry visionary”. My vision is from “down in the trenches” as an MLS Vendor, and therefore it may be filtered from my perspective by some of the day-to-day realities that I deal with. The reader should keep this in mind as he or she moves through this article.
I believe that the major forces affecting the real estate industry are: 1) the give and take over access to information, 2) control of and value-add to the information, 3) compensation surrounding the information, and 4) the continuing forces of technology that make information more available than ever before. The major changes are how the industry is trying to balance these forces as they relate to who accesses the information and at what level while continuing to provide a framework for the consumer to receive a valuable service from knowledgeable REALTORS®. We see this in the current questions concerning the use of “VOWs” (Virtual Office Websites), “E-Brokers,” and the issues surrounding the rights to the real estate listing information.
In my opinion the major corporate players are the large broker franchisors/consolidators (Cendant, Pru, GMAC, etc.) and the settlement and mortgage industries. Both groups are thoroughly involved in the real estate transaction, have a vested interest in maintaining and expanding their roles, and have the resources to affect change. (The reader should be aware that MarketLinx Solutions is a division of The First American Corporation, the nation's leading diversified provider of business information). Both groups have a great opportunity to utilize technology and their positions to provide better integrated information and services which will enhance the real estate transaction and provide additional value to the consumer through the REALTOR®. Let’s not forget that these entities are profit oriented and, therefore, need to support and enhance the process that has made them successful.
From my viewpoint as an MLS vendor, those that I would identify as “trendsetters” are the Executive Officers, Presidents and other leaders of the MLS Boards/Associations that are proactively working to enhance their members’ role. They are required to make decisions concerning issues that have yet to be fully defined. I greatly respect the ability and fortitude of those who can inspire and lead their organizations to move forward during these times of change.
The expectations of the real estate consumer have been shaped by the current Internet mentality of ubiquitous information for little or no costs. The public expects real estate listing information to be available in the same manner as researching information from a library database. This continues to offer opportunities for some to try to provide this to the public and creates continuing pressure on changing the historical model for obtaining listing information. We have seen the industry react to this through the use of REALTOR.com® and the emergence of VOWs and the E-brokers.
I believe the industry should continue to try to educate and inform the consumer that access to the information is just a starting point in the transaction. The full services of a REALTOR® are where the consumer receives the significant value in the process. I fear that this is sometimes missed in the discussions relating to accessing the information. By supporting better integrated information and services when the consumer uses a full service REALTOR® the Broker, REALTOR® Association and the industry as a whole will enhance the process and all who participate in it.
I am not qualified to advise Brokers on how to manage their business. I would believe that they face the same issues as most businesses do today—which, in my opinion, is how to utilize technology and people to help them optimize their costs while increasing their revenue opportunities. Many brokers have added to their sources of revenue by entering into joint venture relationships with mortgage and settlement companies. Regardless of the approach brokers take, like most things it takes hard work and constant management.
We know of two leading Associations (Houston and Pacific West) who have broker and member profitability as a major thrust. This is recent. It directs the Associations and MLSs to deliver the services that will assist with profitability. It is a tough job to deliver such services without straying over the line into the areas which the brokers feel are their areas for differentiation. The changing industry demands changes at all levels, and the Associations and MLSs are not exceptions.
My role in the real estate industry is to try to provide my clients, MLS Boards/Associations, with the best tools to support their members. By providing them with a fair-priced product/service that continues to evolve with technology and their needs, I will be arming them with the technology to address the changing environment that they will continue to face. I believe that providing access to open systems which link and integrate related information for our clients is the best way to accomplish this.
I must confess that most of my reading is done for enjoyment and does not directly pertain to my business outlook or the industry. Like most people in the industry, I review many of the Real Estate related periodicals and on-line sources of information. Outside of these, I do recommend the Harvard Business Review to which I subscribe. I find it very pertinent to ongoing business decisions in the areas of quality, focus and dealing with clients and personnel.
For anyone, including MLS Vendors, to stay relevant in the future is to be able to reassess your role in meeting the needs of your clients or members. The current approach may become ineffective due to changes in your customers’ needs and perceptions. To be successful you need to be capable of changing to meet these needs in a manner where you can efficiently implement and deliver your service to your customers.
