What Are Webhooks and Why Are They So Important for Real Estate?
Real estate runs on data. Teams advise their customers about crucial decisions based on their access to up-to-the-minute data. The accuracy and timeliness of MLS data are vitally important to the industry. If you haven't been following developments around MLS data delivery closely, you might not understand exactly how it's changing or what it means for you and your business. In this post, we take a dive into the technical side of MLS data delivery, so you understand the changes that are coming and what they could mean for your business. The importance of MLS data refreshes Brokers, agents, and their customers need to know essential information, like: When properties list When prices change When listings already have an offer When listings are under contract When listings are taken off the market Incorrect (or delayed) information can have a serious impact on the ability to close deals. The consequences can be serious! As a data aggregator, one of the most common questions we get at Constellation1 is, "How often do you refresh your data?" That's because everyone wants the latest and freshest data. But how is MLS data updated in the first place? How does MLS data get updated? Multiple listing services (MLSs) are vast networks of regional databases updated by individual agents and admins. The most accurate, up-to-date information is available in the MLS at any time. But what happens when you don't have direct access to an MLS, or if you're trying to work with multiple MLSs at the same time? The solution is putting all your data in one place, which involves setting up data feeds and putting them together. This is a lot trickier than it sounds, and then there's the question of how updated MLS data gets from the database to your computer. Until very recently, the only answer was polling. What is polling? If you thought we were going to be talking about elections, think again! In information technology, polling is a technique where a client (in the IT sense of the word) "asks" or polls a server for new data. Think of it like calling up your grandma to ask her how she's doing. Here's a diagram to show how clients and servers relate to each other: In the mid-aughts, polling was implemented as the industry standard for updating MLS data. If you had an MLS feed, your system would poll the server the MLS database was hosted on at regular intervals. The industry standard has been every 15 minutes, but some servers and sites might do it more or less frequently, even as little as once a day! To continue the grandma analogy, polling is a little bit like calling her every 15 minutes and asking if she has any updates. If she does, she tells you, and if she doesn't, she doesn't say anything. You hang up and wait another 15 minutes, and so on. The issue with polling is that you're using resources inefficiently. You're calling your grandma a lot, spending time when there might not be any updates. You might poll four times in one hour and not get any updates, but then get an avalanche of changes and not learn about them until 14 minutes later. This has serious business consequences. As the demand for real-time data has skyrocketed in recent years, polling has put a strain on data providers and their teams. Thankfully, technology has moved on, and the real estate industry is catching up. The solution: webhooks. What are webhooks and what are the implications for real estate? If polling can be compared to calling your grandma every 15 minutes for an update, webhooks can be compared to your grandma calling you when she has something to report (or sending you a text message), whether that's every five minutes or five hours (or longer). Webhooks are a technique for servers to provide clients (again, in the IT sense of the word) with real-time information as it happens. In fact, you're probably already familiar with webhooks: if you've ever received a push notification on your phone, you've been on the receiving end of a webhook: a real-time notification of an update as it happens. It's hard to understate what a big deal this is for the real estate industry. Imagine your system receiving text messages and updating key information almost instantaneously. Webhooks improve on all the benefits of polling and eliminate the drawbacks, which include a huge amount of resources to ensure it goes smoothly. Now, MLS data can update in near real-time, with no more lag between polling times. The result: better, more accurate data that's easier (and cheaper) to get. Webhooks: the new RESO standard The Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) helps set standards for the entire industry, including MLS data. It has recommended webhooks as the way of the future, improving the delivery and availability of data across the real estate industry. Not only that, webhooks will allow for faster data speeds, fewer data errors and lags, and lower costs thanks to less IT infrastructure and personnel, resulting in a win-win-win for MLSs, brokerages, and consumers. Leading the way in webhook implementation We at Constellation1 are the real estate industry's data experts, and we're continuously seeking to innovate our technology and improve our services for our customers. We've become an industry leader in the implementation of webhooks, as we reported in a recent press release and announced at the RESO 2022 fall conference. We initially launched webhooks as a pilot project with our friends at RE/MAX. Webhooks aren't a new technology, but their application in real estate is, and RE/MAX helped test the concept with us to prove that it works. You can read more about it here. If you're interested in learning more, check out the video below of our presentation at RESO 2022 with Rick Herrera, Vice President of R&D, Data Services and Kevin Yao, Senior Cloud Engineer. To view the original article, visit the Constellation1 blog.

Engel & Volkers and Pacaso Form Strategic Partnership
Pacaso, the technology-enabled real estate marketplace which helps people buy and co-own a luxury second home, announced a strategic partnership with Engel & Vӧlkers. The relationship introduces a new ownership type, co-ownership, to Engel & Völkers' full-service luxury brokerage in more than 35 of the top second home destinations around the world in which Pacaso currently operates. Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) and its members defined the increasingly common category of co-ownership as a property type, and the partnership with industry leaders such as Engel & Völkers further cements co-ownership as a mainstream buying decision. "Agent and brokerage relationships are instrumental in Pacaso's success and growth," said Vice President of Industry Relations Marnie Blanco. "As the category-creating pioneer in luxury second home co-ownership, we are thrilled to strategically align with Engel & Völkers, a long-standing globally-recognized brokerage, and its network to continue to introduce more prospective buyers to the modern way to own a second home." Pacaso partners closely with interested real estate agents and brokerages to help clients buy, sell, and own a second home. Real estate agents representing buyers who purchase a share of a Pacaso earn a 3% referral commission, along with the opportunity to earn equity rewards. Pacaso manages the entire process, from scheduling a home tour and answering client questions, to managing inspections, escrow, title, and reporting. "As a global brand with a strong presence in so many premier lifestyle markets, we understand the value of presenting new ways for our clients to claim ownership in beautiful properties in beautiful places," said Anthony Hitt, president and CEO of Engel & Völkers Americas. "With Pacaso as a trusted partner, our advisors and our clients have more opportunities than ever before." Together, Pacaso and Engel & Völkers have sold co-owned luxury second homes in popular destinations such as Park City, Aspen, Vail and Malibu. Paul Benson, co-founder and CEO of nearly 40 Engel & Völkers shops, elaborated, "I think we all agree that second home ownership is more desirable than ever. Pacaso has entered the market at the perfect time to offer creative options that allow homeowners to not only enter the second home market, but also to allow well-traveled homeowners options to have multiple properties around the world. I am thrilled that Engel & Völkers and Pacaso are joining forces to help clients find their dream luxury second home that best fits their lifestyle." Pacaso generated nearly $300 million in revenue in 2021, the company's first full year and sold approximately 400 Pacaso units. The company now operates in more than 35 top second home destinations around the world and plans to expand to more than 30 new markets in 2022. Real estate agents and industry professionals who are interested in learning more about the co-ownership category and how they can work with Pacaso can visit the company's website.

Jessica Edgerton of LeadingRE Leads Worldwide Broker Embrace of RESO
RESO volunteer Jessica Edgerton is the Executive Vice President of Operations and Corporate Counsel for Leading Real Estate Companies of the World. Her role allows her to bring RESO standards to 70 different countries represented by 550 member brokerages of LeadingRE. The worldwide scope of her position is fitting, given that she moved around the world regularly as a child, spending time in Kenya, the Dominican Republic and throughout Central America while her father helped set up educational programs for USAID. RESO Discovery Edgerton entered the world of real estate as Associate Counsel at the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). At the time, she couldn't understand why an entire organization was devoted to data standards in real estate...until she discovered how discordant real estate data standards really were. "After hearing from brokerages, I began to understand the monumental nature of what RESO was grappling with," said Edgerton. She saw that between the MLSs (REALTOR®-owned or otherwise), small and large brokers, independent and franchise brokerages, and LeadingRE, there was a lot of room for confusion. "Data is the lifeblood of this industry," said Edgerton. "We cannot function day to day, week to week or with a business plan for years ahead without this resource." To Edgerton, RESO's goal – a universal language for real estate data to ensure clarity and transparency – reminds her of the challenges of Esperanto, a universal second language for international communication created in the late 1880s. "RESO is basically trying to get the real estate industry to speak Esperanto," she said. The Broker Angle Based on Edgerton's own experiences, the key to progress is finding more opportunities for broker-owners to become part of RESO conversations. RESO recruitment efforts include exposing and addressing challenges that are important to brokers. For example, RESO's most popular conference session on broker pain points has led to a significant number of initiatives, including NOW (Networked Office and Web), LEAP (Listing Exchange and Access Policy), and the new RESO educational primer course and designation, WWRED (Working with Real Estate Data). The most recent session elevated the discussion on a wide range of broker issues, from creating better roster data standards to the continued improvement of the consistency in Web API implementations. Edgerton noted that clear communication between brokers and their tech vendors and support staff is critical. Brokers have to understand how their data is flowing from vendor to brokerage and beyond. "I think today we have reached a new level of understanding among brokers. They get that this is the key to not just survival, but to ensure that they are winning over their competition," Edgerton said. RESO Implementation For Edgerton, when it comes to real estate data, "the gold standard is RESO." It's why LeadingRE's involvement in RESO has flourished and why she is personally committed to seeing RESO's impact grow. "I am passionate about it," Edgerton said, noting that LeadingRE is on the cusp of deploying RESO-compliant projects that include a new website and updated data feeds spanning its entire network. Edgerton knows that implementing RESO standards globally within LeadingRE is not going to happen overnight. "We've got members in over 70 countries – a lot of different brokerages – and our data is coming in from a lot of different sources, but RESO has been the tool, the resource for us to reach whole new levels of organization and sanity," she explained. Without RESO standards, managing data flow can be cumbersome, frustrating and time consuming, said Edgerton. By contrast, RESO offers, in Edgerton's words, a "beautiful, crystalized, accepted industry-tested solution." In the future, when LeadingRE develops new data feeds, they will be using RESO standards. Less time spent on custom data feeds means more "room for integration and growth," she said. The Sparks Having seen so much of the world at such a young age, improving real estate on a global scale is something Edgerton was wired to accomplish. Raised by writers and educators, she also became an exceptional communicator, earning a Master's in Journalism in her hometown at Indiana University Bloomington after graduating from Oberlin College in Ohio. She went on to Law School at Indiana University School of Law–Bloomington and excelled at litigation. But Edgerton's image of what litigation would be collided with the reality of immersing herself in it. "I had this insanely naïve sense of what litigation was all about," she confessed. "I found it somewhat pointless. People were spending money just to continue fighting for the sake of fighting...for years." While Edgerton continued her dedication to the law, she found her industry niche via a real estate appraisal management startup. She discovered that the key to leveraging the law was preventing litigation before it began, through corporate risk management and implementing robust contractual review processes and procedures. The Shift Edgerton's entrée into real estate coincided with an exciting new chapter of motherhood for Edgerton while living in a downtown Chicago high-rise. One day, while pregnant with her first child, a note appeared under her door that said, "Hi, I am hoping to form a group of fellow pregnant women at our building." The note was signed by Constance Freedman. Freedman, currently the Founder and Managing Partner of Moderne Ventures, was at the time a Managing Director of NAR's Second Century Ventures. Eventually, Freedman recommended that Edgerton apply for an associate general counsel position at NAR. Edgerton was hired and immediately knew she had found her niche. Her role at NAR led Edgerton to join LeadingRE more than three years ago. "It's a world-class group of people that I get to work with – staff, members and industry colleagues," she said. Marching Forward Education is an area that Edgerton describes as "a huge passion." Her responsibilities at LeadingRE include overseeing its educational services, and one of her favorite projects at NAR involved developing risk management materials for members. Her decision to take the position at LeadingRE was rooted in learning. "I would not only be able to continue to develop educational materials but own that whole tranche. I couldn't say no," she said. Edgerton is excited about the next in-person RESO conference this October in Kiawah Island, South Carolina. "There is something so important about everybody coming together and learning together," she said. "I wouldn't miss it." Edgerton lives in Chicago with her husband, three children, and their oversized and completely untrainable dog. She spends her time with her children, visiting the city's exceptional sites and museums (her favorite is the Field Museum) and enjoying a perfect professional fit at LeadingRE. RESO is thrilled that she is dedicating a portion of her busy life to increasing the use of data standards in the real estate industry.

Addressing Expansion Challenges Head On: Real Estate Brokers Find Answers Through RESO
A conversation on real estate brokerage opportunities with Bill Fowler, Senior Director of Industry Relations at Compass The United Nations (UN) is an international organization that was created to promote peace and security. Amidst a variety of belief systems across the nations of the world, and its goal is to create cooperation and harmony among its members. "RESO is the UN of real estate," says Bill Fowler, Senior Director of Industry Relations at Compass. "It's the most important organization in the industry right now, because we can all get together – competitors and people that we maybe don't agree with fundamentally on big issues – and have conversations that are outside of the normal boundaries that keep us apart." Fowler spoke with us about how RESO data standards can help with the expansion of brokerages like Compass and about the challenges that he and others in the broker community still face today. At the top of that list of RESO benefits is "a platform to have a discussion" about data services and data policies. "This [RESO] is a room where we can be ourselves and be true and honest and not have to worry about what happens outside of that room," said Fowler. "What RESO can do is provide an atmosphere of cooperation." With approximately 17,000 agents across the U.S., Compass has become the country's largest independent real estate brokerage in a relatively short period of time. Compass is self-described as both an innovative residential real estate firm and a technology company. Using proprietary software built by their own engineers, designers and strategists, their intent is to make searching for and selling real estate more intelligent and seamless. Using a modern data transport like the RESO Web API is critical to advancing real estate technology, said Fowler. "A lot of the developers that Compass has hired come from places where API is standard and has been in use since the inception of the technology." According to Fowler, the universal adoption of the RESO Web API can fuel more rapid growth. Tech-forward companies have been asking for a modern API and full data sets for years. Yet dependence on legacy technology like the outdated Real Estate Transaction Standard (RETS) has diverted attention away from making the upgrades necessary to fully fuel Web API services. "When we walk into a new market, we would prefer to use an API," said Fowler. But the reality is that the Web API hasn't been fully implemented or "doesn't quite have the data that we expect." In those cases, said Fowler, "We're just gonna get a RETS feed, and we're gonna run with that." "We know we have to stop," he confessed. "Real estate has happened to be the place where RETS is just the language, and we all understand that's something that needs to change." Meanwhile, Compass continues to push for more API adoption, and Fowler shared how he thinks it would be easier to innovate using MLS data. "The MLS Board of Directors room is the place where everything either stops or goes," said Fowler. "We as a community need to look at this much more collaboratively. It's not that the MLSs don't want to give us what we want. It's not that they're actively trying to stifle business. It's really that they're only doing what they're allowed to do." What needs to happen to foster change? "The menu of services needs to change, and we can do all of those things together," said Fowler. "Pointing the finger at the MLS repeatedly, I think, is not doing anybody any good. It's companies like Compass and the MLSs working together to see that when we order off the menu, that we have the options that we need." Working together to achieve a common goal sounds familiar, like maybe something that the U.N.'s Dag Hammarskjöld, Kofi Annan or António Guterres could get behind. If RESO is the place where differing ideologies come together to solve common problems, then it's important for its leaders to engage directly in these issues with people like Mr. Fowler.

RESO Remote: Encore Recap
The Opening Act The Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) held its second digital conference in late October, "RESO Remote Encore: The Standards Collection." With a +20% percent jump in attendance over the previous conference (which had +30% growth over its prior conference), RESO Remote Encore was a smash hit. The week was as much a celebration as a conference, as the culmination of some major industry initiatives were highlighted. RESO released its entirely rebuilt, automated certification stack. The newly published "Working With Real Estate Data" course was revealed. The Data Dictionary and Web API standards specifications that will finally bring the entire industry into one single standard were voted on and approved by the volunteer workgroups. New members in new verticals and international organizations highlighted the speaker list. Like every RESO conference, there was music, laughter, great speakers and a highly intelligent group of people getting work done in the live workgroup meetings and lively receptions. Jump to Links Use the links below to view a recap of each day's events: Day 1: Business Track | RESO Today | Standards as an Imperative | Rentals in the MLS | New Verticals, New Countries | Revealing the New Certification Stack | Roundtables Day 2: Technical Track | What's in the Buckets | Maxing Out the Web API & What's Next at CMLS | The Whole Digital House | Standards as a Platform | Using Web API to Deliver More Services Day 3: Pain Points | All Workgroup Meetings | Internet Tracking | UPI | Transport | Distributed Ledger | Cross-Platform Interop. | Data Dictionary | R&D | Broker Advisory | Payloads The Standards Collection The theme of this conference focused on musical standards. RESO's workgroup leaders tend to be musicians and rockers at a surprisingly common rate! The Standards Collection theme lent itself to the RESO band's rendition of Willie Nelson's "On The Road Again," the Lost Lyrics reception by realtor.com and the Name That Tune mixer held by Zillow. There were also special cameo (Cameo) appearances by Alice Cooper and Snoop Dogg to thank the RESO volunteers for their work. You read that correctly. If you weren't in the room where it happened, you'll just have to ask those who joined us live. Along with our musical guests, RESO volunteers were thanked in a video montage by leaders of many influential organizations in the industry, including: National Association of REALTORS­® Zillow Group Coldwell Banker Compass HomeServices of America RE/MAX Redfin Century 21 eXp Realty Windermere Better Homes and Gardens CMLS Click here to read the full recap of RESO Remote: Encore!

RESO Fuels A.I. Innovation: How to Enter the U.S. Market Effectively
Restb.ai is a leader in real estate computer vision solutions, blazing a trail other PropTech firms outside the U.S. are likely to follow. Headquartered in Barcelona, Spain, the start-up leverages artificial intelligence (A.I.) to automatically tag and classify property photos with real estate-specific information. Restb.ai technology is used by fellow RESO members Midwest Real Estate Data (MRED) and TRIBUS, among others. In a video interview, Nathan Brannen, VP of Product and Sales at Restb.ai, discussed the role that RESO plays in helping A.I. companies like Restb.ai enter the U.S. market effectively. Brannen revealed how A.I. start-ups and other PropTechs can speed up their development and understand how the U.S. market works by tapping into the resources RESO offers. Restb.ai offers several different A.I. applications related to computer vision. "Our A.I. analyzes the property photos to extract things related to the real estate world and things that would be important to agents or/and buyers. So that includes things like room type classification, feature identification," said Brannen. Features such as hardwood floors or stone countertops allow consumers to search properties listed for sale that have the kinds of specifics that consumers want. Brannen noted that Restb.ai leverages its A.I. and computer vision in other ways, too, including analyzing the condition of the home – or even a particular room. He also said that Restb.ai can automatically determine with its computer vision technology if a photo is compliant with MLS rules. The goal is to make the home-buying process easier. "RESO has been very helpful with the data standards and having the Data Dictionary," said Brannen. "We've seen how varied things can be in different markets." According to Brannen, the RESO Data Dictionary has served as "a kind of blueprint" of the features Restb.ai can tag. "What are they called? How can we translate it to all the sites that already exist? It just makes our life a whole lot easier. It's almost like someone did a lot of our work for us by getting all that in line before we got started." As a European firm, attending a RESO conference helped Restb.ai better understand the U.S. market, Brannen said. "Being over in Spain, we weren't too familiar with the different conferences that existed," he said. Attending a RESO conference turned out to be the best place for Restb.ai's leadership to understand how the U.S. system works, who the players were and, he added, "What are the unique things we need to do to work in this market? It's almost a community that has been so easy to get up to speed and to really understand what we need to do and what we need to build for the U.S. market." Throughout this process, Brannen has become an advocate of RESO and would recommend RESO to other A.I. and PropTech start-ups. "It's really where a lot of the decisions being made on the future of this space are happening," he said. Brannen noted that RESO is not only good for Restb.ai but for all new technology companies, including the competition. "It's like a rising tide lifts all ships, and I think that's kind of what RESO is helping do. They may be helping our competitors, but at the same time, they're creating this environment where there's competition and innovation. If you want to be on the forefront of that and see what's coming, you have to be here." View the full 4:30 video on RESO's YouTube channel.

RESO Universal Property Identifier (UPI) Goes Global
RESO's well-known standard for a Universal Property Identifier (UPI) has picked up steam, not just in the U.S. but also internationally. The RESO UPI Workgroup's chair, Mark Bessett, traveled to Malaga, Spain last year to speak about the expansion of this standard, and the talk generated wide interest from a number of audiences. The Convergence conference in Malaga brought together the technology community for an intense dialogue with regulators, policy makers, industry influencers and members of the social impact community. Bessett spoke at a number of workgroup meetings and roundtables where the broad range of attendees could learn more about how universal identifiers can benefit their organizations. UPIs are of great interest to organizations looking for more accurate, more informative and more easily tracked information on properties across their nations. They allow a property, or even a subproperty component, to be identified through related property facts. The identifier and related facts ensure that organizations and systems can accurately rely upon the UPI for record keeping. Unlike parcel numbers and other government records that can be duplicated across different territories, the UPI provides a single identifier with global reach. RESO's UPI workgroup designed the identifier from the start to be internationally accessible, and that foresight has proven to be greatly beneficial in gaining global visibility. The UPI is being adopted in countries like the U.S. and the Netherlands, and has generated interest from government agencies and academics in Canada, Spain, Italy, Germany and France, to name a few countries. The Climate Chain Coalition would like to use the UPI model to track climate data related to properties. Technology organizations are taking note as well. FIBREE, the Foundation for International Blockchain and Real Estate Expertise, voted to unify under the UPI standard at the event in Malaga, and RESO was honored to have Jo Bronckers, FIBREE's Cofounder, Board member and Co-Chair of FIBREE Netherlands as a guest presenter at our RESO Remote virtual technology summit in April 2020, where he spoke about FIBREE and its Unique Object Identification (UOI) project. UPIs can provide value to a blockchain implementation, though it isn't necessary for organizations to use blockchain. Many new and traditional technologies can benefit from the efficiency and cost savings of tracking data with UPIs. As interest in the UPI grows, membership in the UPI workgroup is growing as well. The workgroup continues to extend the standard in technical capabilities and into international organizations. Any professional or organization with an interest in understanding or working on the UPI should start by visiting the RESO Universal Property Identifier (UPI) Workgroup page. Contact RESO for more information.

The Value of RESO for Pre-Revenue Start-Ups and First-Time Conference Attendees
Early-stage real estate technology start-up TourZazz allows agents to create and manage real estate property tour itineraries online in collaboration with today's home buyers. TourZazz CEO and Co-Founder, Stacy Spickes, along with her husband and long-time real estate business partner, Michael Spickes, developed TourZazz during their quest as top producers at Realty Austin in Austin, Texas, to better meet the needs of their clients. Stacy recently attended her first RESO conference and sat down to discuss how early start-ups and first-time attendees can tap into the value of RESO by attending one of its conferences. She first learned about RESO from the principal of WAV Group, a RESO charter member, who told her that TourZazz needed to be in attendance. Said Spickes, "The information has been invaluable, given what we do in our business as REALTORS® and also as property tech developers. It could not be more timely for us to be here." Stacy admits that she had not always been fully up to speed on the nuances of real estate data. "Having been REALTORS® in the trenches, boots on the ground, I know we've been unaware of all that's going on behind the scenes for our MLSs and our brokerages to get the data that they need so that we can do our jobs effectively," said Spickes. Putting on her technology start-up hat, Stacy says that attending the RESO conference helped her understand that her development team has important factors to consider during the development process, especially regarding awareness of current RESO standards. "It's not an option for us not to be RESO compliant," said Spickes. "We are not going to bring a product to the market that isn't RESO compliant, or I guess I should I say 'RESO Certified,' right? Because that's where we're ultimately going." RESO conferences offer TourZazz something different from other real estate conferences. "Most all the conferences that we attend are really from the sales agent perspective," said Spickes. "This is a whole different ballgame. Being exposed to all this technology and all the data conversation is just really a whole new world." Stacy appreciates the deeper tech insight a RESO conference offers, observing that, ultimately, it helps "the REALTORS® and the brokerages better serve the consumer, which I think is really what all this, at a high level, is all about." For their first RESO conference, Spickes said, "We came into this just wanting to be students. We've really just used this as an opportunity to just mine the brains of all these smarty-people around here and learn what we need to learn." "We are very aware that there is a lot that we don't know," she adds, "We're at a phase in our business where we just want to be sponges and students of the people that have gone and are going before us so that we can do things the right way." For other early property technology start-ups attending RESO conferences, Stacy offers some simple advice: "Show up and be here and engage and ask questions." Register for the RESO 2020 Spring Tech Summit Now! WARNING: Seats are filling up fast! Register for the RESO 2020 Spring Tech Summit in New Orleans, April 20–23, 2020, at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside. | REGISTER AND BOOK YOUR HOTEL TODAY

Meet the Internet Tracking Workgroup
Internet tracking events have become an essential part of the modern software business model. For real estate, it can help brokers and agents gain greater insight into consumer activity and behavior to better serve their needs. That's why RESO Internet Tracking Workgroup Chair, Chris Lambrou, and a team of volunteers are working hard at creating a RESO standard for Internet tracking. Having been involved in RESO since the mid-2000s, Lambrou is currently the CIO at Metro MLS, as well as a workgroup chair at IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers). Previously, he was VP of Special Projects/R&D at MRED. In this video interview, Lambrou talks about the rapid growth of RESO and what the Internet Tracking Workgroup is doing to help support the continued success of the organization. "It's been a real honor and a privilege to be the first chair for Internet Tracking and to be involved in RESO for so long and to watch something grow literally from a roundtable to a big event that's twice a year that's extremely well-run," said Lambrou. After working for two years as a group, RESO Data Dictionary 1.6 debuted an assortment of fields to help improve the traffic analytics, tapping into the data that MLSs process every day, and sharing that information. Lambrou explains that tracking can provide brokers and agents a lot of insight into consumer behavior. He notes that something as simple as tracking a viewing of a listing on MLS websites, portals and apps can help brokerage firms and MLSs measure the success of where listings appear and how they are consumed. Said Lambrou, "This type of information is more paramount these days and easier to get. It's being done at all levels and all real estate products." The goal is to make the Internet tracking data easy for everyone to consume in one place, which can make harder decisions easier and faster to make. Notably, Lambrou points out that tracking and sharing information based on RESO standards will help brokerage firms find out where their data is located throughout the Internet. It will help brokerages determine the amount of views a listing gets and from what region in the nation, what time of day it is viewed, what photos are being looked at and more. "Digital marketing is a very important part now of the modern REALTOR®," he adds. The RESO Internet Tracking Workgroup is made up of contributors from all aspects of the real estate industry, including representatives from MLSs, MLS tech providers, brokerage firms, consumer software providers and more. From tracking information that includes showings to open houses, Lambrou notes that the RESO Internet Tracking Workgroup is working to find ways to bring more value from the data that MLSs consume. Looking ahead, he notes that finding a way to track consumers going from one real estate site to another in an anonymous way is a driving goal of the workgroup. Lambrou recommends MLS leaders to advocate to their tech vendors for the need for this kind of information. "Become more comfortable with big data," he says. "Understanding your end users and what they're doing with your product – or where your footprint is – is really paramount into bringing a better world for your membership." Lambrou invites other to join the RESO Internet Tracking Workgroup, encouraging anyone with skills to help better visualize data. LEARN MORE ABOUT THE RESO INTERNET TRACKING WORKGROUP Have You Booked Your Hotel for the Reso 2020 Spring Tech Summit? To get the best rates, make sure to book your hotel early and register for the RESO 2020 Spring Tech Summit in New Orleans, April 20–23, 2020, at the Hilton New Orleans Riverside. | REGISTER AND BOOK YOUR HOTEL TODAY

RESO Elects 2020 Officers and Directors
The Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) has announced its 2020 Executive Board and the results of its Board of Directors election for five open seats and other board appointments. "RESO is attracting an unmatched pool of business and technology leaders who will help accelerate our vision of a streamlined real estate technology industry," said Sam DeBord, CEO of RESO. "Our leadership team is devoted to a brighter future for real estate standards that foster the creation of technology as frictionless as using a mobile phone." 2020 RESO Executive Board: Rebecca Jensen, President and CEO, Midwest Real Estate Data LLC (MRED) – Chair Michael Wurzer, President and CEO, FBS, Creators of Flexmls – Vice Chair Suzanne Mueller, Chief Industry Relations Officer, realtor.com, Move, Inc. – Secretary Richard Renton, CEO, Triad MLS – Treasurer Representing Technology Companies, Developers, Partners & Consultants with revenue over $25 Million: Chip McAvoy (Incumbent) - EVP Real Estate Solutions, Black Knight, Inc. Representing Technology Companies, Developers, Partners & Consultants with revenue under $25 Million: Mark Lesswing – Owner, Lesswing, LLC Katie Smithson – Director of Enterprise Services, W+R Studios Representing Multiple Listing Services and/or REALTOR® Affiliated Association with under 50,000 subscribers: Rebecca Jensen (Incumbent) - President & CEO, Midwest Real Estate Data LLC (MRED) Representing Other Associations or Groups: Jeff Young (Incumbent) – COO / General Manager, Realtors Property Resource, LLC (RPR) Appointed for 2020: Suzanne Mueller, Chief Industry Relations Officer, realtor.com, Move, Inc. Richard Renton, CEO, Triad MLS Turan Tekin, Director, MLS and Industry Development, Zillow Group Michael Wurzer, President and CEO, FBS, Creators of Flexmls Appointed RESO Board Advisor: Scott Woodard – CEO, ShowingTime Other 2020 RESO Board members Steve Byrd, CTO, Canopy MLS; Todd Carpenter, Director, Strategic Investments, National Association of REALTORS® (NAR); Chris Carrillo, President & CEO, Metro MLS; Art Carter, CEO, California Regional MLS (CRMLS); Brian Donnellan, President & CEO, Bright MLS; Amy Gorce, Principal, Business Development, CoreLogic; Melissa King, VP of MLS Services, Stellar MLS; Jason Normandin, Project Manager, NAR; Scott Petronis, Chief Product & Technology Officer, Redefy; and Dan Troup, Director of Data Operations & Strategy, RE/MAX. "RESO welcomes our new officers and board members, and we express our deep gratitude for those who have served our organization as their terms end," said DeBord. In noting that the terms have ended for board member Tom Flanagan, CIO, The Group, Inc. Real Estate, and board advisor (and former RESO CEO) Jeremy Crawford, President and CEO, FMLS, DeBord added, "Their stellar volunteerism and tireless advocacy for RESO have set a high bar for everyone."

How the RESO Universal Property Identification Can Benefit Brokers
The work of the RESO Universal Property Identifier (UPI) Workgroup, led by Chair Mark Bessett of the California Regional Multiple Listing Service (CRMLS), is an excellent example of "When brokers talk, RESO listens." The UPI serves a need that the members of the RESO Broker Advisory Workgroup identified as being highly valuable to brokers and their agents. The RESO UPI provides benefits that are broad and deep. Among other things, it can: eliminate duplicates of the same parcel provide for easier identification of parcels across market boundaries help unify public records from multiple sources in one display deliver faster updates to physical property characteristics The RESO UPI is already receiving broad adoption. The Zillow Group, CoreLogic, CRS Data, and WolfNet are all in on using the UPI. The key is how brokers will leverage the UPI as more data aggregators adopt this RESO standard. David Gumpper – head of the RESO Broker Advisory Workgroup, former CTO at Michael Saunders and current CTO at WAV Group – shares his workgroup's feedback on how brokers will benefit from the RESO UPI: What does the RESO UPI standard mean to brokers? A UPI removes the problem of duplicate properties displayed on broker and agent websites when they belong to multiple MLSs. To get maximum exposure for the seller, an agent will list a property for sale in both MLSs. Most data providers either do not deduplicate listings in a data feed or spend a tremendous amount of effort to remove duplicate properties. Give an example of how a brokerage can use the RESO UPI. The UPI offers the ability for brokers and agents to have parcel-centric websites that can display all the properties in a market area and designate them for being either on-market or off-market. The advantage of this strategy enables real estate websites to have the same depth in a market area as the national websites.’ What additional advantages can the RESO UPI deliver to brokers? The UPI gives brokers better reporting and knowledge of events during the life of a home. Tax records offer minimum information about the events of a property. The UPI can be a wider source that includes tax records to build integrations across platforms for the portability of information or business intelligence. JOIN THE RESO UPI WORKGROUP | LEARN MORE ABOUT THE UPI Check out past RESO blog posts on the RESO UPI, including: RESO UPI is Catching On as Big Data Aggregators Adopt New Property ID Standard Video Blog: How the RESO Universal Property Identification Benefits the Real Estate Industry

eXp Realty First RESO-certified Real Estate Brokerage
eXp Realty announced that it is the first RESO Web API and Data Dictionary certified real estate brokerage. With these certifications, eXp Realty has the ability to manage its own data, and promote efficiencies within its applications and enable interoperability between systems and partners.

The RESO Conference: The Best Conference in Real Estate; Early Bird Discount Ends on Wed July 17th
The early bird registration discount for the Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) Fall Conference in St. Louis September 9-12 ends this Wednesday, July 17. This is a timely reminder of the remarkable value that one of real estate's leading nonprofit organizations offers. If you have never been to a RESO conference and want to be in the know about what's coming next in real estate, you need to attend. RESO conferences are all about data standards, and frankly, this is the arena that's going to drive future change for our industry.

Meet the RESO Broker Advisory Group
For 16 years, David Gumpper helped Florida-based Michael Saunders & Company become one of the nation's most tech-centric real estate brokerages. He transformed its business with strategic and innovative technology business initiatives. He directed all aspects of systems integration, training of staff and sales team, project management, and software development. Today, Gumpper, who now heads the Technology Consulting division at WAV Group, leads one of RESO's newest efforts for member collaboration: the Broker Advisory Group. In this video, Gumpper discusses the emergence of the Broker Advisory Group as an aggressive effort to provide more ways for brokerage leadership to become more involved in RESO.

How RESO Is Helping Brokers Define the Future of Real Estate Technology
By Sam DeBord, CEO of RESO Broker involvement in the Real Estate Standards Organization is reaching unprecedented levels. Today, the leading brokerage brands in real estate are heavily involved in creating and utilizing new technology standards. RESO members include over 100 brokerage brands and the vast majority of brokerage networks and conglomerates. A growing number of brokerage leaders serve on our Board of Directors, and our Broker Advisory Group is attracting feedback on the day-to-day needs of professionals. We continue to grow our membership by reminding the industry that RESO exists to benefit your organization. RESO isn't just a thinktank of data geeks—it's an organization intently focused on providing technology standards solutions that allow real estate professionals to provide more value to their customers every day. The RESO mission The mission of RESO is to create and promote standards that drive efficiency throughout the real estate industry. These efforts provide direct value to brokers' businesses, so engaged broker members are critical to RESO's success. In just the last two years, RESO workgroups have been hard at work developing many new broker benefits, including: Greater quality and broader data in broker and agent websites and apps: The rollout of a new IDX data standard for broker reciprocity and Spanish language capabilities is included in the latest version of the Data Dictionary, version 1.7. The Data Dictionary is the universal language that allows technology systems across the industry to understand and work with one another. Easier ways for brokerages to share their data with their technology partners: Agent rosters, open house information, property history, saved searches, showing events, and more are included in the latest Data Dictionary update. More seamless integrations between broker technology tools: RESO created the Organizational Unique Identifier to give each organization within the real estate industry a unique ID. The RESO OUID is the industry's most comprehensive and current list of REALTOR® associations and MLSs, as well as technology partners, affiliated businesses, and data providers. Broker and MLS tools can provide more accurate and timely data by accessing these IDs through RESO's free OUID API. Innovation in data delivery is the motivation behind the RESO Web API standard. The Web API is the modern way of transporting data. It supports both traditional technology vendors and new uses for technology such as agile real-time data delivery and updates to mobile web applications. REALTOR® MLS organizations are required to provide their members with access to data that complies with RESO Data Dictionary and RESO Web API standards. The development work that technology vendors undertake to make these standards upgrades will help fuel broker technology innovation and give brokerages better access to information and technology tools across markets. Looking ahead to what's next Where RESO can be most valuable to brokerages is providing a seat at the table to help decide the future of standards. If your franchise is a member, that means as an individual broker, you are as well. You are encouraged to participate in our discussions in the RESO online collaboration system. Membership also affords you one of the exclusive benefits of RESO membership: you're eligible and invited to be a part of any Workgroup meetings that you choose. Here are a few ways brokers can shape what's next for real estate through their RESO membership: Broker Advisory Group The RESO Broker Advisory Group identifies issues facing brokers of all sizes, provides specific recommendations to the Board of Directors, and promotes RESO as a driving force for the collective future of the industry. The group is currently generating feedback on broker data needs in their direct relationships with consumer customers. More information about the Broker Advisory Group can be found here. Cross-Platform Interoperability Workgroup The RESO Cross-Platform Interoperability Workgroup's purpose is to identify solutions that will bring together disparate systems to better serve the real estate industry, particularly the practitioners and brokerages. The group's initial focus: Transaction Management Systems. The real estate industry needs a standard for the discovery and description of transaction documents. The Workgroup will look to creating a standard that can: Easily share documents across TMS platforms. Easily add additional people to a transaction from the MLS roster. Retain the participants in the transaction, their roles and permissions, and other document metadata when documents are shared between platforms. More information about this Workgroup can be found here. Distributed Ledger Workgroup You've probably heard a lot of buzz about blockchain and real estate. How about a seat at the table where practical applications are being discussed? The purpose of the RESO Distributed Ledger Workgroup is to identify and document property lifecycle events. These events could be recorded in a distributed ledger by the industry participants to support accountability, provide instant notifications and identify rules/patterns that are valuable to real estate professionals. The workgroup will work closely with other RESO workgroups to maintain alignment with their work. The implications for brokerages are enormous. More information about the Distributed Ledger Workgroup can be found here. Internet Tracking Workgroup Internet Tracking data is a crucial component of business intelligence. This workgroup creates and maintains the recommended industry-wide standard for tracking all internet, product and service activity surrounding real estate listing data, brokers, agents, consumers, and utilized technology solutions. Learn more about the Internet Tracking Workgroup here. Research and Development Workgroup This is where great ideas start at RESO. The R&D Workgroup is the top of the funnel for data standards and the place where new ideas are discussed, and business cases are formulated and finalized to justify the involvement of RESO and the creation of standards. The R&D Workgroup serves as the entry point for information intake and task decision-making. Learn more about the R&D Workgroup here. All of RESO's workgroups, including the previously mentioned Data Dictionary, Universal Property Identification (UPI), Web API, and Payloads provide brokers valuable opportunities to shape the future of standards. That's why brokerages need to have both technology and business representatives involved in RESO Workgroups. RESO conferences are key One of the most important places a broker can have an immediate impact on helping to shape the future of technology standards is at a RESO conference. RESO conferences provide a unique opportunity for in-person workgroup meetings, in addition to the monthly scheduled conference calls. The RESO conferences offer exceptional networking opportunities for face-to-face meetings with some of our industry's brightest minds. Space is always limited and these conferences have a history of selling out early. The RESO Spring Technology Summit in Boise, Idaho, April 29 to May 2, is already sold out. It features a lineup of speakers and topics that will give brokers insight into what's coming next. A RESO conference is different: presenters roll up their sleeves, show what's under the hood, take all the hard questions and share solutions. Initial details about the RESO Fall Conference, scheduled for September 9-12, 2019 in St. Louis, can be found at reso.org/fall-conference. To join RESO, or for more information, go online to our website at www.reso.org or email us at [email protected]. Sam DeBord is the CEO of Real Estate Standards Organization, or RESO, the organization responsible for the creation, promotion, adoption, and utilization of standards to drive efficiency throughout the real estate industry.    

Forefront of Technology: The Importance of the RESO Web API Workgroup
Paul Stusiak, President and Owner of Falcon Technologies Corporation, has been involved with RESO for 15 years. With more than 20 years of IT experience, he currently co-chairs RESO's Web API Workgroup, formerly known as the Transport Workgroup, along with Scott Petronis, Chief Product and Technology Officer for eXp Realty. In this video, Stusiak summarizes the main goal of the RESO Web API and the work of the RESO Web API Workgroup as "helping people get data from 'point A' to 'point B' in a standard way so a new entry into the market can do this easily and successfully." Acknowledging that the Web API Workgroup is RESO's most technical in nature, Stusiak emphasizes that prospective members should not to be intimidated and welcomes newcomers. "It's important to have a voice at the table," says Stusiak, emphasizing the critical functions of a standardized Web API. Although the RESO Web API Workgroup is predominantly comprised of server-side technology professionals, Stusiak invites client-side implementers, builders of websites, apps, and other agent real estate technology to join. He notes this will give the Workgroup a "better understanding of what they are doing with their agents and make sure that we incorporate that into the standards so that it can be built properly." Stusiak details several features of the latest version of the RESO Web API and discusses the upcoming version, which will deliver new features to the industry. Stusiak explains the importance of including an organization's technology professionals in the discussion. He encourages participation, inviting technologists to join in on Workgroup conference calls or attend an upcoming conference. He says it's the best way to understand "where we're going with standard, [and] how it's going to affect them in the future." Don't Miss the Early Bird Discount for Boise Don't miss your opportunity for a seat at the table to influence real change in the real estate industry. Act soon, as the early bird registration discount for the RESO Spring Technology Summit in Boise, Idaho, April 29 to May 2 is still available, but ends this Thursday, February 28th. The RESO Web API Workgroup meets in-person at the Boise conference on Wednesday, May 1 for two hours. The latest event information, special hotel rates for attendees, and early bird registration discount information are available here.  

Why Brokers Should Join RESO and Attend RESO Conferences
Carlos Pegado is an Oxford University graduate and 30-year industry veteran who emphatically believes in the need for standards across and within the real estate industry. An early advocate for real estate standards, Pegado wanted to become a force for change within the industry, which lead him to join the Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO). As an active RESO member and volunteer, Pegado is involved in both the Data Dictionary Workgroup and the Universal Property Identifier (UPI) Workgroup, contributing both his knowledge and vast experience to these groups. According to Pegado, the UPI is critical, especially for brokerages with a broad suite of services, to ensure that listing or customer data is easily accessed across business silos. As Pegado says in this video interview, the UPI is "the only way to track a listing and the customer across all the different platforms." Pegado emphasizes the need for the adoption and consistent use of data standards by insisting that all of his brokerage's vendors and software providers are either members of RESO or RESO Certified. He says, "working with a company that has not joined RESO would be detrimental in the long run and contrary to our beliefs in what we should be doing." Pegado also encourages brokers to attend RESO conferences. He cites the plethora of learning that takes place as well as exposure to numerous new vendors that make their debut at the conference. Such variety, he says, allows brokerage to see the "best of breed" solutions. According to Pegado, it was "simple to convince" the other leaders of his firm to attend RESO conferences, asserting that participating in the event and workshops is the only way to have a say in the direction of the industry as well as the future of real estate. "You need to part of a larger group," states Pegado, noting that in order to be part of what's coming, and have a voice in the changes that are happening, makes attending RESO conferences a must. Don't Miss the Early Bird Discount for Boise Don't miss your opportunity for a seat at the table to influence real change in the real estate industry. Act soon as the early bird registration discount for the RESO Spring Technology Summit in Boise, Idaho, April 29 to May 2 is still available. The latest event information, special hotel rates for attendees, and early bird registration discount information are available here.  

Telling Your Data Story: Easy Access to RESO's Organization Unique Identifier with Microsoft Power BI
I have been working with the Organization Unique Identifier (OUID) data from the Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) for over the last nine months. RESO OUID data combined with other data sets for business analysis is critical for today's enterprising brokerages. My task was to see how I can make it easy for others to access the RESO OUID and incorporate other data for analysis. The answer – Microsoft Power BI.

MLS Improvement Requires Broker Support
There is a progressive MLS leadership group that is fighting on behalf of brokers to make dramatic improvements in data management that needs broker support for their efforts. The group is called MLS Roundtable, made up of eight MLSs representing 300,000 brokers and agents. In an article published this week called Measuring Success for MLS Executives, Kathy Condon, President and CEO of Massachusetts regional MLS PIN, scribes an eloquent synopsis of the status of migrating data feeds from the RETS transportation method to RESO Web API. She urges the industry to move forward quickly and responsibility. They need brokers to support the effort by encouraging more MLSs to focus their attention and treasury to RESO Web API adoption.

New "Open Standards" White Paper from RESO
What if you could tap a button - like you do to pair a Bluetooth device - and all your MLS data would instantly populate in each of your applications? That's what open standards in real estate are all about. During our RESO Fall Conference in Milwaukee this week, a publication we are releasing tackles this subject head-on, our new "Why Open Standards are Vital to the Real Estate Industry: A RESO White Paper."

How RESO Helped a Tech Firm Find the 'Cool Kids,' Launch Instant IDX Websites
Troy McCasland is the CEO of San Diego-based AgentSquared, a real estate tech firm that builds Instant IDX websites using RESO compliant Web APIs. Launched initially with FBS, the creators of Flexmls, AgentSquared is rapidly expanding, coming soon to both CoreLogic Trestle and Paragon through their API solutions. For McCasland, one of the best values RESO offers comes from attending its conferences. "This is the best conference for me," he says in this video interview emphatically, explaining, "It's the only conference where decision-makers and key influencers are easily accessible." "There's nothing else out there that offers this kind of intimacy," he says.

WAVes of Tech: Spreadsheets on Steroids, RESO, and MLS Policy
Last week, I was introduced to a new application while working on a project with a client. The application is Airtable and it has changed my view on using standard spreadsheet and database tools. Airtable has taken the spreadsheet and database world and simplified it so a non-technical person can create a database, have multiple spreadsheets, and change the presentation of the information with just a few clicks of a button. This web-based application works great for companies and teams of all sizes. All you need is your imagination to start building your own application. I have found Airtable's guide to be one of the best self-help guides from a Software as a Service (SaaS) company.

How Blockchain Technology Could Transform Real Estate Listings and Marketing
Tired of the redundancies, errors, delays, waste, and exorbitant fees that have been part and parcel of real estate sales transactions since the dawn of time? From portal conundrums that create property search snafus, to transactional miscommunications that lead to seemingly endless delays, it may finally be time to stop the insanity. Meet Blockchain Technology

RESO: Brokers Welcome
When I was a young kid traveling in the car with my family, I would always see these signs that said, "Truckers Welcome." I didn't understand why there was this special invitation to truckers. Wouldn't everyone be welcome? As I grew older, I quickly realized the sign was to inform truckers there was ample parking space for their large rigs. Truckers had a big use case! As a trucker, if I wanted to visit a diner for a nice sit-down warm meal, I must have space large enough to safely park my rig. Diners caught on fast to this requirement and realized they could enjoy the revenue by creating a space for them to park. Once the parking problem was solved, they needed a method to entice truckers to use their parking and stop for a meal. Therefore, the signs!

Innovation Winners, 30 Industry Leaders Honored by RESO in Denver
RESO sold out its Spring Tech Summit in Denver last week three times, organizers said. Demand by industry tech and business leaders wanting to attend within the last two weeks forced the nonprofit to re-open registration twice until it pushed to capacity. The Real Estate Standards Organization filled the main ballroom to the brim, with just short of 300 people, at the hip Curtis Hotel in downtown Denver. Art Carter, RESO Chair and head of the largest MLS in the nation, CRMLS, noted how far the organization had come in the last five years. One of the most vital breakthroughs: the number of women attending RESO – and presenting on stage. Two other big highlights were the announcement of the two winners of its Innovation Competition and the honoring of two more dozen RESO members and leaders for "thousands of volunteer hours" to create, implement and advocate for real estate industry standards.

It's Game On for Data Standards at RESO Denver Spring Tech Summit
The mile-high City of Denver will play host to the RESO Spring Tech Summit set for downtown at the pop-themed Denver Curtis Hotel, April 24-26. We only have 10 registration slots left for full-conference attendees. That means you will need to move fast to take advantage of a packed agenda that features winners of the RESO Innovation Competition and a nearly full-day "deep learning" workshop. And if you are registered but haven't reserved your guestroom with your own Pac Man machine or a Jimmy Buffett or Star Trek-themed-room at the Curtis, you may have to settle for another eclectic choice.

RESO San Diego Hits a Homer with DataComp and Other Highlights
The first time you attempt anything is a risk. But when you back that risk with $25,000 in cash prizes and invest $15,000 in hosting the event, you are especially delighted when the result is a success. Everyone involved in the RESO DataComp at our recent San Diego conference should celebrate what was achieved. Our terrific event sponsor RPR, Realtors Property Resource and our prize sponsors FBS, the creators of Flexmls and Stratus Data Systems, Inc. Our remarkable panel of top-level judges, including Mark Birschbach of NAR and Second Century Ventures; Chris Heller of Keller Williams; Kyle Campbell of Hack Capital; Glenn Shimkus, who sits on the DocuSign Advisory Board; and Craig Rowe, a tech reviewer and reporter for Inman News. The participants, winners and the innovations based on RESO data standards that they all created within the 30-day window we gave them were simply incredible. We had more than a dozen entries from all over the U.S. The competitors' live presentations for the RESO DataComp on the first day of the RESO Fall Conference at the plush Pendry Hotel in San Diego were truly the highlight of the conference. The "Best Overall Product" was My Drawbridge, a highly interactive web app that allows real estate investors to find and develop opportunities in searching for land parcels, which won the overall prize and received the $10,000 Cash Prize. My Drawbridge also won "Best Use of Non-Listing Data" and snagged another $5,000 from the DataComp. letsbutterfly, a beautiful mobile app that creates CMAs, won the RESO DataComp "Crowd Favorite" and $5,000. Swim Lanes, a Blockchain app for real estate, won the $5,000 Cash Prize for "Best Use of Listing Data."

5 Ways RESO Data Standards are Benefiting Brokerages
Real estate standards are coming of age with the massive number of potential benefits to brokers, agents and consumers that both the RESO Web API and Data Dictionary 1.6 update are going to deliver. The time for real estate brokerages and brokerage franchise executives to seize the improvements that RESO standards can provide their customers is now – not years from now.

MLSs Working Hard to Make Broker IDX Feeds Work Harder
Key Takeaways 1. The move for MLSs to transition to ONLY RESO-compliant IDX feeds is not that difficult Moving to offer only a RESO-compliant IDX feed is not that difficult. RMLS™, one of the first MLSs in the country to distribute only RESO-compliant IDX feeds, made the move in just FOUR weeks. They launched a campaign to their IDX providers that showed them the fields that needed to be transitioned to be RESO-compliant and requiring them to transition completely ONLY to a RESO-compliant IDX feed. 2. Promotion is key According to RMLS™, to make the move, MLSs will need an effective promotional campaign to be sure each of your technology companies is aware of the reasons for the change and knows exactly what they need to do to make the transition successfully. 3. Set a deadline Be sure to set a deadline with a reasonable timeframe to allow each of your IDX providers to meet the deadline. Since many of the largest IDX providers have already made the transition in RMLS™, it should make it easier for them.

RESO Rolls out RETS 1.9, Announces RETS Workgroup will "Sunset"
At the Spring Summit in Austin, Paul Stusiak, Falcon Technologies President and Chair of the RESO RETS (Real Estate Transaction Standard) Workgroup, summarized the latest improvements to RETS with the release of RETS 1.9. Many of the same updates for the RESO Web API were incorporated into RETS with the latest release. RETS 1.9 brings everything up to the current standards so people using third-party libraries and the latest security devices will be able to use them successfully going forward. Because the Web API is RESO's big focus these days, Stusiak noted that 1.9 would add a standard way to express geospatial search, as well as a package for developers who have already implemented the Data Dictionary. He noted that developers may be able to take that work and apply it directly back to their RETS servers. This way, he said, it could help make the transition to Web API faster and a little easier. He also noted that the GetPayloadList function was removed, as it was unused. RETS Workgroup Retires

RESO Offers Free Web API Tools for Connecting to MLSs
It's truly a RESO first. We just released Web API client tools – created by RESO -- to help software developers more rapidly deploy real estate software specifically for connecting to the hundreds of MLSs nationwide that have implemented RESO API Standards. This free software package includes the Web API client application itself, as well as the source code for the open source client software. We're excited about our first in-house creation of client software tools for a few of reasons. In the in the past, we relied on outside technology firms to develop client software for accessing real estate data based on RESO Standards. With our in-house developed software capability, we are adding significantly to the value of a RESO membership, while benefiting the real estate industry as a whole. We did so in response to what many RESO members have told us they need in order to develop and deploy real estate software that is dependent on real-time property data, because that benefit all players in the industry – from technologists to real estate professionals to consumers. About the new RESO Web API Tools What's also exciting is what this means: this desktop client application is written with reusable code libraries using .NET C# that allows rapid development of API client applications connecting to data sources leveraging RESO standards. Developers will be pleased to know that there are multiple packages available, each including the full source code and the standalone Reference Client that implements the code libraries. The different standalone code libraries can be used for rapid development in a custom application. The new offering from RESO is designed to save a software developer from dealing with the RESO Web API Specification and underlying OData, OAuth2 and OpenID Connect protocol details.

Why Do Standards Matter for Real Estate Brokers?
If you're a broker and you're a member of more than one MLS and dealing with listing data for your websites or mobile apps, you know just how challenging it can be trying to deal with inconsistent data fields and MLS data feeds which transmit data in a legacy manner that just don't synch up with what you really need—standardized data delivered through global technology supporting modern data technology methods, such as APIs. That's precisely why RESO, Real Estate Standards Organization, is spearheading an aggressive effort to change this and directly help real estate brokerages solve this problem. On Wednesday, February 8, 2017 at 10am PT/1pm ET, RESO is hosting a free broker webinar to talk about this and more ways brokerages can benefit from real estate standards and how important it is for brokers to get involved in RESO to help shape those standards. The webinar – "Unleashing the Marketing Power of RESO for Brokers" – will feature one of the brokerage industry's sharpest professionals, Tom Flanagan. Tom is the Vice President of Technology at Alain Pinel REALTORS, board member of RESO, and most recently was recognized as one of the real estate industry's most influential leaders by Inman News. Tom, who also is on the LeadingRE Marketing Technology Advisory Council, heads up the tech efforts at one of the most forward-thinking brokerages that provide successful technology solutions for its agents. Tom and I will help brokers learn how real estate standards can help their brokerages to be more nimble, innovative and profitable.

Making the Leadership Lists: The Growing Influence of RESO
Two big leadership lists were just released: one from Inman News and the other one from Swanepoel T3 Group. It was striking to see how many leaders on these lists run firms that are RESO members and leaders of our board. These are highly prestigious lists, and tremendous amount of effort went into preparing them. The coveted Inman Influencer List, which names the real estate industry's most influential leaders for 2017, salutes industry professionals "who shape, change and influence the industry," Inman writes, bringing "a mix of credentials, viewpoints and backgrounds from all walks of the real estate business. Some are creative, intuitive and gifted. Some have power, reach and charisma. And some are controversial, rabble-rousers and disrupters," yet all contribute to change. The 2017 Swanepoel Power 200 list also is designed to recognize the most powerful and influential in our business. According to Swanepoel T3 Group, the list is "culled from over 3 million real estate professionals, with less than 0.01% selected to be included." What's amazing is that they spend over 400 hours in researching and analyzing their rankings, looking at leaders from "all residential real estate brands, brokerages, technology companies, MLSs, associations, economists, authors, consultants, coaches and media members." That's why it's so exciting to see so many RESO members and board members being recognized. A stunning 35 RESO members are on BOTH the Inman Influencers and the SP 200 lists. A total of 73 RESO members are on the 2017 Inman Influencers List, and 116 appear on the SP 200 list. As someone who made the Inman Influencer List for the first time, it is both exciting and humbling to see one's name included among so many great leaders of our industry.

Four Brokerage Leaders Join RESO Board of Directors
For the past three years, the most impactful development in real estate technology has been driven by the Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO). This nonprofit entity defines how MLS information is formatted for use by agents and brokerages. For years, this board of directors was mostly led by a combination of MLS executives and technology vendors. However, with today's announcement, you can see that brokerage involvement has reached its highest level. But that's not all—other new executives from many of America's largest and finest MLSs have also volunteered to step up and participate in guiding RESO into 2017. Executive Board of Directors Art Carter, Chair. Mr. Carter runs California Regional MLS, the nation's largest MLS, supporting over 80,000 subscribers. Alon Chaver, Vice Chair. Chaver is CIO of HomeServices of America, the second largest brokerage in America behind NRT. Chaver brings incredible technical acumen to RESO having owned and operated iHomefinder, held an executive role at Trulia, served as Director for Broker Public Portal, and other significant leadership roles. Richard Renton, Treasurer. Renton is the CEO of the Triad MLS, a regional MLS that covers 11 counties in North Carolina. He has been a longtime industry leader with longstanding support of RESO and the Council of MLS. Cary Sylvester, Secretary. As VP of Industry Development at Keller Williams, Sylvester has been steward of the technology solutions at Keller Williams as they've ascended to becoming the largest franchise organization in America. Sylvester is also a key contributor to Broker Public Portal and Upstream.

Brokers and MLSs Misunderstand RESO
Our industry is in the dawn of a new day. With some measure of struggle, the nation's MLSs and their vendors have endeavored to adopt a set of standardized fields for data transportation from the MLS system to applications that support the real estate industry. I consider this the dawn of the effort because, for the very first time, MLS adoption of real estate standards are more strictly mandated by the National Association of REALTORS® MLS Policy. For years, the National Association of REALTORS® supported and funded the Real Estate Standards Organization, which is referred to by its acronym, RESO. Despite being a free-standing not-for-profit with an independent board of directors, the bulk of the funding for RESO came from NAR, and was supplemented by MLS vendors and a few others. Today, the Real Estate Standards Organization has blossomed into one of the most collaborative industry-wide efforts we have ever seen, with funding from vendors, brokers, associations, and MLSs. The effort ties MLS vendors, broker and agent technology vendors, MLS operators, associations of REALTORS® and many brokerages together. This group is funding and directing a massive overhaul of how information (data) is used today, and laying a strong foundation for the future. It has inspired transformation. Like anything new, different and technical, there is also a massive level of misunderstanding that is frustrating the efforts. In some small way, my hope is to clarify some things to set people straight. We try hard to understand before disagreeing, and disagree without being disagreeable.

RESO looks to sell out Nashville Conference with broker-heavy agenda
Thirty spots. Remarkably, that's all of the registration slots we have left for the RESO Fall Conference coming up October 24-26. Just like the theme of this year's conference – "Accelerating the Reach of Data Standards" – we've accelerated the number of people who have registered early in record numbers. We are now expecting to sell out the Nashville meet with 300 total attendees. Broker topics abound This Fall Conference is loading up on content for our highly successful Business Track to supplement a stellar Technology Track. RESO was once thought of as being just for geeks, but now top real estate executives who understand the vital importance of new standards are helping us fill the room. We've responded with beefing up our topics for real estate brokerages, because they are the ones that new real estate standards are going to impact the most. RESO needs more real estate broker-owners and franchised executives to have a seat at the table. That means the brokerage community not only needs to be present at the RESO conferences, but also become deeply involved as members in our RESO Workgroups. The RESO R&D Workgroup is an ideal place to start. We like to describe R&D as the top of the funnel for all new topics and initiatives. It's really where new RESO real estate standards begin, such as IDX Data Feeds, Saved Searches and Standardized Showing Information. In fact, these are a sample of new standards ideas we were shared at the CMLS Conference in Las Vegas last week. We asked RESO members attending to rank these ideas, or come up with some of their own. At CMLS, RESO passed out postcards to solicit ideas – as well as rank current ideas under consideration. And we gave away a Amazon Echo and that drove great participation.

RESO Slashes Brokerage Membership Dues, Makes Certification Member Benefit
The Real Estate Standards Organization – or RESO – just announced two big moves. First, RESO is eliminating separate Certification fees by making all Certifications a member benefit, covered by annual RESO dues effective immediately. Second, beginning in January, real estate brokerages with fewer than 100 agents can become a RESO member for just $50 a year, slashed from $500 a year previously. Membership fees – shown below in the news release issued this morning – have been overhauled for 2017 and take into account folding in Certification fees, which should be welcomed news for larger MLSs. RESO is pushing hard to get more brokers involved across the U.S., as well as helping smaller MLSs become members, making sure both have greater access and take a seat at the table in determining future standards for data. Here is the full news release: RESO Makes Certification a Member Benefit Adjusts Dues to Make Membership Accessible to More MLSs, Real Estate Brokerages Morrisville, NC – July 26, 2016 – Hundreds of smaller Multiple Listings Services and literally thousands of real estate brokerages throughout the U.S. will be able join the Real Estate Standards Organization – or RESO – next year for as little as $50 annually. The RESO Board of Directors announced it has revised its 2017 membership dues to increase industry participation in standards development, and to ensure that adoption and certification of standards are accessible to all organizations. RESO Board also announced that effective immediately, Certification will be a membership benefit covered by the member's annual dues, eliminating separate fees for Certification.

RESO for Brokerages: 4 Ways New Standards Will Shape Your Future
The key to the success for the future of all real estate brokerages will be data standards. This is not hyperbole, it is a fact, and let me explain why. Today real estate brokerages struggle with profitability. Shrinking margins have become the business norm. To keep up, brokerages and franchises have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in new technology for their businesses. Yet research has shown that one of the biggest pain points that brokerages and franchises face is that overall the technology they use doesn’t “talk” to each other. This is inefficiency at its best. Brokerages often struggle to incorporate MLS data into their back office solutions, websites and other software tools and apps. It's a heady challenge for their tech teams and their technology partners. For brokerages and franchises serving multiple markets, their external technology challenges are compounded, because until the RESO Data Dictionary is used industry wide, each MLS offers slightly different property fields and information on their IDX, VOW, and broker back office data feeds. Brokerages therefore have to spend significant resources in both labor and funding to not only ingest this information but also normalize it throughout the various technologies they use internally. At times, the cost to do so is prohibitive to the point that brokers don’t have normalized data through their various technology products and services. So here’s the rub: All of the time and money by brokerages and franchises that is going towards these data efforts are taking time and money away from their efforts to recruit, retain, train and support their agents and provide innovative solutions to increase the number of transactions and overall profitability. There is nothing more vital to a brokerage than recruiting and retaining their agents, yet, unnecessarily, dollars are being sucked away because of the lack of technology standards within a brokerage.

Upstream Revealed
As many of you know, WAV Group has been working with a group of brokers and franchises for more than a year on a project called Upstream. Today, Upstream is a corporation with one of the strongest board of directors in our industry. It has been an honor to work with the board along with the CIOs and CTOs of their corporations to define the Upstream application and talk to enterprise level technology firms who have the capacity to deliver such an enormous solution. Until now, very little information has been shared openly across the industry. Until the company's governance was established, the application specified, and a vendor sourced – there was little to say. Upstream has been theoretical. It is about to become operational. Although I love to write, the best explanation of the project comes from one of the directors, Craig Cheatham. Cheatham is also responsible for the operation of The Realty Alliance think tank, a group of 85 of the largest brokerage firms in America. Below are his words. (Italics are mine.) Upstream is a broad-based effort owned by brokers and designed to be managed at the strategic level by brokers, elected by brokers to a board and run at the operational level by a contracted vendor. (Upstream is for all brokers, not just large firms.) Upstream is a platform for data entry, data storage and data distribution. It is not a multiple listing service or a service that interfaces with the public in any way. Upstream is designed to operate outside of the core MLS functions of cooperation, compensation and valuation (and the enforcement of policies and practices relating to those). (WAV Group researched brokerages and franchises and learned that they almost all universally manage data sets not included in the MLS and that much of the MLS data is keyed into systems before it qualifies as an MLS listing.)

Shaping the Future: 3 Big Perks You Get by Joining the RESO R&D Workgroup
If the heart of RESO is our Workgroups, then our heartbeat originates from our Research & Development Workgroup. The R&D Workgroup is a collaborative effort that brings together representatives from all sectors of the real estate industry -- brokerages, MLS firms and technology vendors – whose work kick-starts the processes that create the changes that make a better future for our industry. That may sound like a lofty statement, but it's true: RETS standards, our new Data Dictionary standards, and our recently announced Final Web API v1.0.2 all started their journey by first being presented as business cases to our R&D Workgroup. Think of the process RESO goes through as a giant funnel for the real estate industry. The RESO R&D Workgroup sits at the top of that funnel. This group is tasked with being the conduit for determining which business cases will fit within RESO's work product and justify the involvement of RESO to create new standards. This is our entry point for information intake and task-decision making at RESO. The key to the success of the R&D Workgroup is its members and having a diverse and complete representation from all sectors of our industry. If you are not a member of RESO, once you become one, joining the R&D Workgroup is a terrific first step and a great way to understand and appreciate the value of this organization and the standards RESO creates. It's the perfect way to get your feet wet and to also learn how to navigate the workgroup structure at RESO. If you are already a member of RESO and are not a member of the R&D Workgroup, here are three perks that you get by joining this vital workgroup: 1. A seat at the table: New ideas are vital to the future of RESO as we work together to provide a streamlined real estate industry. Becoming part of the R&D Workgroup puts you at the front door of the decision making process. Having a direct voice provides others valuable information and insight into how each business case is viewed by the sector of the real estate industry that you represent. Having a seat at the table means that R&D Workgroup members are able to make sure the industry focuses on the most important tasks that will positively shape the real estate industry across all sectors.

Why Should Real Estate Brokers Join RESO?
For years RESO, or Real Estate Standards Organization, has been thought about as a group for Geeks. I'll admit it's been a well-deserved moniker. I mean, how many non-tech conferences schedule a session called "Using OpenID Connect?" But after RESO was incorporated as an independent non-profit organization, a strategic objective emerged to bring in brokers. The Geeks had a meeting of the minds to explore what was needed from a business perspective. Before, like all technology groups, the Geek perspective dominated: Projects were interpreted from a Geek point-of-view to serve the Geek-side of customer needs. Geeks realized they need more Greeks (business leaders) at the table to incorporate the brokerage point-of-view that was missing. This was never more poignantly apparent then when Craig Cheatham, who heads The Realty Alliance, shared his letter of grievances with the industry. That was a great "wake up" call for everyone as clearly more brokers needed to be actively at the table, not simply passing along the changes they would like to see. Today, RESO is actively recruiting more broker members, and not just because of the impending implementation of the Data Dictionary which directly impacts the brokerage world, but because of the invaluable insight that is missing at the table by not having more brokers participate. It's RESO's goal to provide solutions that help agents and brokers directly. You only have look at our incredibly successful Spring Conference in Chicago in June to see how valuable having brokers at the table can be. Marilyn Wilson of the WAV Group, a RESO member, presented a broker panel that featured Dan Troup of RE/MAX; Michael Garner of Keller Williams; David Grumpper of Michael Saunders; Alex Paine of Pacific Union and Tei Baishiki of NextHome.

NAR Conference Takeaways: Upstream, Danger and More
This month, I attended the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo. One of the main topics of conversation was, of all things, data. Last weekend, NAR's board of directors approved the funding of a partnership between Project Upstream and Realtors Property Resource (RPR) to the tune of $12 million. Project Upstream has been in existence for two years. It's an effort for brokers to take back control of listings management, creation, and distribution by moving the point of origination from the MLS to brokers – thereby moving it "upstream." Talk of Upstream has bubbled up periodically the last couple years, but never has it had so much momentum. Now, with funding secured and smart people behind it, it's poised to make an impact. Brad Inman wrote a good article on its implications this week and asked readers to weigh in on the likelihood of using Upstream if it turns into the listings distribution platform its founders envision. Seventy-six percent of respondents so far say they would use the system. So there's need, there's interest, and now there's capital. We'll keep an eye on where this goes. Also last week, NAR put out its D.A.N.G.E.R. Report which lists the top 50 dangers agents, brokers, NAR, associations and Multiple Listings Services could face. The whole report had some interesting insights on the current state of the industry, with one item in particular lining up with the Upstream objectives, and then take it just a little farther.

Major Changes In Real Estate
Behold, changes are taking place in real estate. We are seeing significant efforts like Project Upstream, RPR AMP, Broker Public Portal, Fair Display Guidelines, and RESO mandates that are shaping the future of our industry. It makes you wonder what is driving this explosive cocktail of industry wide initiatives. At the heart of many of these developments are brokers. When they survey the world around them, they rue the existence of poor data management and profit taking by others. Poor Data Management I believe that it was MRIS CEO David Charron who coined the term "Overlapping Market Disorder." He was referring to situations where MLS areas overlap. It is a condition that causes brokers and agents to participate in more than one MLS and struggle to keep data clean and abide by different regulations. MLSs have long established unique data schema and rules to "differentiate" themselves from a neighboring MLS. MLS of choice caused this. And in many ways, association of choice amplified it. Today, nearly every MLS supplies brokerages with different IDX and VOW data feeds. For the broker and their vendor, maintaining these different types of feeds and rules is time consuming and painful. The Real Estate Standards Organization seeks to make it better. They are doing an excellent job, and the Data Dictionary--the effort to normalize field names and attributes--will see the day of light by the end of this year and into 2016. It will be a slow transition, but brokers will finally be able to get a data feed that is normalized across multiple markets. At least we are optimistic. The lever to cause the data dictionary to be adopted is the NAR MLS Policy Committee. Technically, MLSs not adopting the standard would be subject to penalties from NAR for non-compliance. We will see how seriously NAR and MLSs take this requirement. For its part, the MLS Policy Committee has done an excellent job of evolving the MLS model rules. For example, last year they standardized rules relating to the access and display of sold property data in the IDX model rules.

Is Your Data CRAAP?
Data is the backbone to publishing content online. And content is critical to attracting and keeping consumers on your website. The good news is data is becoming more widely available today. But not all data is equal. How do you ensure the quality of data? Is your data CRAAP? Is your data CRAAP? Reflections on Data Quality – YouTube When evaluating data at the Meriam Library in California State University, Chico devised an acronym to help determine how good your data source is. Currency: The timeliness of the information. When was the information published or posted? Has the information been revised or updated? Is the information current or out-of date for your topic? Are the links functional? Relevance: The importance of the information for your needs. Does the information relate to your topic or answer your question? Who is the intended audience? Is the information at an appropriate level (i.e. not too elementary or advanced for your needs)? Have you looked at a variety of sources before determining this is one you will use? Would you be comfortable using this source for a research paper?