This week saw the announcement that Amazon had partnered with veteran residential real estate brand holding company Realogy.   That means Amazon is getting into real estate, or are they?  Based on the press, it looks more like Amazon is using it’s platform to get more of their products into the homes of current Amazon fans.  In theory, you go to Amazon.com, answer 4 questions and then get connected to a real estate agent in your area.  Those four questions are qualifying questions.  The hope or thought is that Amazon will be able to deliver quality leads to one of Realogy branded real estate agents.  Let’s take a look at some of the high and low points of this deal.

How Does This Benefit Amazon?

As one of the largest retailers on the planet, Amazon has very little risk in this deal.  The amazon brand is built on the ability to deliver well priced goods to customers quickly.  They don’t dominate the home services sector yet.  There seems to be a large gap between providing goods and providing services.  The thought is that Amazon is a destination for eyeballs, and some of those eyeballs might need to buy or sell their home.  This is in line with what we are seeing online now.  The large sites are leveraging their audience or brand recognition to gain ad revenue.  Amazon has a twofer here in that they are getting the benefit of marketing products that they sell to those most likely to want them.

How Does This Benefit Realogy?

Realogy is a brokerage brand holding company.  They need to offer real estate agents a compelling reason to join their real estate brokerages versus being an independent brokerage.  One of the ways in which they can distinguish themselves from their competitors is if they have “exclusive” leads.  Partnering with the largest online retailer should accomplish this.

Are You Scared As A Real Estate Broker In St. Louis?

I’m not scared at all.  The residential real estate market in St. Louis is huge.  If Amazon picks off a few home buyers or home sellers, they are ones we wouldn’t have had a chance with anyway.  Also, potential home buyer behavior is somewhat predictable.  These buyers typically have already looked at Zillow or Realtor.com, and they are just adding to their portfolios with an Amazon inquiry.  If the online lead marketplace is 30 percent of the entire market, it’s the same group on Amazon that would already be on Zillow or Realtor.com.

 

As far as real estate agent recruitment, we don’t really waste a lot of time on lead sources for agents.  Some agents swear by broker supplied leads, others look at it as their own responsibility.  It’s all about how you fit in with your real estate brokerage.  The fact that you might get a lead or two out of the brokerage if you go with one office over another isn’t really enough to sway most agents.

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