Zillow, Q4/2020: The Prophecies Getting Fulfilled

As you all know by now, Zillow reported its Q4 and full year 2020 earnings yesterday. It was a monster quarter. As of this writing, ZG stock is over $200 and for good reason, since Zillow outperformed even the high end of their projections in Q4. The analysts I like and follow are very, very … Read more

How Bizarre: Zillow, ShowingTime and Paranoid REALTORS

I love this industry, I really do. It has some of the best people I have ever met, real salt of the earth people who genuinely care about their clients, their communities, about each other, about the country, about the world. They’re real sweethearts and genuine and fun, fun people. But there are times when … Read more

[VIP] The Notorious Interview: Joe Rand, Broker Public Portal

I have a wide-ranging and engaging conversation with Joe Rand, Executive Director of the Broker Public Portal. We cover BPP, Homesnap, CoStar’s acquisition, Fair Display Guidelines, the fate of the MLS, the residential real estate industry, and have a fun discussion all around. Note that he was also one of my Seven Most Interesting People … Read more

What Did the Judge Mean Here? Questions on the PLS v. NAR Ruling

I don’t have a lot of time, so this won’t be one of my normal lengthy speculations and such. Just a few questions. In case you missed it, Inman reported on the PLS v. NAR lawsuit that was just dismissed with prejudice by the federal court. It’s a good piece of reporting, so go read … Read more

The CoStar Red Dot Report is Now Available

Maybe I should be doing a press release or something, but we ain’t fancy like that around here. We’re a bit more down-home, take me home country roads style. Yes, I know that’s unusual for an Asian-American lawyer from the Ivy League, but that’s just how we roll here. After weeks of research, enormous effort, … Read more

NY Senate Final Investigative Report, Part 1: The Findings

Sparked by some Grade A investigative reporting by the NYC daily periodical, Newsday, the New York State Senate (“NYS Senate”) launched an investigation last year into unfair housing practices and held hearings that culminated last week with the release of its “Final Investigative Report.” If you haven’t read the Newsday report, you can do that … Read more

Leeder v. NAR: Overview and Analysis

Back in October, after Judge Woods laid the wood to NAR and the corporate defendants in the Moehrl v. NAR case, I wrote: Finally, I’ll go out on a limb (it’s a short one, I think) and predict that now that the motion to dismiss was denied, and denied in this manner with the judge … Read more

[VIP] The Notorious Interview: Sean Black, Knock

In this episode, the first of 2021 and the first in quite some time, I speak to Sean Black, the Co-Founder & CEO of Knock. I’ve been talking and writing about Knock and its unique take on iBuyer for years now. Now, Sean probably would dispute the label “iBuyer” but it’s because of the corruption … Read more

Robstradamus Strikes Again: Office Exclusives and Clear Cooperation Policy

I am extremely busy putting the finishing touches on a massive report on CoStar and its entry into residential real estate, but… had to take a few minutes to… um, crow. Yes, I did sprain my shoulder patting myself on the back. But thought it maybe worthwhile in case people have forgotten the issues I … Read more