Larry is at it again

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garrison

New member
Well, the first post I made on this new forum got a lot of attention (intentional, btw...just trying to get the traffic up here <!-- s;) -->;)<!-- s;) --> )

How about a follow-up?

I just read Larry's latest blog discussing the merits of a full-service brokerage. I think I threw up in my mouth a little. This guy has lost all credibility in my book. I agree with many posters that he himself seems conflicted with his message. Are you analytical and well-researched enough to stand by your convictions about the bear market (specifically in Irvine) or are you going to put on the used car salesman approach and pump up the IHB?

Here's a line from his latest blog (and it conveniently includes a hyperlink to the IHB):

The best solution for most sellers is to use a full-service brokerage that presents their property well on the MLS and provides superior internet exposure of the MLS.

I don't know where sellers might find that do you?

What's next to come out of the blog? Now's a great time to buy!? Hurry before you're priced out of the market!?

GMAFB
 
To be fair, I agree with the assessment that a full service brokerage is the best way to sell your property... with the caveat that they are experienced in your neighborhood/city.

That's why right now, I would list with no one other than IR2 because he knows the area very well and if you've seen his listings in the past, you know that he does top work.

This isn't to disparage USC, but he himself admits that he prefers to work with the buy side of RE transactions because the sell side is not something he has a lot of experience with (although I'm sure he would do well if he tried).

I wouldn't mind Larry selling my house because he has extensive knowledge of Irvine, but I don't really know how good his realtor/seller skills are other than what I've seen of him pushing his book. And he's been a broker for what... a few months? That leaves me with Shevy and frankly... selling my house is a personal experience (which is why the last two we sold were with a relative realtor) and I would prefer it to be with someone who I can trust. And I want someone who knows the area (I have no idea what Shevy's knowledge of Irvine is). That was the one problem with my realtor, although he was trustworthy, his knowledge of Irvine and what buyers were looking for in this area was limited (he lived in South OC and now lives out of the area).

So even though they can provide nice colorful documents that profile my house and give me the correct range of prices, the sales process goes beyond that. Are they going to help me sod my yard? Photoshop my listing photos to erase the dog crap floating in my pool? Register a domain name dedicated to my listing and push it out to prospects and other agents? Follow up a successful sale with the infamous 5-pack? There's more to full service than just stats... and that's why some realtors (cough Deuce cough) are worth that commission.

I could have sold my last home as an 'For Sale By Owner' because I'm not sure if the commission I paid was worth the transaction I ended up with... but there is that disconnect that I think is needed on home sales. Sort of like why it's not good to represent yourself in court... so I'd rather pay an expert (cough Gunther cough) to do so.

Man... I guess I still have the nagging cough from my bout with Scott... err... swine flu.

If you read the article, it raises good points but I agree with garrison as it seems to contradict itself in places. The transition must be hard for Larry... but I don't fault him for his effort.
 
[quote author="garrison"]I don't know where sellers might find that do you?[/quote]

Actually, yes I do. His Name is Scott Gunther. He also proved this when he sold Ipo's house, in record time during the worst period of the market. Check any of Scott's listings and you will see this is exactly what he does.
 
It's funny, because I always thought the moderators at IHB had to tow the company line...but I guess not. How did you get selected anyway?
 
Garrison's quote "I don't know where sellers might find that, do you?" is actually directly out of this mornings IHB blog post. I was dismayed to see that phrase.... I don't know what Larry meant, but what was conveyed was that the IHB agency was the place to find "that." I guess I should expect more blatent marketing now. Perhaps that's why the forums had to go... because he knew what the reaction would be.
 
Graph,

I don't know if you thought that I posed that question, or not. Just for clarification, it's a direct quote from Larry's latest blog that also contained a hyperlink to his brokerage. I thought it was cheesy...just as cheesy as the spam that he littered my inbox with - advertising the IHB after I requested one of his free "trademarked" reports.

What's next up their sleeves....telephone solicitation robo-calls?
 
[quote author="garrison"]
I don't know where sellers might find that do you?

[/quote]

I linked back to the blog based on your post, and as I read that "do you" line which linked to Ideal Housing Brokers I actually laughed out loud. Unfortunately I was on a conference call and didn't have the mute on...
:-[
 
I too found the cheezy link on the blog post quite a shock.

I also thought that this week's theme on the IHB would be introducing a "better way" that the IHBrokerage was going to put into place. Some kind of reduced percentage seller-side service.

Instead, I'm left agreeing with IHO (no, not about the 3c frontal garageness) that IR2 is the only person who I would be happy paying the 6% to.
 
[quote author="garrison"]Graph,

I don't know if you thought that I posed that question, or not. Just for clarification, it's a direct quote from Larry's latest blog that also contained a hyperlink to his brokerage. I thought it was cheesy...just as cheesy as the spam that he littered my inbox with - advertising the IHB after I requested one of his free "trademarked" reports.

What's next up their sleeves....telephone solicitation robo-calls? [/quote]

I knew what you meant. I just wanted to answer that question here in a snarky way. Duh... anyone who knows IR2 knows that he does this... we haven't seen you do it... yet. So at least we know one person that does in case anyone is looking to sell their home.
 
[quote author="FreedomCM"]I too found the cheezy link on the blog post quite a shock.

I also thought that this week's theme on the IHB would be introducing a "better way" that the IHBrokerage was going to put into place. Some kind of reduced percentage seller-side service.

Instead, I'm left agreeing with IHO (no, not about the 3c frontal garageness) that IR2 is the only person who I would be happy paying the 6% to.

[/quote]


Why are you still reading that blog?
 
[quote author="zubs"]It's funny, because I always thought the moderators at IHB had to tow the company line...but I guess not. How did you get selected anyway?[/quote]

I held the company line for a long time. Then things changed and I became less involved, not always by my choice. I haven't made it secret that IR2 would be my Realtor of choice. Plus they are shutting the forums down anyway, so I'm not really a mod anymore.

I do wish them the best of luck.
 
[quote author="graphrix"]
[quote author="zubs"]It's funny, because I always thought the moderators at IHB had to tow the company line...but I guess not. How did you get selected anyway?[/quote]

I held the company line for a long time. Then things changed and I became less involved, not always by my choice. I haven't made it secret that IR2 would be my Realtor of choice. Plus they are shutting the forums down anyway, so I'm not really a mod anymore.

Eh, you're not a mod anymore...but, you'll always be graphcakes!

I do wish them the best of luck.[/quote]
 
The problem wasn't the idea or thought of starting IHBrokers, but rather of the delivery and execution of the business plan. There was so much potential in monetizing IHB and it's a shame that Zovall and IR dropped the ball.

I think what Zovall and IR don't understand is that you can't be pushy and try to shove Shevy down people's throat and the fact that there was no positive feedback from folks that did use Shevy really leaves a big question mark in people's minds. As with many sales type jobs, you are only as good as you last transaction being a realtor.
 
[quote author="staggerlee"]
[quote author="USCTrojanCPA"]The problem wasn't the idea or thought of starting IHBrokers, but rather of the delivery and execution of the business plan. There was so much potential in monetizing IHB and it's a shame that Zovall and IR dropped the ball.

I think what Zovall and IR don't understand is that you can't be pushy and try to shove Shevy down people's throat and the fact that there was no positive feedback from folks that did use Shevy really leaves a big question mark in people's minds. As with many sales type jobs, you are only as good as you last transaction being a realtor.[/quote]

I disagree. They did not "drop the ball", they made a bad choice and then followed it with more bad choices. Shevy was one of many.

I will agree that reputation in the age of the internet is everything. Even a simple screen name can now be googled, revealing everything from past bad experiences and embarrasing personal details to satisified customers and even shameless self-promotion. I don't know much about IrvineRealtor, but I know he engendered good will and never bragged about his success.[/quote]
"Drop the ball" maybe wasn't the right choice of words...lost a great opportunity might have been better. One of my good friends started Club Lexus (car forum) from scratch and was able to successfully monetize the site to the point that he sold it for about 100x the capital he put into it. Zovall and IR may be great at what they do, but their lack of business sense was a contributing factors to where we are today. When I met with Zovall, I gave him some good suggestions on ways to monetize the site and still keep the integrity based upon what I've seen on other forums. It's just a shame on how things transpired.
 
[quote author="tyr"]
[quote author="staggerlee"]I will agree that reputation in the age of the internet is everything. Even a simple screen name can now be googled, revealing everything from past bad experiences and embarrasing personal details to satisified customers and even shameless self-promotion. I don't know much about IrvineRealtor, but I know he engendered good will and never bragged about his success.[/quote]

That was the genius of nude. He was un-Google-able.[/quote]

I wonder what would happen if you Googled other people? I just show up on housing blogs.
 
The other thing that really got to me about Larry and Zovall's venture was how Larry stated so many times that the compensation structure for realtors was broken (which is what I also believe). Him and Zovall had the opportunity of doing some revolutionary when it came to creating a new compensation structure for the brokerage. Unfortunately, they didn't take advantage of this opportunity to set themselves apart from the crowd and are just another brokerage out in the sea of real estate brokers. It's really a shame.
 
[quote author="garrison"]

What's next to come out of the blog? Now's a great time to buy!? Hurry before you're priced out of the market!?

[/quote]

Actually, yes. For cash-flow investors, 2009 was a very good year. Not in Irvine or south OC area, of course.

Summer 2009 was probably the best time to buy this year. You could buy something for $150k and rent it out for $1500/month. By Fall the competition heated up, and in Dec you have many investors fighting over a smaller supply of properties on the market.
 
Actually the recent blog posts on IHB about using IHBrokers almost sound like they were half-written by Chevy in conventional NAR-approved marketing speak, not IrvineRenter's historical honesty.
 
I don't read the OC Register very often, so maybe this has been up for a while and I just haven't noticed it. I just saw that IHB's blog posts are updated on the Irvine page of the OCR where it says "Community Blogs". Funny, I never noticed that. That's pretty nice. It looks like there are a few other blogs too, but when I click on "More", it only displays IHB.
 
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