The job security of real estate agents

Check house listings on Craigslist, Zillow, HousingMaps or a number of other tools
Explore the neighborhood to an extremely high level of detail, without necessarily even visiting it, using Google Earth.
Access the latest housing trends and their analysis by experts with a few searches and clicks.

You would think that having all this information available would make real estate agents obsolete. Indeed, until recently, only professionals had access to all this information. Nowadays, with an Internet connection, everyone has access. But there are fundamental limitations to the information. And making well-informed decisions is often tricky. Despite believing firmly that technology empowers everyone , I think that at least in real estate the experts are definitely going to continue strong.

I say that for two main reasons.

First, there is too much information out there. For instance, in 2004, when I was looking for a place to rent, I decided to focus on an online listing of places that other graduating students like me had decided to move to. Then I used the power of web 2.0 to look at what various people had to say about the places I was considering. Having access to just the right information helped me make a good decision quickly. But unless you know exactly what to look for, the information is overwhelming. There is just so many houses for rent or sale listed that it is hard to narrow down options.

Second, even if you narrow the choices, it is hard to make sense of it. There are so many variables to consider -- down-payment, mortgage, loans, tax implications etc. Unless you are an extremely savvy buyer -- which is likely only if you buy/sell regularly -- chances are paying the 5% commission to an agent is worth it. Yes, there is some hassle in coordinating with another party which will definitely have its own interests. But buying a house is a big deal and if you are going to put in $500K (the average in the Bay Area), expert advice is worth it.

I wish there were a way to tap into the wisdom of crowds in making a decision. For one, I wonder if there is a way to get substantial and unbiased feedback in buying a place. When I was renting I looked at what previous renters had to say. But there is typically less turn-over among buyers than renters, which makes feedback harder to get. One solution that I have thought of is to build a market that can give the consensus on a housing decision. Imagine a website where I can list the terms of my sale/purchase and other people can rate it. Call it HotDealOrNot.com. Given enough people voting it is likely that the ratings in HotDealOrNot would be more accurate than any single expert's opinion.

If you have an interest in building such a website (which could be extended to all kinds of decisions) hit me up. Or if you are curious in thinking more about real estate and how it is being affected by IT, check http://www.futureofrealestatemarketing.com/.