Yahoo! Canada Launches Zoocasa Real Estate Application for House-Hunting Canadians

[CN Tower]

Finally some competition! (even if it is owned by 'Robbers' Communications


Yahoo! Canada Launches Zoocasa Real Estate Application for House-Hunting Canadians

Personalized Search Experience Focuses on Real-time Listings, and Community, Demographic and Lifestyle Information

To view the Social Media Release, click here: http://smr.newswire.ca/en/zoocasa/yahoo-canada-launches-zoocasa-real-estate-application

TORONTO, Aug. 30 /CNW/ - Yahoo! and Zoocasa, Canada's fastest growing real estate search site, today announced the launch of a new application that enables Canadians to access Zoocasa's online real estate search service directly from their Yahoo.ca homepage.

Beginning August 24, the more than 17 million Canadians who visit Yahoo! every month will be able to search for a new home, research local neighbourhoods and receive updates about properties that fit their personal profile, all through the Zoocasa.com application on their Yahoo.ca homepage. Combining real-time listing information and mapping technology, Zoocasa.com allows users to personalize their search experience and discover community, demographic and lifestyle information to help them choose the right home.

"Our vision is for Yahoo.ca to be the best guide for Canadians for both their online and offline worlds," said Laurie Maw, director, Business Development for Yahoo! Canada. "The Zoocasa application is an important addition to Yahoo! Canada's current line-up of online apps that includes everything from Flickr and Facebook, to links to our Sports and Finance channels."

Zoocasa offers a variety of real estate search options to Canadians, including searches by region, city, price range, number of bedrooms/bathrooms and property type. Users can also enhance their decision making process by learning about their city and area of choice using online guides and maps.

"We are excited to work with Yahoo! Canada to launch a Zoocasa.com app that gives Canadians another great way to streamline their house-hunting efforts," said Butch Langlois, president of Zoocasa. "From Vancouver and Edmonton, to Toronto and Montreal, Canadians can find detailed, real-time information about the regions, cities, neighbourhoods and houses they are interested in."

Zoocasa is a portfolio company of the Rogers Ventures Group. Rogers Ventures is a new source of funding for technology start-ups and a support mechanism for Canada's innovation ecosystem.

About Yahoo!
Yahoo! attracts hundreds of millions of users every month through its innovative technology and engaging content and services, making it one of the most visited Internet destinations and a world-class online media company. Yahoo!'s vision is to be the center of people's online lives by delivering personally relevant, meaningful Internet experiences. Yahoo! is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. For more information, visit pressroom.yahoo.com or the company's blog, Yodel Anecdotal (yodel.yahoo.com).

About Yahoo! Canada
Yahoo! Canada Co. is a leading Internet destination that provides online products and services to meet the needs of Canadians and offers a range of tools and marketing solutions for businesses to connect with Internet users. Yahoo! Canada services Canadians in both English and in French through its sites, www.yahoo.ca and www.qc.yahoo.ca. In Canada, Yahoo! sites were visited by more than 17 million Canadians in July, 2010 (comScore Media Metrix). Yahoo! Canada is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario.

Yahoo! is the trademark and/or registered trademark of Yahoo! Inc.

About Zoocasa:
Zoocasa, a portfolio company of the Rogers Ventures Group (a division of Rogers Communications Inc.), is a consumer based service targeting people searching for a home. By focusing on the search experience and not the traditional way of simply showing home listings, Zoocasa is the only service to allow searches based on what really goes into a home buying decision. For more information please visit zoocasa.com.

/NOTE TO PHOTO EDITORS: The photo accompanying this social media release is also available at http://photos.newswire.ca. Images are free to accredited members of the media/

For further information:

Media Contacts:

Jill Yetman / Gema Rayo
Environics Communications for Yahoo! Canada
jyetman@environicspr.com / grayo@environicspr.com
416-969-2722 / 416-969-2665

Jason Lewin
Director of Marketing
Zoocasa.com
416-764-4569
jlewin@zoocasa.com

 

[bAuHaUs]

It will be of interest to see how the mls.ca reacts to this service. The added demographics and neighbourhood related information is helpful, however not all avtive listings appear on zoocasa right now.

 

[detroitbootybass]

As was already stated, it's nice to have some competition to the MLS.

It is a bit buggy - I was browsing the Hamilton listings and, when trying to click 'next' to go to page 3, it sent me to Edmonton listings. I hit the back button and did it again and was sent to Montreal. I tried one last time and it finally sent me to the correct page in the correct city.

 

[Polkaroo]

I find MLS.ca to be very buggy, Zoocasa would have to try pretty hard to be worse.

 

[TORealtyBlog]

What is Zoocasa?

It’s the question on everybody’s mind.

Since Monday, I have received nine emails from blog readers, asking me what it is, and when I’m going to blog about it.

Zoocasa is doing radio ads, billboards, and they’re everywhere. They’re in the newspaper, and they’re being talked about.

I’d like to speak very bluntly about Zoocasa, as I’m accustomed to doing with respect to most topics on my blog, however Zoocasa is a Brokerage, registered under RECO, therefore the same rules apply with respect to Zoocasa as they would apply to any agent or brokerage.

I can’t disparage John Smith, Realtor, or XYZ Real Estate, Brokerage, so I can’t do that with Zoocasa either.

What I’ll do, is give you some examples, and leave it up to readers to fill in the rest. But first, what is Zoocasa?

Zoocasa is a website, backed by Rogers, and headed up by Lawrence Dale (previously associated with Realty Sellers and T.O. Solds), whose goal, according to their website, is to “Help people make smarter home buying and selling decisions.â€

Zoocasa is what we call a “VOW,†or a “Virtual Office Website,†which we’re seeing more and more of in Toronto.

Zoocasa does not have a physical brokerage, like Bosley, Chestnut Park, Forest Hill Real Estate, etc., and they do not have Realtors working for them.

In my opinion, Zoocasa is a “lead-aggregator,†whose purpose is to find people who want to transact in real estate.

Zoocasa accumulates “leads,†and farms them out to Realtors for a 35% referral fee.

I also assume that there is a membership cost, annual fee, and other costs, but as a VOW, Zoocasa is authorized to transact in real estate, via their referral network.

Zoocasa advertises that they will connect buyers with “Top Realtors,†and while I can’t disparage any Realtors or specifically talk about good/bad Realtors & Brokerages, I can give you an example.

Patrick Rocca is a Realtor with Bosley Real Estate, who has been the top Realtor in Leaside for about 15 years running. His name is a brand, he is the unofficial mayor of Leaside, and there is nobody who does more business in the area, who has worked their longer, or who is a bigger or better name. However, if you go to Zoocasa, and search in Leaside, Patrick’s name will not come up at all, let alone as a recommended “Top Realtor.â€

Try it yourself.

Search an area and see which Realtors come up as “Top Realtors,†who Zoocasa would like to refer you to.

If you look at the names of Realtors or Brokerages out there on the Internet, be it on Zoocasa, or some other site, you can determine for yourself through a host of mediums, just who the good Realtors & Brokerages are, and who don’t fall into that category.

Now, without saying anything specifically about the people who might frequent Zoocasa, let me talk about my own clientele.

My clientele are made up of three distinct groups:

1) Repeat clients who are satisfied with my services
2) Referrals from clients who are happy to recommend my services
3) Blog readers who enjoy what I have to say, and who want to do business with me

There are a thousand ways to skin a cat, and when it comes to getting clients in real estate, Realtors have an infinite number of options at their disposal.

But if you ask the experienced Realtors with steady business, they’ll tell you that repeat and referrals make up the bulk of their business.

So, without speaking directly about Zoocasa, let me, based on my own business and experience, ask this question: “What kind of buyer, and what demographic, would go online to a corporate real estate search-engine website and enter their personal information to find an agent to help with the property search?â€

Think, for a moment.

Where did you find your Realtor and/or property?

Were you referred by a friend?

Did you find the Realtor online?

Did you attend a seminar?

Did you search properties on MLS, and seek out the listing agent?

Or did you listen to a radio advertisement, go to a website, enter your personal information, and wait for some completely random agent to contact you?

To each, their own.

I read a comment by Lawrence Dale where he said something to the effect of, “We charge the standard 35% real estate referral fee,†with respect to Zoocasa. I find this interesting for two reasons:

1) The standard fee is, and always has been, 25%.
2) Mr. Dale has previously organized real estate of being anti-competitive when it was suggested that 5% was the “standard†real estate commission, and yet he is referring to “standard rates†here.

So let me ask this question, again, irrespective of Zoocasa:

What kind of Realtor works and gives 35% of their earnings away to the person who referred them the business?

Not a single “Top Realtor†in the city of Toronto is working on deals and handing out 35% referrals, except, apparently, those associated with Zoocasa. Just in case my opinions are called into question, let me say this, I’m sure that every Realtor associated with Zoocasa is a Top Realtor, and I respect them all, and hold them in high regard.

There.

Draw your own conclusions.

This is not the first time this has been tried.

VOW’s can make a killing by finding a way to attract leads, farming out leads, and taking a percentage.

I was approached earlier in the year by a VOW who runs a radio show, and who solicits leads through call-ins on the phone. They said they get 100,000 leads per year, and they refer these leads to “Top Realtors†who they have hand-picked, in exchange for a 25% referral. This “privilege†came with a $5,000 annual fee.

I passed on the offer, which was presented to me as an honor, in what was supposed to feel like an interview, not necessarily because I don’t want to pay $5K for leads and kick-back 25%, but rather because I am truly blessed to have the clientele that I do. Let me give you an example…

Last week, I took a young girl out to see a townhouse in Riverdale, along with her friend from work (they joked that they needed the “buddy system†in case I a was a psycho). This girl was referred to me by a past client, to whom I sold a condo in 2011.

The girls and I were very candid with one another, joked around, had fun, and talked about how getting a dog and going for walks at the dog-park is a great way to meet your future spouse! We hatched a plan for my new client, and even determined the breed of dog she should get! I also told the girls a few stories about their friend – the one who referred me, and how he and his partner might have played ‘dress-up’ with a few items we found in a condo one day. See Monday’s blog post for more info…

My clients are amazing, and if anything, I get separation anxiety when we stop working together. I get very emotionally attached to my clients, and together, we make the process fun. I wouldn’t be able to work the hours that I do, if I didn’t enjoy the people I work with, and for some strange reason, I seem to have fun, play around, joke, and really enjoy my clients’ company about 90% of the time. I can’t tell you have many “life conversations†have taken place in the kitchen of somebody’s house up for sale.

As I said – I’m blessed to have this clientele.

Not every agent has the same situation.

Are there agents out there that will dig through crappy leads, generated by a faceless real estate search engine, and pay 35% upon a successful sale?

Absolutely.

Are these people “Top Realtors?â€

No comment.

Who are the people that seek out real estate site via sites like this?

No comment.

According to Zoocasa’s radio ads, they are going to take the pain and struggle out of the real estate search process. If this is truly the case, then every single one of you should sign up right away, and ignore the way real estate has been bought and sold for the past hundred years.

Have you ever seen an advertisement on TV, maybe at 2am, for a weight-loss pill that can help you lose 120 pounds in six weeks with no exercise, no dieting, and no side affects?

Draw your own conclusions…

My one fear here, to be honest, is that Zoocasa could be used as a loss-leader for Rogers, all in attempts to sell Rogers products to people who really just want sold prices on real estate, and might be looking to buy in the near future. Is there a conflict of interest here, if Rogers uses personal information from Zoocasa? I think that question was rhetorical, but I can’t tell…

In any event, I welcome competition.

When all the discount brokerages started popping up – most of which have gone out of business, I said that I welcome the opportunity to show buyers and sellers my value as a Realtor. If anything, they’re helping me to hone my craft.

I welcome fresh blood and competition into the real estate industry, and personally, I think competition is part of the free market, so bring it on.

Had to share this in the forum, I hope it provides another perspective for those interested: http://www.torontorealtyblog.com/archives/what-is-zoocasa/9091.

 

[James]

^ Perhaps you'd be able to answer this question I had in my mind regarding Zoocasa's business model: If Zoocasa is a brokerage, registered under the RECO (Real Estate Council of Ontario), doesn't that mean they're limited to working with realtors within Ontario only? I don't understand how they'd be able to connect potential buyers with agents in B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, etc. unless they partner with brokerage firms in those provinces. Is my thought process correct?

 

[TORealtyBlog]

Your thought process does seem correct. It would make sense for Zoocasa to have to register in these areas to set up an agreement with these brokerages. On the other hand, Zoocasa is operating online so individuals would be free to sign up for Zoocasa from all over the world and once they have a big enough audience in other provinces, it would probably not be too difficult to get registered for brokerages in other provinces.

 

[James]

I'm wondering if perhaps for the time-being, the Zoocasa brokerage firm, registered in Ontario, would simply retain a finder's fee if a partnering realtor from out-of-province closes on a transaction through the Zoocasa website.

 

[TORealtyBlog]

I couldn't comment on that - there are limitations on what I can say - but its thought provoking.

 

[TORealtyBlog]

Zoocasa has a huge ad in the Metro newspaper today - Front page! They sure do know how to grab the public's attention.

 

[Party Penguin]

Zoocasa has a huge ad in the Metro newspaper today - Front page! They sure do know how to grab the public's attention.

Any idea on why it seems to be so difficult to get floorplans when browsing sites like this? I feel like over half the listings I look at on MLS have no floorplan... who has the time to actually go visit places just to see that the layout?

 

[James]

It looks like Rogers is shutting down Zoocasa.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/repo...brokerage-zoocasa-shuts-down/article24875498/

Rogers shuts down Zoocasa, its online real estate brokerage
TAMSIN MCMAHON - REAL ESTATE REPORTER
The Globe and Mail
Published Tuesday, Jun. 09, 2015 2:51PM EDT

Zoocasa, the online discount real estate brokerage owned by Rogers Communications Inc., abruptly shut down, delivering another blow to consumers looking for low-cost options to buy and sell their homes.

The company sent notes to its real estate agent clients on Tuesday announcing that it was ending its agreements with real estate agents as of June 22, when it would shut down its website and would “cease to be registered and will be prohibited from trading in real estate as a brokerage.”

In an e-mailed statement, Rogers communications director Allison Fitton said the company shut down Zoocasa “as the business was no longer a fit with our [Rogers] overall plan for the company at large, and our core areas of focus.”

Those familiar with the operations said the company burned through millions of dollars but struggled to find enough customers.

The move by a multibillion-dollar telecommunications company into real estate sent shock waves through the industry, particularly once Zoocasa began offering buyers and sellers a 15-per-cent rebate on the commissions they paid to their agents, sparking ire among some in the industry and putting pressure on other brokerages to lower their fees to compete.

Zoocasa originally launched in 2008 with startup funding from Rogers and initially aimed to be a site where real estate agents would pay to advertise their services to buyers. Launched with much fanfare and a substantial budget, it expanded into a referral service that vetted real estate agents and let prospective buyers and sellers search for a real estate agent using detailed criteria, such as by language or type of property.

It modelled itself after U.S. websites such as Trulia or Zillow, which attract customers by offering data on home sales and detailed demographic information about neighbourhoods and price. But its use of Multiple Listings Service data ran afoul of real estate boards and in 2011 was sued by two real estate agentss alleging copyright infringement.

Two years ago, the company applied for a licence to become its own brokerage, giving it access to home sales data directly from real estate boards. Among its most popular offerings was a daily newsletter with details of recent home sales. It shut down the newsletter in February, in the midst of a court battle between the Toronto Real Estate Board and the federal Competition Bureau over the ways in which brokers share sales data with the general public.

The original vision for Rogers was to be able to cross-sell its telecommunications services to homeowners, offering new buyers introductory discounted Internet and home-monitoring services as a way to expand its customer base. But insiders say that despite a hefty advertising and technology budget, the company never properly marketed its business and traffic to its website quickly began to fall off. One internal survey of visitors to the company’s website found fewer than half of customers knew Zoocasa was a referral service or that it offered a rebate on agents’ fees.

The demise of Zoocasa is another setback for those in the industry who have been pushing to expand the slate of low-fee online real estate services, many of which are trying to attract customers by providing them with detailed data about home sales in their neighbourhoods.

“This is another indication that the limitations that still exist in the industry relating to data prevent companies from operating meaningful lead-generating platforms,” said Lawrence Dale, a Toronto real estate lawyer and former group head of real estate sales at Zoocasa. “If you can’t give the consumers the information that they really want, they won’t bother coming to your website.”

 

[TOphotog]

When you bleed $1,000,000 per MONTH with an unsustainable business model, this comes as no surprise to the rest of the industry. The general public reacted to Zoocasa as we predicted. Read post #5 in this thread (a FANTASTIC post, BTW). All the reasons for potential failure were outlined there.

For clarification purposes: Zillow does NOT give 'SALE' data, it gives SOLD data - there is a huge difference. Once a property has closed in the US, the sale price becomes public and is posted on Zillow. They do not publish a sale price once an offer is accepted. This is what our MLS data contains - sale price but not closed yet. This is protected under the Privacy Act and so it should be. We must be vigilant in the use of this information. Many properties fail to close for various reasons, and need to be re-marketed. Having the original sale price published for all and sundy harms the owners/sellers in their attempt to resell the property. Once a property's sale is finalized (closed), etc., the sale price becomes public information in Ontario and may be accessed many ways. Land Registry Office is one, subscription to Teranet's Geowarehouse service is another (individual annual subscription rate is over $3,000), or you can ask a realtor.

 

[James]

It's amazing to realize how much money this business model was losing. I don't know the exact figures but they say millions of dollars. I don't know if it's a million a month but given the length of time the business was in operation, it's a substantial amount of money no matter how one looks at it.

 

[Migos]

When you bleed $1,000,000 per MONTH with an unsustainable business model, this comes as no surprise to the rest of the industry. The general public reacted to Zoocasa as we predicted. Read post #5 in this thread (a FANTASTIC post, BTW). All the reasons for potential failure were outlined there.

For clarification purposes: Zillow does NOT give 'SALE' data, it gives SOLD data - there is a huge difference. Once a property has closed in the US, the sale price becomes public and is posted on Zillow. They do not publish a sale price once an offer is accepted. This is what our MLS data contains - sale price but not closed yet. This is protected under the Privacy Act and so it should be. We must be vigilant in the use of this information. Many properties fail to close for various reasons, and need to be re-marketed. Having the original sale price published for all and sundy harms the owners/sellers in their attempt to resell the property. Once a property's sale is finalized (closed), etc., the sale price becomes public information in Ontario and may be accessed many ways. Land Registry Office is one, subscription to Teranet's Geowarehouse service is another (individual annual subscription rate is over $3,000), or you can ask a realtor.

OK I'll bite. Why should realtors be allowed to access more information than the public? If a realtor wasn't involved in the transaction, why do they have any more right to know the information than a regular Joe?