Long Realty integrates VOW into new mobile app

May 28, 2013

Tucson, Ariz.-based Long Realty has a sleek new consumer-facing mobile app for Android, iPhone and iPad that surfaces data from multiple listing services (MLS) including information typically reserved for agents like details about recently sold homes.

Brokerages can typically share MLS data associated with active listings with consumers freely on their websites and mobile applications.

But to share more in-depth MLS data like recently sold homes, price changes and pending sales, they need to set up virtual office website (VOW) agreements with the MLSs they work with, and have consumers follow a registration process.

Long Realty, a HomeServices of America company, wanted VOW data in the app so it could compete with some of the other popular mobile offerings in the real estate space, said Kevin Kaplan, vice president of marketing and technology at Long Realty.

“It was important for us because Zillow has sold data,” he said.

Third-party listing portals like Zillow and Trulia typically rely on public records from county assessors for information on past sales, which can lag by weeks or months.

Source:  https://www.inman.com/2013/05/28/long-realty-bakes-vow-capability-into-new-mobile-app/

RealtySouth’s Lee Vivien and Gene Duncan Honored by Birmingham Business Journal

Birmingham (May, 2013) – The Birmingham Business Journal named Lee Vivien of RealtySouth the top Chief Information Officer (CIO) in its inaugural C-Suite Awards. Gene Duncan was honored as a finalist for top Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of a medium-sized company.

The C-Suite Awards recognize talented C-level executives at Birmingham businesses based on the roles they play in their companies’ successes.

Under CIO Lee Vivien’s direction, RealtySouth’s website drew 2.5 million visitors last year, averaging more than 66,000 unique visitors per month. In addition, Vivien worked behind the scenes to incorporate more technology into the company’s day-to-day business functions. This included a reporting and information system that meshes accounting functions with other departments’ systems, as well as data from outside sources, including 11 Multiple Listing Services across the state.

“We put these systems in place because of metrics. It’s all about being able to track your successes and failures,” Vivien said.

RealtySouth CEO Ty Dodge praised Vivien for his job in keeping RealtySouth at the forefront of technology in the Alabama real estate market. “Lee and his team have created the premier real estate website in the state of Alabama, the go-to site for consumers and agents alike,” he said. “He has also kept RealtySouth ahead of the curve in every other area of technology.”

CFO Gene Duncan led RealtySouth financially through a crippling real estate downturn, keeping the company profitable in spite of severe downsizing and cutbacks. Part of his success in doing this is a result of the business philosophy he practices. “Face a situation head on and do your best to make it better. Small problems left to fester tend to become big problems,” Duncan stated.

Dodge commented favorably on Duncan’s leadership during the recent real estate downturn. “Gene has, once again, been honored as one of Birmingham’s top CFOs–and that’s no small wonder, having successfully shepherded RealtySouth through the challenges of the recent economic downturn and poised the company for success as we move into a bright future,” he stated.

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RealtySouth is a full-service brokerage firm of HomeServices of America, Inc., and a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate, headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama.

Jon Coile, CEO of Champion Realty, Inc., Assumes Chairman Role at MRIS, the industry-leading Mid-Atlantic Multiple Listing Service.

ROCKVILLE, MD (May 13, 2013) —MRIS, the industry-leading Mid-Atlantic Multiple Listing Service (MLS) that facilitates nearly $103 million a day in real estate transactions, is pleased to announce that Jon Coile will serve as the 2013 Chairman for its Board of Directors. Coile succeeds industry veteran Thomas M. Stevens, who guided MRIS for the past term, and will continue to serve on the Board of Directors.

Coile is CEO of Champion Realty, Inc., the Maryland partner company of HomeServices of America, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate. He began his career a real estate agent in Severna Park, Maryland. He brings over 25 years of residential and commercial sales, leasing, mortgage, title, insurance, relocation, property management, information technology, accounting and finance experience to MRIS’s Board. Coile recently served as Vice Chair on the MRIS Executive Committee and has been on the MRIS Investment Committee since 2007. He was a member of the MRIS Board of Directors from 2001-2005 and, again, since 2010.

Through the advisory leadership of Coile, MRIS will be focused on expanding its footprint, delivering innovative products to real estate professionals and educating consumers on the importance of accurate, real time local listing information.

“I’m very excited and optimistic for the productivity of the entire Board of Directors. It features a diverse group of real estate industry veterans who are deeply and actively engaged in the business” Coile explains. “We have a more comprehensive understanding of what MRIS customers really need because we are customers as well. The Board represents the full range from “boutique” offices to the largest company in the MRIS market. ”

As an outgrowth of the company’s formal strategic restructure last year, a newly configured MRIS Board now has sixteen members, including four new members, Dean Cottrill of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, Melanie Thompson of Century 21 Adventure Redwood, Christine M. Todd of Northern Virginia Association of REALTORS®, and David Charron, MRIS President & CEO. Previously the Board had twenty-one members but has transitioned to having a smaller and, thus, more focused group of industry experts and leaders to quickly anticipate and then craft solutions to marketplace trends, developments and needs.

 In addition to Coile, the MRIS Executive Committee includes Gilbert D. Marsiglia, Sr. of Gilbert D. Marsiglia & Co. Inc., Cindy Ariosa of Long & Foster and Boyd J. Campbell of Century 21 Home Center.

“In celebrating our 20th anniversary, we are more committed than ever to evaluate, innovate and bring more tangible value to our stakeholders and customers around the Mid-Atlantic region,” said MRIS President & CEO David Charron. “I am honored to join the Board and look forward to working with Jon to continue on the path of ensuring the relevance of MRIS under the guidance of many of the industry’s most forward-thinking and customer-centric leaders.”

To view the entire MRIS Board of Directors, visit https://www.mris.com/about-mris/board-of-directors.

ABOUT MRIS

Metropolitan Regional Information Systems, Inc. (MRIS) celebrates 20 years of Real Estate in Real Time™. We’re a leading provider of real estate information technology and services, and are frequently ranked among the most productive Multiple Listing Services (MLS) in the nation, facilitating over $38 billion in system wide sales in 2012. In its core market, MRIS supports over 43,000 real estate professionals spanning the Mid-Atlantic region, including Maryland, Northern Virginia, Washington, D.C. and parts of Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia. MRIS provides a portfolio of technology solutions and proprietary databases for real estate professionals, as well as broker and agent software products and an industry-leading consumer portal, MRIShomes.com (formerly HomesDatabase). In addition, the CURE Solutions Group, a subsidiary of MRIS, provides proprietary back-end technology to other MLS systems, which serves nearly 150,000 customers each day. Visit MRIS at MRIS.com and our web based TV station, mrisTV.com. “Like” us on Facebook/MRISonFB, follow us on Twitter, @MRIS_REal_News and be sure to visit MRISblog.com for real-time news and company updates.

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