Shitty Listings

Powered by  OPEN LISTINGS

Someone finally DID it, in California, of course, started a site called “SHI**Y  LISTINGS” to showcase — guess what kind? —  homes that need help! Turns out this is a sneaky (or smart) way to showcase a flat-fee brokerage promising to help buyers find home “fixer-uppers” that have the most potential to appreciate after renovation. How do they do this? Can they do this? The company claims to have an algorithm that looks at price, location and property descriptions to determine the most promising homes.

Homes, I guess, like this $14,000 number in Fort Worth:

I don’t need an algorithm to tell you these homes could be fixed and flipped.  I mean, isn’t that what a Realtor’s for?

The site is the brainchild of Open Listings, a newly launched, licensed flat fee California brokerage that claims to help consumers buy real estate “commission free”. I’m sure “Shitty Listings” is their attention-grabbing flare to flag people over to the site. According to Inman News, as of last Monday, “Shitty Listings”  boasted 728 listings “that need TLC”. Typical California pricing, these “cheap” homes run up to a million dollars.

Before you say this is terrible, think ahead: with voice search the future — no more typing in google — this company could be a huge disruptor with natural language search.

The company’s main website, OpenListings.com, purports to have a search tool that supports natural language search which users can filter by typing in “granite counters” or “swimming pool”. The website then delivers a personal listing feed to the consumer and periodic email updates, and also promises to help buyers craft the perfect offer online… in less than a minute… and even signing it electronically.  Presto! You’ve just bought a house!

This is also pulling highly targeted traffic — folks who want to buy and flip homes — but I still wonder if some will take offense at having their home listed as a “shi**y” home. After all, it’s California. Could this ever happen in Dallas Fort Worth?