“The housing market was quite buoyant when I sold my house but choosing the wrong real estate agent cost me time and money. I must have lost six qualified buyers in as many as six months,” says BidMyListing.com founder and CEO Matt Proman.
This negative experience was all the motivation the California-based entrepreneur needed to start BidMyListing, a groundbreaking online real estate platform linking sellers with real estate agents.
Yet, this is only a part of the story. While Proman’s idea of an auction format for the site isn’t new, BidMyListing brings a unique selling point to the marketplace that puts it well ahead of the competition.
“The concept is simple,” announces Proman. “The seller lists their house with us, and real estate agents bid in an online auction for the exclusive right to sell it.” Traditionally, everyone makes a dollar off the seller, but now, sellers also get paid for listing their homes.
Seeking a business partner for the project, Proman went straight to the top and approached Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing’s real estate star, Josh Altman, who could immediately see the enterprise’s potential. “I knew BidMyListing would disrupt the industry because, for the first time, it put the home seller first,” he asserts.
“Being saddled with the wrong real estate agent is a problem I have encountered so many times,” explains Altman. “I’ve searched far and wide to find a solution for home sellers tied to unproductive and time-wasting contracts, and BidMyListing is it. It’s the best thing I’ve seen so far.”
Flexible Technology
Believing that flexibility is the key to any new business venture, Proman says, “We have developed piggybacks onto the technologies implemented during COVID-19. BidMyListing provides the perfect social distancing answer for home sellers. We provide a safe way to get in front of dozens of qualified agents from the luxury and safety of a seller’s home.”
Proman continues, “As a result, house sellers don’t have to shake hands with unqualified agents or have strangers walking in and out of their homes. It comes down to finding the best agent for the job while maintaining total control over the process, and right now, that’s tremendously important.”
Although the listings auction platform appears to champion the seller’s side, Matt Proman believes it will also be an invaluable tool for estate agents. ”BidMyListing will level the playing field between large and small real estate agents,” he declares. “While the housing market is extremely buoyant, small, independent agents can often be bulldozed aside by the big players when it comes to advertising budgets.”
BidMyListing.com also saves both homeowners and real estate agents hours of time – “Research shows that most homeowners sign a contract with the first real estate agent they meet, usually a local or someone who sold a property for a friend or family member. But they may not be the right one for their home.” Proman states. “Once a house is on the market, especially now, literally hundreds of real estate agents start calling the homeowner. This is unmanageable and frustrating, to say the least. Who has time to trawl through the Internet looking for a real estate agent they can trust?”
Real estate agents spend lots of time on the phone making calls to those who’ve listed their homes on MLS, Zillow, and other sites, not to mention paying for access to these listings. “Look, reallocating some of your marketing budget to use BidMyListing is a smart move,” promises Proman. “The cost of a monthly subscription is low, and you only pay the seller if your bid is accepted and a contract is signed. Instead of spending a few thousand dollars and many hours trying to get new listings, the money you pay for a bid that’s accepted by the homeowner through BidMyListing guarantees the exclusive listing.”
As everyone knows, bigger does not always mean better, and with BidMyListing, the seller can choose among the bidders for an enthusiastic and invested realtor who ticks all the boxes. “This means that the winning bid is best for the buyer, which may not necessarily be the highest bid,” Matt Proman concludes.
