SAN FRANCISCO, April 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Don't tell the real estate industry
that the tech revolution is over. Technology is driving more change,
opportunity and profit than ever in the real estate business, and proof is the
record attendance for the 7th Real Estate Connect, the industry's largest
technology conference (http://www.inman.com/connect), scheduled for July 22-24 in
San Francisco.
"Despite the year-to-date performance in the Dow and the NASDAQ," said
Kristina Inman, co-founder of Inman News Features, the event's producer, "the
real estate industry continues to show incredible resilience when it comes to
its continuing investment in new technology and infrastructure. We have more
registrations to date for the July conference than in each of the last
six events -- all held during the dot-com boom. To paraphrase Twain, reports
of the death of technology in real estate are grossly exaggerated."
Wireless applications head the list the high-impact innovations showcased
at the conference. "Wireless is the natural next step in the ageless quest for
mobility, and real estate is the most mobile industry of our time," said
Gregg Larson, executive vice president of Firetap Communications, which has
debuted wireless local area networks for the real estate industry. "For real
estate professionals, wireless is all about gaining flexible and convenient
access to the Internet, MLS and network applications."
The newest innovations are focused on transforming the real estate
professional into a one-stop channel for every kind of real estate-related
service. "Applying technology tools through the real estate professional is
what the consumer really wants," said Dave Broadbent, CEO of
OnePipeline, Inc., the only national company that allows real estate brokers,
agents and builders to directly initiate the mortgage loan process for their
clients. "Real estate professionals will have to adopt more capable
technologies, but it represents an enormous opportunity for them over the next
several years."
Technology is seen as the means to protect margins squeezed by greater
competition and consumer demands. "Ongoing investment in technology is
imperative," said Sherry Chris, vice president of network services for
Canada's Royal LePage. "The consumer is driving the transaction, which means
we need to exceed their technology expectations to ensure the value of the
broker remains intact."
Connect attracts the nation's top real estate brokers and agents,
technologists, lenders, title leaders, commercial real estate executives and
other real estate service providers to get the first word on the future from
heavyweights like conference keynoters Jim Balsillie, chairman and co-CEO of
Research in Motion (RIM), maker of the ballyhooed Blackberry wireless device;
Larry Page, CEO of Google, the Web's hottest new search engine; Geoff Colvin,
the editorial director of Fortune magazine; and Richard Mendenhall, president
of the National Association of REALTORS.
Real Estate Connect's current cosponsors include Homestore.com,
Freddie Mac, Yahoo! Real Estate, Stewart Title, HomeAdvisor.com, Countrywide
Home Loans, DataQuick, The California Association of REALTORS, Gannett's
Celebro, etranscentral.com, Homes.com, HomeGain, and Micro General
Corporation. Industry partners of the conference include Royal LePage Real
Estate, The Texas Association of Realtors, The Realty Alliance, The British
Columbia Real Estate Association, LenderCareers.com, The Appraisal Institute
and Comstock Net Services.
Real Estate Connect attracts more CEOs and top decision makers than any
other conference of its kind. For registration information call
800-775-4662 ext. 3 or register online at http://www.inman.com/connect.
SOURCE Inman News Features
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Related links:
http://www.inman.com/connect
CONTACT:
Karen Miller, 626-355-1245, or
karenmiller@earthlink.net, for Inman News Features
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