Zillow Group has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire ShowingTime.com, Inc., the online scheduling platform for home showings, for $500 million.
In a statement released by Zillow Group Wednesday, the company said touring is one of the most important steps in the home shopping and selling journey, and ShowingTime’s technology has streamlined and dramatically improved the touring experience. They are an industry leader, the company stated, and Zillow Group will continue to invest in ShowingTime and increase its engagement among agents and partners.
“We have been impressed with ShowingTime’s ability to simplify a cumbersome but critical part of the home shopping experience by integrating with MLSs, agents and brokers, and giving buyers’ agents an easier way to schedule showings with listing agents,” said Errol Samuelson, chief industry development Officer at Zillow Group. “ShowingTime will remain an open platform available to all industry participants, and we expect to grow ShowingTime’s engagement through all channels to ensure touring is easier for the industry and consumers.”
ShowingTime has a network of nearly one million agents across North America and has developed relationships with hundreds of Multiple Listing Services (MLSs). ShowingTime coordinates schedules behind the scenes so that agents can seamlessly book a confirmed home showing online and focus on their clients, not coordinating a complicated process. In 2020, the company facilitated more than 50 million showings industry-wide. Agents can update their listings’ availability for showings through the network, enabling interested buyers’ agents to schedule home tours online with the click of a button.
ShowingTime’s industry-leading technology will help increase tour volume and transactions for industry partners, including Premier Agents. Many Zillow Premier Agents are already using ShowingTime and value the ease it brings in scheduling tours. Zillow shoppers who request tours are high-intent buyers, and ShowingTime’s service enables more seamless tours for those buyers and sellers.
“This is a pivotal moment in real estate, and customer expectations for a simplified, tech-enabled experience are rising,” said Mike Lane, president of ShowingTime. “The ShowingTime technology serves nearly a million real estate professionals, and we look forward to sharing our technology solutions with even more customers, enabling a truly seamless real estate transaction that is efficient and simple.”
The acquisition will accelerate adoption of ShowingTime’s technology as home shoppers and sellers, agents and industry partners move toward a more efficient, digital future.
ShowingTime will maintain its existing data privacy policies and continue to operate as an open platform for its existing and new partners—many of whom already use other industry offerings from Zillow Group, such as Dotloop and Bridge Interactive. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including the expiration or termination of the applicable waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act.
This is a developing story, stay tuned to RISMedia for further updates.
First, Realtors sold off Realtor.com. Now the Realtor showing schedule company being sold to the competition. Zillow will monetize this information that is created by Realtors, and sell it back to them. Unbelievable.
I continue to wonder how errored our privacy has become due to the internet.
With this purchase, Zillow will now have knowledge of most Real Estate interactions in the United States.
Zillow will know what houses were listed, visited and sold, what Realtor listed the property, what Realtors showed the property and when, as well as who sold and who bought the property, sold for cash or mortgage, who the mortgage company is, etc. Privacy in this rhelm no longer exists. As in many other facets of our lives.
Not giving you the expiration date of any of my listings so the Zillow agents can steal the listings no thank you.
Looks like we will have to find another provider
So now they’ll get all of our seller clients’ contact information? Just great. Is there anything in our industry that Zillow won’t buy and that we won’t LET them buy?
I am NOT fond of the monopoly that Zillow is creating and the fact that they have become the source for agents to do business.
Twitter and Facebook have shown how they together can dictate to an entire country. I think there needs to be competition.
I will stop using this service now. Tired of Zillow trying to monopolize the Real Estate transaction while trying to undercut Realtors as their ultimate goal.
Congratulations!
I have heard of agents in my office find that buyers have requested showings on their own listings without confirmation of agent or seller availability. Just because a buyer wants to see a house at a specific date and time, doesn’t mean that the buyer’s agent is available or that the listing agreement with that seller doesn’t have particular showing restrictions which may or may not be mirrored in on Showingtime. Examples may be “can’t show during specific hours because seller is a 3rd shift worker and is sleeping or seller is working from home and can’t show during seller business hours or there may be a Covid 19 contact issue which may delay showings from 1-14 days or listing or buyer agents are not available due to being already committed to other showings or commitments (shopping at store, picking/dropping off children, out of state). Also, seller and buyer’s agent may be negotiating multiple offers and already past showing cutoff to submit a new offer. In the seller’s market we are in, the buyer/investor doesn’t care if they have missed the deadline for showing. Also, seller may have already endured enough back to back showings that they don’t want anymore showings in a multiple offer situation. Just because a buyer wants to see the property doesn’t mean that seller wants to show even if vacant or if buyer’s agent set up an automatic confirmation.
I don’t see this as a good thing, Zillow is just taking over Real Estate.
Terrible news! Now Zillow will have access to our clients address, phone numbers and email addresses. One more way that Zillow is inserting it’s self into the client/agent relationship. Big win for Zillow, another big loss for Realtors. Time for our MLS to contract another appointment setting service!
Another move by Zillow to take over Real Estate.
Zillow is trying to eradicate live realtors in the name of consumer convenience. I’ll go back to calling listing agents directly to schedule a showing if I have to. This should be illegal under monopoly protections. Zillow always has poor information, plenty of scams being run on their platform, and buyers are always calling saying but it’s on Zillow?? Zillow needs to fix their own program before they invest in another. UGH.
Zillow is a parasite. Eating us one bite at a time…….
Unbelievable! What else can we do to expedite the demise of our business?!
Time to look for another vehicle to set up our showings.
Wake up NAR. If the industry does not address the consumer’s desire for a more simplified process, companies like Zillow will. You can go into the Mercedes dealer fill out a few forms and drive away with a $200,000 car. We have a paper tiger that drags on for 30 days.
The consumer is blind to the reality of what companies like Zillow are creating. A normalized home value. That is code for the home seller losing. Why do any updates to the home beyond what an algorithm considers average? That rationale affects the entire economy of associated businesses.
After reading numerous comments, I’m concerned as to Zillow having our information. Somehow this will back fire on us.
What’s next for Zillow? Maybe create their own MLS? When is NAR going to start protecting Realtors? What are we paying for every year?
Agents BEWARE! Look at the Monopoly in the Making — write your congresspersons today!
It’s all about the DATA!!!!
I agree with the majority. Realtors are giving too much away.from Our profession
Zillow is NOT our Realtor or industry friend. The slippery slope that the RE industry is on, just got a LOT more slippery ! Wake up Realtors !
I do not see any benefit to anyone but Zillow. Realtors and brokerages are last again….unless you work for Zillow.
All,
They will sell the leads back to us and/or they will end up hiring their own realtors to take over.
I don’t know how long we will able to stay in business.
Back to the old basics. CLB & let your office or the listing agent set the app. More reason for your Sellers to hear a live voice for a change. We work hard to get a sign up there and get leads. I say end our/our companies/Board sharing of info with Zillow. They need us more than we need them.
The handwriting has been on the wall for years! “We” have allowed this to happen! “We” gave them all of our data when they were a startup, then bought the data back from them! “We” built the multi-billion dollar company with our own money!
Need to go back to making a phone call to set up a showing and get to know your fellow REALTORs again! We are good people and talking to one another is the best way to get feedback and establish relationships!
Have you figured out who “we” are yet?
How is this not a conflict of interest and who is going to police “the data privacy policies…”
I encourage everyone to let your MLS board know your opinion on this. Pandora’s box was opened long ago but it is only going to continue as long as we allow it.
This is our RPAC and NCAR dues at work protecting our interest. REALLY!!!!
we just need to tell Sellers it’s best for them to have the listing agent make apt.for showings so we can provide feedback for them. I always thought that was our job anyway. “we” allowed showing time to take over.
Yeah, no. Time to make your listings say please call the agent to schedule a showing. This should have been prevented. It’s not a good thing at ALL for professional brokers. Bad all around.
Zillow is monopolizing Real Estate. They are evil. I will stop using Showing Time. You Premier Agents that Pay Zillow 35% of your Gross Commissions are cutting your own throats and destroying this Industry. This is terrible for the consumer. We are supposed to be looking out for the Customers Best Interest. Zillow could care less about the consumer…..only their profit!!! So Sad. I am a 25 year veteran of this Industry!