The International MLS [IMLS] Real Estate Blog » land for sale

Chinese US investment levels rocket by 24% in 12 months

TheIMLS — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:39:31 +0000

05 April 2012 11:16
Courtesy: Overseas Professional Property

Chinese overseas property investors flooding into US cities such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco have rocketed up their spend by 24% in 12 months.

According to the National Association of Realtors, Chinese overseas property buyers snapped up $7.4 billion of homes between March 2011 and March this year, a rise of 24% on the previous 12 months.

The Chinese are now the second-largest foreign buyers of homes in the U.S. according to Real Capital Analytics and they are moving into commercial property too. According to the consultancy, buyers from China and Hong Kong spent $1.71 billion on commercial property in the U.S in 2011, four times the amount they invested in 2008.

Around 60% of these investments are being made in pursuit of an EB5 business immigration visa says RCA, and many other buyers are seeking a home children studying in the US.

Chinese applicants accounted for 78% of all EB-5 applications in the States last year, massively up on their 35% share in 2011 according to new government data and analysts think this will grow as a result of legislation proposed last year designed to allow foreigners to get a three year resident visa should they invest $500,000 in U.S real estate, including $250,000 for a primary home.

Mainland Chinese accounted for one third of buyers at luxury California home development, The Heritage in Vista Del Verde in Yorba Linda, whilst realtor Stanley Lo of Green Banker real estate in the San Francisco Bay Area told OPP this week that one third of his clientele are from mainland China and are looking for homes priced $800,000 and up.

Zhuang Nuo, president of SouFun International, a Beijing real estate group, says that the US will remain a top destination for Chinese homebuyers abroad. “The US is always the Chinese people’s dream.”

The International MLS Introduces Its Free to List Commission Share Platform

TheIMLS — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 02:25:32 +0000

Ability for All USA Agents and Brokers to Add Properties on The IMLS with its Free-to-List Commission Share Platform

Los Angeles, CA, November 2, 2011: The International MLS [IMLS] has announced today that its Free To List-Commission Share platform for all USA agents is now available. Real estate agents may now register and manually list their property listings at no cost for global exposure on all of the International MLS search widgets now being distributed globally as well as on the company’s two main web sites, www.TheInternationalMLS.com and www.TheInternationalRealty.com.

This is brand new to the real estate industry as the first true commission share International MLS, with its free IMLS search being delivered now around the world. This ability for agents to list their properties manually would be in addition to the ability for all USA brokers now to send an electronic data feed with all of their company’s listings to The IMLS on an automated basis for promotion on a worldwide scale to be on hundreds of thousands of web sites.

The International MLS, created by The International Realty Inc., provides an International MLS (Multiple Listing Service) with around 150,000 properties in 55 countries outside the USA. These property listings are visible all over the world, and the company is soon to announce another major initiative in the USA as it prepares to deliver The IMLS search on a truly grand scale.

Prudential Florida Realty became the first brokerage in the United States to provide property listings companywide on the IMLS and has been receiving new clients from all over the world. With the addition of the International MLS search on their own web site, Prudential Florida Realty is also able to provide a truly global property search experience for any consumer looking to buy, sell, or invest in real estate worldwide.

The IMLS is announcing this strategic initiative so that any real estate agent, with their broker’s permission, may enter their listings manually at no cost, in return for all buyers being sent to that agent for the usual and customary referral fee paid by USA agents if the buyer purchases and closes on a property with them.

The sophisticated technology platform of The International MLS is a referral based system where everything is carefully tracked. Carefully selected real estate agencies outside the USA post and update their listings in return for agreeing to share commissions with any agent who provides that buyer through the channels of The International MLS. The IMLS has also been created so that it is complimentary to any agent’s MLS in the USA, as they may exclude their state or region that they typically service from their local MLS.

Agents and brokers worldwide are now adopting the unbranded IMLS search not only because it is free and that they can earn referral commissions, but because it also enhances the agent’s prestige by the ability for them to show international properties on their own web site. Agents and brokers can earn referral commissions simply for having a web site customer who registers through their search and ends up purchasing a property somewhere in the world outside of their normal market.

Home owners who wish to have their own homes listed on The IMLS may use a participating agent or broker, or may contact The International MLS directly for a participating broker as their home must be listed on their local MLS first.

“The International MLS allows real estate brokers from around the world to not only market their properties globally, but also ensures that consumers are followed up with immediately by the person who knows the most about the properties or areas they are interested in purchasing,” said The International Realty Inc. CEO Dr. Daniel Nussbaum. “With The International MLS, all of the consumers are directed back to the agencies which have supplied the property listings on a fully automated basis, so the agency has the ability to keep a much larger share of the commission from the seller than with the local MLS, so it varies from the traditional MLS as commonly known.”

“We partnered with Prudential Florida Realty as our first USA agency because of their reputation, integrity and strength in the Florida real estate market, and we now want to open up this platform to the entire USA market. We knew that demand from Europe and South America would help drive customers to their properties. We also know that recently it was announced that more foreigners are looking at USA properties now due to the lower prices and weaker dollar, so our ability to promote properties globally through our search and data exports may be unmatched.”

About The International MLS
The International MLS is part of The International Realty, Inc. a privately held real estate company based in Los Angeles, California, USA that has around 150,000 property listings in 55 countries and more than 300 new home developments in 25 countries making it one of the more complete databases of property listings in the world. Property listings are imported via electronic XML data feeds from TOP selected global agencies, and from USA agents who may post their listings manually. The IMLS empowers all agents and brokers to display international property listings knowing that commissions can be made on any sale which is generated by their IMLS search through referral agreements signed between The International Realty Inc. and agencies around the world. Information on The International Realty, Inc. and all its services are available at www.TheInternationalRealty.com and www.TheInternationalMLS.com.

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Contact: Joanne Alvarenga
press@theinternationalmls.com

How The IMLS Came to Be

TheIMLS — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 15:02:56 +0000

As a real estate broker in California, active in local markets and being interested in providing referrals around the USA, I was first approached by a developer outside the USA who wanted us to promote his new home development. After I agreed to do that, more developers came to me wanting promotion of their new home communities into the USA for projects in Mexico and other places throughout Europe and the Caribbean.

I had to think HOW I could get all the agents in the USA, and around the world to be able to promote properties everywhere and still be able to make referral commissions without being circumvented.

Historically, it has really always been other real estate agents who would typically bring the buyers, and this is why or how the USA MLS came to be…the spirit of cooperation and the sharing of commissions for bringing about a real estate transaction.

As we contacted agencies all over the world to help us promote properties, it became apparent that agencies all over wanted THEIR properties promoted as well, and to the largest possible number of consumers, so I came up with the idea of the International MLS which would be able to take on property listings from all over the world.

In order to really distinguish ourselves, and to be able to bring out the largest amount of viewers, I thought it would be wise to create a platform with a search, that could be delivered to any web site in the world, and came up with a way to enable agents and brokers to share in commissions for any lead generated off of the IMLS search on their web site, without needing to do any work. No international phone calls…not even emails.

It was apparent that I was going along on a path of adjusting what the USA has for an MLS, because unlike the typical USA MLS whereby any agent could display property, capture the client, and drive them around until they wrote an offer to purchase a property, it was clear that an agent in Miami was NOT going to be driving clients to Spain or Costa Rica, and certainly would not know all the laws associated with the purchase in order to provide clients with excellent representation.

Therefore, we decided that agencies who provided all of their listings would be getting ALL client referrals, and that the IMLS search tool would be used to capture buyers and generate income for agents all over the world….and at NO cost.

What distinguishes The IMLS from other real estate sites is our free to list commission share model….and where agents, brokers and portals all over the world would be displaying the properties, so it EMPOWERS these sites to want to take on the IMLS search because they can make commissions….just for having web site traffic and capturing the attention of a home buyer. Real estate agencies love it as it costs nothing to list on The IMLS, they get all the client leads, and then pay referral commissions when sales close.

In the USA, when a broker lists a property on the traditional MLS, they typically offer 50% of their listing commission to any agent who brings the buyer. In the IMLS, all clients are sent back to the listing agent or broker, so there is the opportunity to retain a greater amount of the commission.

In order to make The IMLS a perfect addition to any site, we made the IMLS search where it can be adapted and an agent can EXCLUDE all the homes in their country, state, or region, so it would COMPLEMENT their local MLS/IDX search in the USA, and agents in Spain could exclude all the listings in Spain, or just the region in which they have their own listings.

We all know that buyers are buying all over the world…as well as across the USA. The IMLS enables the agent, broker, or portal the ability to participate in this, and since The IMLS is now taking on USA listings, for the first time, agents and brokers will be able to display listings from all over the USA while excluding the listings on the IMLS which would be the same as their own MLS/IDX.

The IMLS seeks to be a First Class-World Class database of property listings from all over the world, as well as an excellent agency network of top brokers from around the world, so it has set things up so everybody can win….agencies which list properties for free, as well as agents, brokers and portals who take The IMLS search for free and having the ability to earn referral commissions.

Anybody can win by taking on the IMLS search…..agencies who wish to post their property listings must be approved and reviewed since the IMLS is in the position of needing to collect and distribute commissions, and therefore can only accept the most reputable agencies into the agency network.

The International Realty, Inc. Launches New Ventures

TheIMLS — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 01:24:40 +0000

TIR Announces International Property Search and The International MLS [IMLS]

Los Angeles, CA, January 4, 2011: With almost 100,000 property listings in 35 countries and more than 300 new home developments in 25 countries, The International Realty Inc. announces the launch of The International MLS [The IMLS] with the world’s first commission-shared international property search which is being delivered around the world for the maximum exposure of property listings.

The free search, which can sit on any website in the world, delivers listings as if that website or agency had the listings themselves, is completely UNBRANDED and will enable the website owner to share in commissions generated when a lead from that website turns into a sale. All website owners carrying the search can expect their property offerings to grow exponentially in the coming months as TIR are now just entering the USA market and are preparing an announcement of their first USA collaboration agreement.

The company’s CEO, Dr. Daniel Nussbaum says, “Response by the top global property agencies to promote their properties on to The International MLS has been exceptional, and the great thing about it all is that people can make money for doing absolutely nothing but placing the search on their site. As all of the leads will come into us, we will be distributing those leads to those agencies which have supplied the listings. This will ensure that all clients are professionally treated all across the world as it brings agencies from around the world to participate.”

All leads are tracked and credited properly and the company has stated that they have selected the agencies they wish to work with based on their size, scope, reputation and presence in their marketplace.

The IMLS greatly increases the exposure of property listings all around the world, as well as enabling agents and brokers globally an opportunity to earn a shared commission by taking advantage of their current website traffic. It is a free to list/commission-share model inspired by the MLS in the United States, but accounting for differences as to the nature of collaborating globally with estate agents around the world.

“There is no charge by us to any of the agencies for us to load and post all of the property listings and no cost for anyone to take on their own international search. We will win when EVERYONE wins and sales are made”, states Nussbaum.

About The International Realty, Inc.
The International Realty, Inc. is a privately held real estate company based in Los Angeles, California, USA that has almost 100,000 property listings in 35 countries and more than 300 new home developments in 25 countries making it the most complete database of property listings in the world. Property listings are imported via electronic XML data feeds from TOP selected global agencies so that they can increase sales for agencies and empower all agents and brokers to display international property listings knowing that commissions can be made on any sale which is generated by their IMLS search. Information on The International Realty, Inc. and all its services are available at www.theinternationalrealty.com.

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Contact: Joanne Alvarenga
press@theinternationalrealty.com
(855) THE-IMLS