Insights

The latest HUNTERS insights on real estate seller service infrastructure, agent ranking, and the seller experience.

Portals already have the sellers. They just don't see them.

Portals already have the sellers. They just don't see them. Around 70% of buyers are also sellers. They're selling one home to buy the next. They're already on your portal. Every day. Browsing, comparing, running valuations.

A dolphin show in Japan confirmed something I've known for 20 years about managing brokers.

A dolphin show in Japan confirmed something I've known for 20 years about managing brokers. Last week I visited an aquarium in Japan with my daughter. We watched the dolphin show. Backflips. Tail-walking. Perfect synchronization. I couldn't stop wondering: how do you get a wild animal to do that?

Most portals deliver seller leads to brokers. And have no idea what happens next.

Most portals deliver seller leads to brokers. And have no idea what happens next. Here's a pattern I see again and again talking to portals across Europe. They deliver seller leads to brokers.

"Agents will never report their deals to a portal."

"Agents will never report their deals to a portal." This objection has killed more seller lead projects than any technology ever has. And it's right. Agents won't report anything out of goodwill.

"We can't monetize only the best agents."

"We can't monetize only the best agents." I've heard this sentence from portal executives more than once. And it's exactly why most seller lead businesses in Europe don't exist.

Drinking my coffee here in Tokyo, I fell down a rabbit hole into how Japan's property market actually works.

Drinking my coffee here in Tokyo, I fell down a rabbit hole into how Japan's property market actually works. Here, the buyer pays the broker too — not just the seller. Up to 3% from each side.

Every time I visit a new city, I try to just relax.

Every time I visit a new city, I try to just relax. But after 22 years in the real estate business, my brain has other plans. Seoul completely hooked me with how they handle renting.

A portal is neutral. On purpose.

A portal is neutral. On purpose. It gives you tools, listings, even an estimate of what your home might be worth. But it won't tell you whether now is the right time, or which offer to trust, or what you'll regret in six months.

What if the portal owned the price — not just the listing?

What if the portal owned the price — not just the listing? We price the most expensive purchase of our lives like we'd price a second-hand sofa. Pick a number on day one. Defend it for three month. Cut it when the silence gets too loud.

Everyone's asking if AI will replace real estate agents.

After 22 years in this industry, I think that's the wrong question. 👇 Here's what I've actually

Everything I do wrong in business, I can now hear. Literally — on a drum.

Everything I do wrong in business, I can now hear. Literally — on a drum. For two years now, I've been learning to play the djembe. Mostly, I'm learning to stop interfering. A while ago, something shifted. I understood that the rhythm isn't something I need to acquire — it's already in me.

Most people in real estate guard their conversion numbers.

I'll just put ours on the table. From a seller creating a profile to a property selling, this is the funnel we actually see:Profile → sales lead: 13.8% Sales lead → matched to an agent: 56% Matched lead → signed listing: 16.7% Listing → sold: 73%

Property portals measure their own health. Not their clients.

Property portals are excellent at measuring their own health. Revenue, margins, listings, year-over-year growth. They report these with immense pride, and fair enough—they pay the bills.