WK 7: 2/9-15/26

2/12/26: After remarkable week of content creation by our peers, time for planning -- "Test Kitchen" DEMO's & develop strategy to use National Consumer Protect Week (3/1-7/26) to drive consumer savings?
Notes
Greetings fellow real estate consumer advocates & longtime buyer agents,

Ever had the pleasure of playing under a coach who had a gift for recognizing progress individuals were making in a team effort?  This week had me thinking about one who posted an 8 x 11 page EVERY DAY on the team's bulletin board.  To see that your efforts to improve had been noticed, brought a quiet smile of satisfaction and inspired a contagious, collective ZEAL to excel in something larger than yourself!

Have our peers seen the work that Frances Thorsen Frances Thorsen has been doing this week?  Her new site has the potential to be a game-changer (click to see LinkedIn posts) or go directly to the site:
 
propertypleadings.com)
 
Others, like Bobby Bryant Bobby Bryant, have been working on their game changers for months and have asked if they can DEMO their apps / platforms to get feedback on features and functionality. Here's Bobby's:

https://homhub.ai

It's a collective honor to be sought out to play that kind of role, to be a "test kitchen" for some of the brightest, most ethical people in the real estate industry.  Who's efforts have you noticed this week and how can we help develop those ideas, without expecting uniformity of thought? 

How can we help raise the visibility of those money-saving efforts during National Consumer Protection Week (3/1-7/26)? Steve Brobeck Steve Brobeck do you and Wendy Gilch Wendy Gilch have any research in the pipeline or watching any legislation?  Brian Brown (who's been invited to this peer group) posted recently about changing in capital gains taxes, and hope there's is robust cross-examination about the impact on affordability.

Nick Aufenkamp Nick Aufenkamp wrote about skill sets agents bring to their clients. We're all watching how AI automates some of that, and reduces transaction costs. But a fundamental question is hiding in plain site. Does it still make sense to buy a home when it is cheaper to rent in the 100 largest cities in America?  Nick Martin Nick Martin, what's your take as an EXCLUSIVE buyer agent in Boston?   
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What else should we talk if we do a RECALL Roundtable tomorrow, 4pm ET / 3pm CT?  Bobby Bryant Bobby has proposed holding his demo this weekend. Will post a link to that in the thread below.

Bill

As always, welcome comments on Basecamp which serves as an informal knowledge base for RECALL (Real Estate Consumer Alliance), on the original LinkedIn posts or Tweets above & others that will follow, or privately via contact info below.

Bill Wendel
http://bit.ly/SeeBWLinkedIn
realestatecafe@gmail.com
617-661-4046
Added by
Bill W. (February 12, 2026)
See previous comments
Vanessa Saunders Vanessa Saunders, Associate Broker

I’m all in on using AI to improve clarity.

But trust is not a software feature.

Trust happens when loyalty is clear, visibility is verifiable, and consumers do not feel cornered into signing something they do not understand. AI can surface conflicts. It can standardize disclosures. It can timestamp exposure. But if the underlying structures still reward opacity, then we are just rearranging furniture with better tools.

The lawsuit was loud. While everyone debates commissions and buyer agreements, the real shift is quieter and more consequential: who controls visibility, access, and leverage.

That is why this ultimately comes back to trust. Trust is handing someone the keys to your castle and believing they will protect it as fiercely as you would.
For National Consumer Protection Week (March 1–7), I think the umbrella message is simple: TRUST REQUIRES CLARITY.

If anyone wants to turn this into a one-page consumer checklist, a short explainer video, or a public Zoom session, I’m in.

Buyers are asking the most rational question in the room right now: “Why am I signing an agreement before I can even see a house?” We owe them a plain-English answer.


Heading into a lunch meeting now. Hoping to "see" you later. V

Edited
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Vanessa Saunders Vanessa thanks for flagging this essential question, as I think it's one of the flaws in the NAR Settlement"

“Why am I signing an agreement before I can even see a house?”

And who's setting the terms of the agreement? Doc Searls Doc & Joyce Searls Joyce , haven't said much about real estate use cases we've discussed in the past. Are you or anyone of your VRM / personal AI peers talking about MyTerms during National Consumer Protection Week, 3/1-7/26?
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Did you know this event falls in the middle of the NCPW26?

Kwaai 2026 Personal AI Summit: Decentralized AI

​a one‑day, deep‑dive event co‑located with SCaLE 23x at the Pasadena Convention Center on March 5, 2026. Hosted by Kwaai, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit AI lab, the summit explores how AI can be open, people‑owned, and run on decentralized infrastructure instead of a few central platforms.

Crystal Ball Crystal Ball
Vanessa Saunders Vanessa - inspiring and thanks for sharing Bill! I vibe coded www.vexcy.com - an education focused disruptive real estate concept. The most similar site I've seen to date is Steven Koleno's Open Access that debuts next month.  I have been studying AI and modern communications extensively in the last few months as I've been going through the CE shop broker course (which is terribly outdated). This deep dive investigation has given me an arsenal of articles in preparation for an upcoming lawsuit against NAR, FAR, CPAR and a couple of brokers. All US systems are in critical failure as AI has given resources and knowledge to people that haven't had them in the past. I write about control systems in human lives after being raised in a cult. I dismantle them in real estate with Vexcy. As Brene Brown has so eloquently stated, "transparency, honesty and vulnerability are the keys to leadership." NAR is not providing that, our government is not even in the ballpark - so the companies and voices that succeed in the coming era will be those who shout truth from the rooftops. And especially those who have fun while doing it! :) 
Edited
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Crystal Ball Crystal Thank you so much for chiming in, as I enjoyed our initial one-on-one call and think your writing skills and creativity will delight in meeting kindred spirits.  Should we talk about using NCPW (National Consumer Protection Week to set up an April Fool's Day funfest of somekind?

Parody playwriting festival among peers? Why not, everyone in mainstream real estate considers us to be Real Estate Reform Fools, right?

Or take teachable moments to the street via social media?  Here's an example featuring a well-known LAUGHtivist out of Boston, Alex the Jester from a decade ago when 1 in 4 people in the People's Republic of Cambridge were paying $100K over asking price!

By WK 21, 2022 that expanded to 1 in 6.5 sales statewide across MA.  What a joke!
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http://realestatecafe.com/fooled-again-lets-use-tech-to-reform-real-estate-blind-biddings-wars/
Edited
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
OMG, if you want to see preview of how AI can amplify a lifetime of expertise and how general or collective intelligence could be mobilized by AI agents to clean up the #RECartel, check out Frances Thorsen Frances last post on Facebook.
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https://www.facebook.com/share/p/16R8Vs3Rxr/

Will AI do what our group of would-be real estate reformers has failed to do over the past three decades?

When we hosted a two-day conference in Boston called the Consumer Revolution in Real Estate (4/2-3/93), Realtors were aghast that we had the audacity to include a panel entitled:

How to Sue Your Real Estate Agent? 

Think AI agents are going to turbocharge that opportunity and deliver BILLIONS in restitution?



UPDATE: Frances Thorsen Frances will NOT be able to join us today at 4pm ET, 3pm CT but is available tomorrow 10am CT to talk about her work.  Bobby Bryant Bobby Bryant, are you OK with her sharing the meeting you're convening to DEMO your app or want to separate the two?
Vanessa Saunders Vanessa Saunders, Associate Broker
Re: the Housing Wire article that your friend wrote, I shared it with comments on LinkedIn. but would like to add this here:  Pie is nice. Clarity is nicer.
 What actually earns your trust from a service professional? 

Also...Why cant I get into the Zoom? Has the link changed? I had moved Hell and High Snow to be here today in time for this meeting. So frustrating...
Frances Thorsen Frances Thorsen
Bill, if this morning does not work I can create a walk-though video and post it here and we can have a discussion at a time that works.
Edited
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Vanessa Saunders Vanessa my apologize. The roundtable was only two of us but Paige Kahle Paige and I had much to talk about.

Did anyone else have trouble with Zoom. Bobby Bryant Bobby Bryant is convening us this morning via the Microsoft Meeting platform. I’m not familiar with that system so glad to let him lead at 10am.

Bobby Bryant Bobby  can you share the time with Fran?

Fran, I remember an explainer video you made on flag day about 7 years ago for Maureen Glasheen’s Pledge of Allegiance. It’s had a long shelf life!

If you do something similar for Valentines Day, maybe Forest Gump can make an appearance and you explain how you should expect more from real estate agents than an occasional box of chocolates.

Expect clarity as Vanessa says and compensation options, and maybe a claim check too!
Vanessa Saunders Vanessa Saunders, Associate Broker
Oh Bill.

Nothing says “Happy Valentine’s Day” like Forrest Gump, a box of chocolates, and a claim check for your buyer agreement.

First, the Zoom gremlins were not just you. I half expected Clippy to pop up and ask if we were trying to convene a roundtable in 2007. Hoping for better luck next time,  ( though I’m traveling next Friday, so in two weeks perhaps?)

Second, if we’re invoking Forrest Gump, then let’s do it properly.

“Real estate is like a box of chocolates” is precisely the problem.

Consumers shouldn’t have to guess what they’re going to get.

They shouldn’t wonder:

  • Who actually represents me?
  • How is my agent being paid?
  • Is this listing truly public or just circulating in a private ecosystem?
  • What happens if something goes sideways?

Valentine’s Day marketing in real estate has always leaned toward roses and ribbon. But this is not a Hallmark holiday. It’s the largest financial transaction most families will ever make.

Love is nice.

Clarity is better.

 Oh and, I’m posting a Valentines special over on LinkedIn. Just working on a graphic!

Cheers!

V
Bobby Bryant Bobby Bryant, Founder
Good Morning! I look forward to seeing and sharing with you this morning. By the way Happy Valentines Day to each of you. The link is actually Google Meet: EXCLUSIVE DEMO for BASECAMP MEMBERS: homhub
Saturday, February 14 · 10:00 – 11:00am
Time zone: America/Chicago
Google Meet joining info
Video call link: https://meet.google.com/rtb-dcnc-rup
Or dial: ‪(US) +1 219-690-8951‬ PIN: ‪765 183 713‬#
More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/rtb-dcnc-rup?pin=7983192812538
Bobby Bryant Bobby Bryant, Founder
Bill Wendel Bill  I'm okay with sharing the meeting. She can surely kick it off. 
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
OMG!  People at Starbucks are wondering what I've laughing at and I'm tempted to slide my laptop onto the table next to me where they're talking about housing so can get in on the jump:

“Real estate is like a box of chocolates” is precisely the problem.

Consumers shouldn’t have to guess what they’re going to get.

Not sure if Ronn Huth Ronn , Tom Wemett Tom , Tom Cusack Tom , Rosemary Clayton Rosemary , Avery Caldwell Avery , Ron Rothenberg Ron , Rona Fischman Rona , Avery Caldwell Avery , or Corey S. Corey are reading along, but haven't had this much fun or seen this much creative synergy since the early days of buyer agency when events hosted by the Mass. Association of Buyer Agents (MABA) earned the name, MABAritaville.

Who knew that consumer advocacy is more than a cause, it's comedy - maybe even a Divine Comedy.  See you at 10am.
Vanessa Saunders Vanessa Saunders, Associate Broker
Well 11:00 up here in the frozen tundra of NH! But yes, “see you” then XO-V
Edited
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Remember that Bobby is leading on a different platform this morning. He shared this info and I may have accidently erased so posting again:

Google Meet:
EXCLUSIVE DEMO for BASECAMP MEMBERS:

homhub

Saturday, February 14 · 10:00 – 11:00am
Time zone: America/Chicago

Google Meet joining info
Video call link:

Or dial: ‪(US) +1 219-690-8951‬ PIN: ‪765 183 713‬#

More phone numbers:
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Frances Thorsen Frances demo'ing her site, jump in if you like!

Tried to post a screenshot but my laptop is too slow.
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Bobby Bryant Bobby demo-ing now, framing his value proposition for HomHub
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Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Bobby demo-ing a peer-to-peer AI driven house search. User-centric functionality. One of his "comps,"

Facebook has more listings on Marketplace than the MLS!!!

Joyce Searls Joyce Searles thanks for jumping in... Ask Bobby Bryant Bobby to circle back on the Homeownership cycle

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Edited
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Demo-ing VOICE-driven search.... long a dream, two decades plus, now it's on HomHub
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Giving sellers three different options from full-service at a fair price as well as
DSIY (Do Some of It Yourself) homesellers

"Consumers don't buy what you do, they buy why you sell it."
Edited
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Demo-ing AI host who is explaining that commission lawsuits have changed the industry, "here's what it means for you."
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Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
Talking about the importance of privacy, can it be achieved through a platform or will the future see decentralized trust where consumers own and control their own data.

Two different approaches to the market, one articulated by Joyce Searls Joyce Searles previewing the importance of MyTerms and Bobby Bryant Bobby who's also championing privacy through HomHub.

It's launching Monday, 2/16/26 President's Day.
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Frances Thorsen Frances Thorsen
Great session! So happy to be here. Happy Valentine's Day, everyone.
Vanessa Saunders Vanessa Saunders, Associate Broker
Bobby, I saw your message before sigining out. Thank you. Good Luck on Monday with the launch. I have so too many ???s  Sorry, not sorry... 

Frances, your website is overwhelmingly great. However, I would need to spend much longer looking at all that you have made it do to understand how and who is the right market for it. 

Bill as ever, thank you for your introductions to this awesome crew, and making this all happen. 

Joyce, nice to meet you. Looking forward to learning more about you...

Happy V day!
Cheers!
V
Bill Wendel Bill Wendel
In my car, about to drive off with a sense of gratitude and optimism about the work Bobby and Fran are doing.

Their willingness to invite feedback in real time was fruitful.  Open to ideas about how we can use these peer-to-peer feedback session to elevate individual business models / missions as we pursue best practices

Happy Valentines Day!
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