[trevor-e]

I used a Compass agent when buying my condo but had no idea they were masquerading as a "tech" company. Their online presence was a lot better than other agencies in the area which is probably what sealed the deal for me, and FWIW the agent ended up being great.

The real estate industry is interesting since it's such an old practice and basically none of the old players (Keller Williams, Re Max, etc) capitalized on the tech boom from what I can see. Instead, companies like Zillow, Redfin, Trulia, and now Compass, all swooped in and established a presence. The MLS database is the last hurdle and it's inevitable that will solved in the next ten years IMO.

[Dowwie]

Nothing is inevitable in a multi-billion dollar industry heavily protected by regulators. The industry persists for non-technical reasons.