Global Real Estate Technology and Venture Capital Blog

  • Meet the Inaugural REACH Canada Class – Innovation from Coast-to-Coast
    We are thrilled to introduce the newest members of the REACH family and the first class of REACH Canada. The 2020 class brings in firms from across the continent, and across the entire real estate ecosystem, each striving to deliver improved customer experiences to homeowners and REALTORS® alike.
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 10 – Jeff Turner, Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Second Century Ventures
    On the tenth and LAST episode of Beyond the Box’s first Season, we had the pleasure of interviewing Jeff Turner, Entrepreneur in Residence, NAR REACH. Click the links below to hear Jeff and Mike McAra discuss Jeff’s experiences with a diverse variety of founders, the dynamic of uncertainty, and using technology in the way it was meant to be used. You will NOT want to miss this well-rounded meal of an episode!!!
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 9 – Tom Rossiter, CEO, RESAAS
    Episode 9 of Beyond the Box is out now!! Mike McAra talks with Tom Rossiter, CEO of RESAAS to get his diverse perspective on what Canada is bringing to the table with regards to technology in the real estate landscape.
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 8 – Rob Richards, CEO/Co-founder, Key
    Today we highlight and celebrate Rob Richards, Co-founder and CEO of KeyLiving which introduces a new model of homeownership that provides the freedoms of renting, with all the benefits of owning your own property. "Homeownership as a service".
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 7 – Bill Andrews – Regional Sales Director at Black Knight Financial Services
    This week we have the extremely intelligent and seasoned tech expert Bill Andrews. Lynette Keyowski sits with him to discuss the history of technology in the real estate space and what the future may hold. “And it occurred to me, I thought that it was illegal, I said “why are they allowed to do their own stuff?” and they said, “there’s nothing stopping them. You have to go compete and go for it.” And I realized okay, so that’s a game-changer. There’s never going to be a time where you rest on your laurels, and it’s going to be changing forever more and that’s exactly how it’s been and what happened.”
  • REACH Cohort Overview: Highlighting Key Innovators In Real Estate
    In the wake of COVID-19, the real estate sector is being presented with more challenges than ever before. Innovative problem solving is required to make the most of this new normal. At its core, the goal of Second Century Ventures is to help transform the promising technology firms of tomorrow into the top real estate solutions of today. We are enabling this transformation through our REACH global initiatives. Let’s take some time to recognize the promising upside of the 16 visionary organizations we’ve backed in the US this year.
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 6 – David Steckel – Co-founder and CEO at Setter
    In the sixth Beyond the Box episode, Mike McAra has the pleasure of talking with Co-founder David Steckel about the ride to get venture-backed by some of the biggest names in the valley, only to have COVID come and significant impact his business all while closing their Series A round.
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 5 – Morgan Carey – Founder and CEO at Real Estate Webmasters
    Our fifth Beyond the Box episode is out TODAY and it could not have been with a more inspirational person. Mike McAra had the pleasure of sitting down with the fun and intelligent Morgan Carey, CEO of Real Estate Webmasters and renowned public event speaker. “There will be adoption. It’s forcing us to work outside of our comfort zone and to start looking at some of the things. It’s interesting, I was reading a Harvard Business Review article the other day and they were talking about how the fact that in recession, people actually do tend to invest more often in technology because there isn’t the opportunity cost.”
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 4 – Rob Hahn – Managing Partner at 7DS Associates
    On this week’s Beyond the Box episode, we present to you the brilliant mind of Robert Hahn (author of the popular Notorious R.O.B. real estate blog and Managing Partner of 7DS Associates). “It’s not enough to just resist disruption, to resist change, and then say we’re going to say the same. What we actually want to do is embrace this change. This shock, this disruption lets us get better and helps us to improve in whatever way that is. However you think of it, it improves. So, the old way was pretty great, but it could have used improvement, right??” Rob shares with Lynette Keyowski his perspectives on how COVID has affected the real estate industry, shares his thoughts on what the future may look like and what the industry needs to strive for personally and professionally in the time to come.
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 3 – Laura Monroe – Global Head of Community at Inman News
    This week, Mike McAra has the pleasure of sitting down with Laura Monroe, Global Head of Community with Inman News to discuss the effects of COVID-19 on the real estate industry and what the future may hold for it’s members. “I think that first of all, one of the things about the real estate industry that I think we’ve always kind of known and definitely been able to witness is, you know, the adaptability of us as an industry."
  • Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 2 – Lynette Keyowski – Managing Director at REACH Canada
    REACH Canada Director Mike McAra chats with Managing Partner Lynette Keyowski about the challenges faced by Associations, and new opportunities they have to pivot to better serve their membership. "The box is now physically different and as a matter of fact, associations need to create a new box, right? And it may no longer be around demonstrating the value of a REALTOR®. It may no longer be around providing a great MLS system. It might not be around PR and professional standards...those types of things. It may now be around the competitive advantage as you noted. The competitive advantage of brokers has now been wiped away and everybody is now working from that same new plateau.“
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    Beyond the Box – Season 1 – Episode 1 – Mark Birschbach – Senior Vice President of Strategic Business Innovation and Technology with National Association of REALTORS®
    The Season Premiere of Beyond the Box is finally here featuring the Senior Vice President of Strategic Business Innovation and Technology with National Association of REALTORS®, Mark Birschbach! In our Season Premiere Lynette Keyowski sits down with Mark to discuss the founding of REACH and what the NAR future has in store. “That’s very much the goal is to have a proactive approach to innovation and how things will change over time, and ultimately where our member sits in the relationship with the consumer and to the transaction. Making sure that, as their role has to evolve over time, based on how consumer preferences are evolving over time, that they are positioned to be successful and that’s why we’re here and why we do what we do.”