But after three years of struggle, it’s not clear that RPR’s appeal has made it through to agents on the ground – even as its costs (and the dues required to pay for them) are mounting.

RPR was supposed to help agents fight back against net giants like Zillow and Trulia, which were luring away consumers from other brokers’ sites with their array of data on home sales and prices and a plethora of flashy ways to display it. Agents have long complained that the sites’ data is often inaccurate, but nevertheless watched in frustration as consumers began to trust and rely on it.

RPR brought together an experienced team of developers who were supposed to create a tool that brought together all the public data the web portals rely on with internal industry data gleaned from multiple listing services (MLSs) and agents across the country, allowing agents to create presentations and do market research for their clients that was just as polished and professional but far more accurate.

After three years of effort, however, it’s not clear that agents are interested. MLS-PIN, the state – and one of the country’s — largest MLSs, was an early embracer of the technology, acting as one of the original beta test sites for RPR. But even Kathy Condon, MLS-PIN president and CEO, isn’t sure how many agents are really using it.

“We have been asking for those stats [from RPR] for quite some time, and I’ve never received them,” said Condon. “I am not alone among other MLSs that have asked for stats and aren’t getting them.”

She said the group is close to inking a deal with Find, a competitor to RPR, which offers similar services to agents. “I’m looking forward to that because it will be available across my customer base,” which includes non-Realtors, she said.

Data Incomplete

Other MLSs across the country have been even more wary than MLS PIN, declining to share their data with RPR for fear that it might eventually morph into a competitor. To allay such fears, NAR had insisted that the project could never replace local MLSs, and would look to sustain itself from non-dues sources, mainly through the licensing of its unique combination of data to Wall Street and government and industry groups which study the housing market.

Three years later, however, neither those fears nor those promises seem likely to be fulfilled. Not only have some MLSs happily stayed out of the project, others have signed exclusive licensing deals for their data with RPR competitors like Move, the company that runs Realtor.com. That’s left RPR’s set of listings data woefully incomplete in many larger markets, undermining sales pitch to Wall St. and government agencies.

A recent report on the organization’s finances estimates that the whole project has cost NAR more than $58 million to date, with $18 million in operational costs needed annually to sustain it. A dues increase of $18 per year was passed late last year to help cover such expenses, causing considerable consternation among agents.

Earlier this month, NAR seemed to throw in the towel, opening up RPR to all Realtors regardless of whether their MLS was participating.

Reaching Out

There are some signs that RPR’s recent efforts to reach out to the Realtor community are bearing fruit. Even Condon concedes that, anecdotally, usages among Massachusetts agents seems to have ramped up since RPR hired Veronica McManus this April to act as a permanent regional co-coordinator for the effort.

McManus, who supports the MLSs and associations across New England, and several other trainers have been conducting classes to show people what the site can do for them. And once people begin to see the abilities RPR has, they’re receptive, she said.

At NAR’s annual meeting this month in Orlando, she said “once agents attended our forum and learned about it, we were inundated at the booth. I get a lot of positive feedback at our events,” she said.

Angela Harkins, broker/owner of Angela Harkins and Associates in Westford, was one of those impressed by the revamps that RPR showed off during the conference. She said RPR has been responsive to suggestions from agents, and has simplified and improved reports and interfaces to make it easier to understand how to use the site.

It’s clear some agents do think the tool is fulfilling its original goal.

“They’re much better than Zillow and Trulia and the others,” said Dave Wluka, broker/owner of Wluka Real  Estate Corp. in Sharon.

But, he added, “It’s still no substitute from someone who’s out there in the field.”

Email: csullivan@thewarrengroup.com