Yes, these are difficult days for ComFree. That may come as a surprise to many of you given that home sales remain relatively strong. And particularly in light of the fact we enjoyed the best month in our 10-year history when 300 of you listed in May with ComFree.

May 2006 private listing were up by 40 per cent over May 2005. So, how can we describe our best year ever as "tough times?" Because we know that ComFree would be growing even faster in a traditional Winnipeg market when it’s harder to sell a home. We’ve been going through a restraint on our growth for the past two and a half years of this buoyant market, even as we’ve continued to grow.

There’s a misconception out there, especially among agents, that ComFree is only growing because it’s easy to sell a home these days. That sentiment was repeated in a letter faxed to our office by a lady who sounds as though she’s related to an agent.

Commenting on our observation that, with rising home values and declining agents' listing service sales, agents collectively have actually made more money by selling fewer homes, she wrote: "If it got easier for agents, your company must be enjoying a cakewalk...Agents are a valuable asset when the market is down and slow. Your service does well when it’s easier to move real estate..."

Yet, ComFree grows faster in a slow, buyers’ market for a very simple reason: Arithmetic.

This may seem counter-intuitive, but it makes sense. Here’s why: When this sellers’ market eventually reverts to a normal Winnipeg buyers’ market, home prices will either flatten or decline, just as they have after every previous price runup.

So, let’s say you’re a homeowner who bought during the heady days of rising home prices, but must now sell into a tight, highly-competitive market. You bought for $150,000, but the 10 comparable houses yours is now competing directly against are priced from $145,000 to $150,000. Those at $145,000 are selling.

The rest aren’t. You have to sell, so you’ve got to be close to $145,000. This is the dilemma faced by homesellers in a normal Winnipeg market.

You sit down and do the arithmetic: It doesn’t matter how much an agent is prepared to lower his commission rate, the agent will be the only one who makes money on your home sale. Even if you’re able to get more than you paid (unlikely in this scenario), you’ll still lose if you list on the agents' listing service.

So, even if your first preference is to go with an agent, you realize it just doesn’t make any sense. Your only hope of conserving your equity is to list with ComFree. You’re an intelligent person. You do what makes sense for you.

ComFree started in a traditional Winnipeg buyers’ market and grew quickly, even without the visibility we enjoy today. So, when the housing market reverts to normal, more of you will do the arithmetic and choose the intelligent choice.

ComFree updates

Of the 152 ComFree listings that sold in May, 66% went for at or above list, with 39% going for above list.

All ComFree offices have combined to save consumers $60 million in needless commission in the first six months of ’06.