We’re constantly on the lookout for new companies/technologies that might alter the scope of the current real estate system and this latest press release we received from N-Play might have something to offer.

The concept is simple, agents get listings and add the “N-Play” button to the online listing, buyers make offers on properties by clicking the button, offers are non-binding and anonymous, sellers negotiate directly with the buyers online (hopefully multiple buyers), the parties reach an agreement, the agent comes in to shuffle some papers, buyers get keys, seller gets money, everyone’s happy. Simple enough, and brilliant at the same time. It’s the simple things in life……

For the full press release read on:

N-Play gives real estate industry a shot in the arm

First online service to motivate buyers to make offers and put properties in play.

JACKSONVILLE, FL, JULY 14, 2008 – N-Play, a real estate service company focused on bringing home buyers and sellers together online, has launched today in beta. The company is the first to connect buyers, sellers and agents through secure submission, ranking and evaluation of offers online, directly from the listing display. N-Play is currently undertaking beta trials with several brokers and agents, including Prudential Network Realty, a major Florida brokerage. Invitations for the public launch and videos illustrating N-Play are available at http://n-play.com. The service will become available to all licensed real estate professionals within the next thirty days and will be offered exclusively to licensed real estate agents and brokers. N-Play will be marketed directly and via partnerships with media companies, franchise organizations and online real estate sites and providers.

“Real estate remains the only major purchase that is not negotiated in advance of a legally binding written offer.” said Mark Bloomfield, founder and CEO of N-Play. “This approach, especially in today’s market, creates an environment ripe for buyer reluctance to commit to making offers and failed deals based on seller anxiety and unfulfilled expectation levels. The result is a lost opportunity. N-Play solves this problem by enabling buyers to anonymously place non-binding, comprehensive and secure offers on property listings, without limitations. In this regard all the barriers that stand between buyers and sellers are eliminated yet keeps the real estate agent involved at every step in the process.”

The solution, called N-Play, is a client based application that is installed and then resides as a button or a link on the broker and agent listing websites. When a buyer wants to make an offer on a listing, they simply click the “Make Your Offer” button or link. A new window opens inside the listing page and provides the buyer an intuitive interface for making a real-time comprehensive, nonbinding offer. Sellers can choose any offer at any time or no offer. Buyers remain anonymous (known only to N-Play) until an offer has been agreed upon, at which time a Memorandum of Understanding is sent to all parties summarizing the agreed upon terms and conditions. With the assistance of their respective agents, the parties negotiate the final points of a transaction and enter into a binding purchase agreement offline and outside the purview of N-Play.

“N-Play is one of those things that seems so obvious, and, unlike most of the technology I’ve seen over the years, will shift buyer and seller attitudes and assist my agents in making transactions,” said Linda Sherrer, President and CEO of Prudential Network Realty. “It brings together three valuable disciplines that will truly make our industry better and I think the timing is right. We have been in beta with the N-Play for several weeks and we had an offer on one of our listings within days of using the service. We’re excited about the prospects and we’ll be making N-Play available to all of our agents over the next several months.”

“It’s no secret the challenges we face today as real estate agents.” said Susan Kinley, an agent with RE/MAX Atlantic in Jacksonville, FL., who has over 85 listings. “Sellers are everywhere and buyers are scarce. Our job of bringing the two together is more difficult than ever. We need buyers to get off the fence and to start making offers, and N-Play does this in an ingenious way. It really does bring the two sides together like nothing else before it. It’s exactly what we needed and I think it will become the standard for our industry.”