<HTML> <HEAD> <title>WebForm1</title> <meta name="GENERATOR" content="Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 7.1"> <meta name="CODE_LANGUAGE" content="Visual Basic .NET 7.1"> <meta name="vs_defaultClientScript" content="JavaScript"> <meta name="vs_targetSchema" content="http://schemas.microsoft.com/intellisense/ie5"> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content='text/html; charset=UTF-8'> </HEAD> <body > <TABLE id="Table1" cellSpacing="1" cellPadding="1" width="100%" border="0"> <TR> <TD><b>Comment Number:</b></TD> <TD>518795-00303</TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><b>Received Date:</b></TD> <TD>11/2/2005 3:49:55 PM</TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><b>Organization:</b></TD> <TD>Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS</TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><b>Commenter:</b></TD> <TD>Allen, Mark</TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><b>State:</b></TD> <TD>MN</TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><b>Agency:</b></TD> <TD>Federal Trade Commission</TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><b>Rule:</b></TD> <TD>Competition Policy and the Real Estate Industry</TD> </TR> <TR> <TD><b>Docket ID:</b></TD> <TD>To Be Added</TD> </TR> <TR> <td colspan='2'>No Attachments</td> </TR> </TABLE> <hr/> <b>Comments:</b><br/><br/> To whom it may concern: The recent federal investigation into the competativeness of the real estate industry can only have one outcome: the real estate brokerage industry is highly competative and possibly the most competative industry that exists in the United States. In the Minneapolis-St.Paul area, whether you drive around town looking at billboards or sit at home in front of your television watching commercials, one common dominator is hundreds of brokers who advertise a plethera of business models, fees and service plans from which consumers can choose. Options include commission levels from several thousand to only a few hundred dollars and service packages range from a virtual broker assisted for-sale-by-owner to full service with all the trimmings. Brokers have as few as one agent to as many as several thousand agents. Some brokerages are agent owned models, others employ agents, and still others house agents as independent contractors. And, no single model has the unique and exclusive formula for success; as a variety of different styles of brokers have demonstrated financial success and customer satisfaction in their own individual way. Every real estate service provider has the same opportunity to obtain a real estate license, join the REALTOR organization, participate in MLS services and make available MLS listings on their website. There are no barriers or glass ceilings in the real estate brokerage business. The real estate industry is a model of competition that works. In an economy in which large, national corporations -- such as Wal-Mart and Microsoft -- dominate the marketplace, real estate stands apart. We are an industry made up predominantly of small businesses and independent contractors who represent the entrepreneurial spirit this country was founded on. All of us serve localized markets where pratitioners compete for business every day. Fierce competition is fueled largely by the uniquely intense and personalized nature of the service provided to clients -- which, in turn, determines future success through referrals and return business. Barriers to entry are low. If you are willing to take the time to learn the business in your local market, pass the state license examination and adhere to the REALTOR&reg; code of ethics, there is nothing to stand in the way of success in this industry. Each practitioner has to learn the business and pass the state licensing examination, but it is my own work ethic, commitment to professional standards and dedication to client satisfaction that determine my success. Even through the economic downturns our country has experienced in the past few years, our industry has continued to provide opportunity -- something I would say is confirmed by the thousands of new agents that join our profession every year and the over two million Americans who are now licensed to provide professional real estate services in communities across the country. Nothing encourages a competitive business environment more than providing consumers with choice. In the residential real estate marketplace, consumers not only are able to choose from more than 76,000 brokerage firms and more than 1.2 million REALTORS®, but also from a variety of business models. Mark Mark Allen, CEO Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS&nbsp;&nbsp;www.mplsrealtor.com <A name=RDACT1></A> </body> </HTML>