{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"CW 572 \u2013 MATT WILLIAMS \u2013 TAKING THE MYSTERY OUT OF REPAIRS, IMPROVEMENTS & REHABS WITH PRO.COM","description":"Welcome to episode 572 of Creating Wealth Real Estate Investing. If you\u2019ve ever tried to get an accurate estimate on a home project \u2013 and been frustrated in the process \u2013 you\u2019ll want to hear what our guest on today\u2019s episode has created. Matt Williams is the former CEO of Digg and a serial entrepreneur who has developed Pro.com, a website to bring transparency to the contracting industry. He joins us to explain the uniqueness of Pro.com and describe its benefits for consumers, contractors and real estate agents. Matt and I also talk about his time with Digg and what it was like working as an executive in the early days of Amazon. We dig into all of that and more on today\u2019s episode of Creating Wealth Real Estate Investing. Show Notes for CW 572: Welcome to episode 572 of Creating Wealth Real Estate Investing. If you\u2019ve ever tried to get an accurate estimate on a home project \u2013 and been frustrated in the process \u2013 you\u2019ll want to hear what our guest on today\u2019s episode has created. Matt Williams is the former CEO of Digg and a serial entrepreneur who has developed Pro.com, a website to bring transparency to the contracting industry. He joins us to talk about his background with Digg and Amazon and also explain the uniqueness of Pro.com. Matt was born to entrepreneurial parents so it\u2019s no surprise he started his first company at 22 and later sold it to Amazon. After the sale he spent nearly 12 years working as an executive during Amazon\u2019s early days. One of his roles in that time was to shadow Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos! Those 12 years set him up to take on his next monolithic task: being Digg\u2019s CEO. Matt combined his passion of news and CEO knowledge to restore Digg after it\u2019s V4 debacle. He shares more details about this on the show. You\u2019ll Also Hear: How does an opportunity qualify as an investment? Today the US has the lowest homeowner rate since 1967- why is that a good thing? What is an investment\u2019s income judged by \u2013 net operating income or cash flow? When did Matt come up with the idea for Pro.com? And much more!   Jeff also shares what\u2019s so unique about Pro.com: the transparency it brings, the comprehensive pricing engine it uses and an overall empowering, fair experience for all parties involved with every transaction. One of its strongest selling points is the transparency it brings to the contracting world. You can experience this transparency when you use the site. There is the comprehensive pricing engine built into Pro.com. All you have to do is enter your project, your zip code and Pro.com will come back with a projected estimate for that project\u2019s basic cost in your area. If you want to add on a few features and get a cost you can do that as well. For example if you\u2019re looking to paint a room in your house, Pro.com will give you that information. If you have extra high ceilings and want the crown molding painted you can add those features onto the base price and Pro.com will give you an updated estimate including the extras. From there Pro.com will connect you with trusted, vetted and pre-qualified contractors in your area who will fulfill your project. The business model of it is unlike anything else on the marketplace. The contractor does NOT pay for leads, unlike other websites and they also don\u2019t get paid until they finish your job and you are happy with it. At that point Pro.com takes a commission and passes the rest along to the contractor. That commission is in line with industry rate\u2019s that contractors would normally assess when giving work to subcontractors. To make a long story short you get a quality job done right for a fair price by a good contractor who in turn is paid for that quality job, and Pro.com earns a fair commission. Everyone wins! No one else in the marketplace is doing this. There are other models out there where you can connect with contractors but the site that connected you in the first place bows out at that moment, and you are on your own. Not so with Pro.com. On today\u2019s show Matt also explains Pro.com\u2019s rating system and how the site is helping the real estate industry at large. Join us for all of that and more on episode 572 of Creating Wealth Real Estate Investing.   EPISODE RESOURCES (These are in addition to the links already on the show notes page for this episode) * CW 573: Domestic & International Real Estate Investing with Dr. Steve Sjuggerud of Stansberry Research * Subscribe to Creating Wealth Real Estate Investing Podcast * Write a Review on iTunes   The fact that U.S. homeownership rates are tumbling is great news for real estate investors! The time is ripe for cash flow oriented linear markets. And it just so happens Pro.com\u2019s home project service engine is up and running at full capacity. I talk with Matt Williams, formerly of Digg.com, about the latest and greatest tool for real estate agents and investors, Pro.com. Pro.com is a new service which gives you the price of a pro contractor to complete your home services upfront, so you know exactly how much you can expect the bill to be. There were no fee\u2019s exchanged for this or any of my podcasts. Don\u2019t Forget Early Bird pricing for Meet the Masters available on JasonHartman.com Key Takeaways: Jason\u2019s Editorial: [2:06] Giddy for the upcoming interview [3:45] Removing the 3rd party from the equation [5:23] Podcasters are charging guests to be on their show [5:53] We are working on a self-management software tool [7:30] Income is judged by the net operating income, not cash flow [8:39] The Zerohedge article \u2013 U.S. homeownership rate tumbles [11:00] I\u2019m excited I want a 55% homeownership rate [12:52] Median U.S. asking rent is $803 [13:46] The time is ripe for cash flow oriented linear markets [14:55] Real income in the U.S. is at 1989 levels [17:39] Will the economy be outdone by free market technology Matt Williams Guest Interview: [20:59] Learning the ins and outs of building marketplaces and communities at Amazon [22:01] Digg\u2019s V4 \u2013 An attempt at a personalized news experience [25:21] Incubating Pro.com at Andreessen Horowitz [27:26] Real estate investors are able to get a quote from any zip code in the U.S. [28:25] Homeowners have access to what it cost to get their home ready for sale [30:09] The most comprehensive pricing engine for any home project [32:40] The problem is a lack of transparency for home services [34:22] What the job should cost broken down for the consumer [35:40] It\u2019s really for every single job you can imagine in the home [38:00] We handle the payment processing also [39:04] Thousands of common projects and the multiple variations [40:08] There are a lot of jobs left undone because people don\u2019t know the price upfront [41:10] We survey the pro after the job and post rankings [41:58] How real estate agents work with pro.com [44:12] This free service is nationwide, right? Mentions: Pro.com Digg.com Andreessen Horowitz The Mystery of the Missing Inflation \u2013 Tyler Durden JasonHartman.com VentureAllianceMastermind.com   ","author_name":"Creating Wealth Show Archives 301-600","author_url":"http:\/\/cwarchives2.libsyn.com\/podcast","html":"