MLS PIN names Coldwell Banker veteran Erminio Grasso as new CEO

MLS Property Information Network, the largest multiple listing service in New England, is getting a new president and CEO: Erminio Grasso, who spent more than 18 years as an executive at Coldwell Banker Realty.

Grasso starts on March 1 and replaces Kathy Condon, an MLS veteran of 44 years who helmed MLS PIN for over two decades. Condon grew the company four-fold from 11,000 subscribers to more than 45,000 subscribers in six New England states and New York.

Before joining MLS PIN, Grasso was regional vice president of the Boston region at Coldwell Banker, managing 15 offices and more than 1,500 agents. He was also an MLS PIN board member for several years.

“As a native New Englander, Erminio understands our area’s unique needs, including our politics and our culture,” said Roy Walker, MLS PIN’s board chair and vice president and managing broker of Coldwell Banker Realty – Cambridge, in a statement.

“Most importantly, after two decades in the brokerage world, he deeply understands our customers and has proven his ability to grow businesses and get things done.”

MLS PIN is a broker-owned MLS not owned by or affiliated with any Realtor association, but whose owners are required to be Realtors. In a statement, Melissa Lindberg, MLS PIN’s chief strategy and marketing officer, noted that there are few broker-owned MLSs and among that group, few are led by former brokerage executives.

“For MLSs to not just survive but to thrive in the future, success will come from how we serve our brokerage customers and anticipate their needs,” she said. “That is why MLS PIN will continue to flourish as an industry leader.”

MLS PIN rebranded in September 2020 with a new tagline —”wicked smart” — a new logo and a new website that play up the MLS’s roots in the region, as well as its technology chops. MLS PIN is a rarity in the MLS world in that it has its own in-house platform, called Pinergy. MLS PIN, which has a full-time staff of 60 employees, created and developed Pinergy in-house and regularly adds new features based on customer input.

MLS PIN is also a charter member of the Real Estate Standards Organization (RESO) and holds platinum (the highest) certifications for two RESO standards, the data dictionary and web API.

“MLS PIN is known for fielding one of the most experienced and customer-centric leadership groups — all of whom are MLS experts,” Grasso said in a statement. “Together with this talented team, MLS PIN will continue to find innovative ways that serve our broker and agent customers and strengthen our bond and, at the same time, maximize stockholder value.”

Grasso said that meeting brokers face-to-face in the markets the MLS serves will be among his first activities.

“Every brokerage customer, whether they have five agents or five hundred, must find great value in what we provide them at MLS PIN,” Grasso said.

“MLS PIN has all the right pieces in place with grit for doing new things that help our customers grow their businesses. That is our heritage, and we will find ways to do even more.”

In December 2020, homesellers filed an antitrust lawsuit against MLS PIN and real estate brokerage giants Realogy, RE/MAX, Keller Williams and HomeServices of America challenging the industry practice of having sellers pay buyer brokers. That suit is ongoing.

Across the country, MetroList, the largest MLS in Northern California with more than 22,500 subscribers, announced a new CEO and a new president last week: Rick Trevino, MetroList’s vice president for information technology, as CEO, and Dave Howe, MetroList’s vice president of client success and compliance, as president.

The two will replace Bill Miller, who is retiring after more than 25 years at MetroList, including five years as CEO.

“Rick and Dave are both innovative thinkers and have led their teams to increase the value and benefits to our real estate Subscribers and ultimately to the real estate buyers and sellers,” Miller said in a statement.

“Under their leadership, Rick and Dave will continue to bring even more value to the brokers and agents who depend on MetroList for their real estate business.”

Email Andrea V. Brambila.

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