Real Estate News - Free and Up to the Minute
Pinterest’s member list has grown exponentially in just a matter of months. They have quickly gained just over 4 million members since their launch. It’s a site lovingly referred to as “fantasy football for girls.” While the new social sharing site has a large female following, male followers are quickly coming aboard. Pinterest is a site geared towards things like interior design, fashion, DIY & crafts, photography and home décor. It is meant to be a site for individuals to … [Read more...]
It was just announced that MarketLeader, the vendor behind Keller Williams' eEdge click to close platform has acquired RealEstate.com for 8.25 Million according to Tech Crunch.The company appears to be on a strategic buying spree after recent acquisitions of kwkly - a mobile customer engagement platform as well as Sharper Agent. These purchases appear to be positioning MarketLeader to develop more of a dominant role in the click to close space. … [Read more...]
Publishers Note: This is the first in a series of Technology and Marketing Product Reviews that we will be publishing as part of Real Estate Industry Watch. We will provide equal space to those having opposing views. The views in each of these reviews are those of the author and not neccessarily those of Real Estate Industry Watch.This summary is by no means a slam on any one PPC (Pay Per Click) company, but a discussion on the consequences of hiring a company to manage your paid search … [Read more...]
As expected, Google announced Google's version of the Facebook like button. The new Google +1 button can be a game changer for real estate websites. Unlike other ratings systems, Google's +1 does not allow for down voting, or "1 out of 5" type star ratings like Yelp's, so your competitors or other malicious visitors cannot high jack your ratings. Additionally, Google's like button is intended to provide useful data to Google allowing Google to return relevant search results. Of … [Read more...]
Real Estate Webmasters has announced the pending release of their new backend cms 4.0 ., , according to an announcement on the company's website and forum. One of the unique features of this announcement is that the new cms 4.0 is still in it's beta form and current REW customers can be the first to test it, and have a say in it's features and so on.This will also be the first time that Real Estate Webmasters (a Canadian based company in Nanaimo British Columbia ) will be holding this … [Read more...]
The agreement made last year between Zillow and Yahoo Real Estate has now gone "live" according to Zillow. Zillow is now providing 4 million listings to compliment Yahoo's already existing databases of foreclosures and other properties.Additionally according to the deal, Zillow will be offering advertising opportunities on both sites to agents and brokers. This is the first of what many insiders think will be more consolidation among lead generatiing / listing syndication type sites. Other … [Read more...]
I've become more intrigued lately by the number of agents putting the QR bar code scanner on the back on their business cards. I've decided to write this post for the need of an opinion. Should the square shaped QR bar code be on the back of a business card. Recently in South Florida, a large company accounced they are putting the QR bar code scan on all real estate sign riders so anyone who drives by a homes, can simply scan the QR bar code and access all the information of that … [Read more...]
In a move to apparently accomodate the change in emphasis on Facebook, REALTOR.com has removed the "See My Listings" app effective 10.03.2010 and will instead provide the means to do this on REALTOR fan / business pages as outlined in this brochure.REALTORS who have or build a Facebook Fan / Business Page will be able to take advantage of this new program and post their listings on facebook. Whether the new method will provide better traffic or more traffic remains to be seen as far fewer … [Read more...]
Realtors Property Resource (RPR) has been rolled out for over a 100 MLSs now. Arizona just got theirs, and the information there has been overwhelming. RPR was developed by National Association of Realtors (NAR) to combat Trulia, Zillow, and other real estate scraper sites. What it offers is much more detail than traditional listing info, but the info is only available, if you're side by side with your Realtor. And that's the catch! Will it work? Here are some of the key … [Read more...]
Several banks are trying to speed up the short sale process. Many of them are finally learning that having thousands of agents faxing in hundred-page packages is not the best method to use. For awhile, they refused to use email, but they've finally come to terms that email is a very useful technology. This may sound laughable when reading, but sadly, it is the truth. At the REO Expo in Dallas, Bank of America explained that they will now use nothing but Equator for their short sales. Those … [Read more...]
What REALTORS owe Steve Jobs There are times to talk business. There are times to whine. And then there are times to simply pay our respects. With the passing of Steve Jobs yesterday, now is one of those times.As REALTORS, we tend to be in a hurry all of the time. We are dealing with this … [Read More...]
Curtis Reddehase, a real estate broker in Austin Texas recently wrote announcing his decision regarding Listing Syndication Attack of the 50 Foot Woman movie and why his brokerage will no longer be participating in that form of marketing. Several reasons were cited, but the 2 main reasons boiled down to: 1. He doesn’t want his [...]
.!. If the $8,000 first time home buyer has proven to bring reluctant first time buyers into the market then the recently proposed $15,000 tax credit to all buyers could be a game changer. The real estate market has been in the doldrums for the past few years and with the introduction of the first time [...]
According to a Press Release by Keller Williams, KW and CitiMortgage have entered into an agreement to provide mortgages with reduced fees and a $1,500 on time closing guarantee. While this is not the first agreement of its kind in the industry, it is part of a growing trend among franchises. “Our goal is to [...]