The Great And Scary Benefits Of Using Real Estate Plugins

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real estate pluginsIf you are a broker or agent and don’t use a WordPress website, you are basically missing out on real estate plugins and thousands of other cool features (many free) that you can provide to visitors.

And if you aren’t working with a seasoned developer for WordPress real estate websites, you might be adding some features that could put your site at risk.

Last count, there were 52,000 plugins available on WordPress. More than two hundred show up in a search for real estate plugins alone. (Many others that brokers might want to add, such as contact forms, can be found in the general selection).

Plugins are basically like the apps you download for your phone. They are tools to help with lead capture, navigation, search engine optimization, photo galleries and thousands of other uses. In fact, there is basically a plugin available right now for practically anything.

One of the incredible aspects of WordPress is that it is an open-source platform. Which means outside developers are encouraged to create these bits of software that can be integrated into the WordPress platform.

Remember, WordPress started as a way to provide a simple tool for bloggers. And it caught on big time. Now 41.7 million new posts are published every month on this platform.

This platform is so successful that it has become one of the leading content management systems in the world.

WordPress is like the iPhone of website software.

Smartphones and iPhones are incredible devices. You can carry a phone in your pocket, surf the web from a coffee shop and shoot pictures and videos better than most cameras on the market.

But when you consider the thousands of apps that are available for iPhones and smartphones, then those devices literally become phenomenal. A device you must own.

Real estate plugins come in all forms

Same thing with WordPress real estate plugins.

Many plugins are free. Some are very cheap. Others cost more but are worth every penny. Many times you can try a limited version and then upgrade to a paid plugin with more features.

The founders of Home Junction Inc. have been involved in the real estate website business for the past 20 years.

They developed several powerful plugins specifically for WordPress real estate websites (and they also build those websites for brokers and agents)

Their most powerful plugin is a real estate data API that basically gives brokers and agents a way to add a vast warehouse of current and accurate real estate data.

That real estate plugin allows a broker or agent to add super hyper-local information, right down to the neighborhood level.

For example, on the Butler & Butler real estate website, you can look at several communities with homes for sale.

When you navigate to one of those properties, there are tabs for Area Information, Schools, Recent Sales, etc.

real estate website plugins

Home Junction fills those tabs with information that is updated regularly.

Take Area Info for example.

Click on the tab and you will see charts for changes in home prices for the past several quarters in specific communities.

That’s not for the county. It’s not for the zip code. It’s for that particular community. A community that an agent might be farming.

You can’t get more hyper-local than that.

Home Junction also offers a geo-spatial, real estate plugin that allows brokers and agents to integrate maps into their website.

We’re not just talking about a link to a Google map.

We’re talking about real estate map technology that is integrated into a local MLS database. When a broker or agent pulls up a map on their website, they can show the location of homes for sale in that area.

Then it goes further. In addition, they can also show which amenities – such as schools, golf courses, restaurants, highways, etc., are in proximity to those properties. That tool alone can significantly boost the price and appeal of any home.

As savvy brokers and agents know, home buyers don’t just buy a home, they buy the neighborhood (and the schools).

These real estate plugins help buyers get a true understanding of not only the value of the home, but also the value of nearby amenities and a current snapshot of market conditions.

That’s persuasive info.

Plugin security is a major concern

Now, as we said there are tens of thousands of plugins available through WordPress.

If you don’t have a WordPress real estate website, you should seriously consider adding one because you will have access to all these incredible tools and features. You can add an incredible number of new tools without hiring a coder to create them for you, at a significant cost and time delay.

With WordPress, a broker or agent can easily add content, write a blog or upload photos. It’s literally child’s play. What a relief right?

Here’s the next important factor to consider regarding real estate plugins.

Just like anything on the world wide web, there are people out there with good intentions, and there are people out there with negative intentions. There’s another group which consists of people who are a little sloppy with their coding and create plugins with security holes in them.

Every broker and agent need to be wary of the second two groups.

Frankly, most brokers and agents don’t have the expertise nor the time to investigate every plugin. It’s a tough job. You could search through thousands of plugins, read the reviews, check out the number of users and even see when they were updated last.

In addition, many hackers have a hobby of trying to punch holes in internet security. It’s important to keep all plugins updated to prevent any types of attacks. Also, some plugins can slow down a site or cause the site to crash frequently.

That’s why working with a seasoned WordPress real estate website developer is a smart move.

Get with the times. Jump on the WordPress bandwagon. And when you work with a company like Home Junction, you won’t need to worry.

WordPress websites and real estate plugins are a powerful combination.  It’s a winning strategy for any broker or agent, as long as they choose the right partner to guide them.

WordPress Real Estate Websites Make It Easy To Build Referrals and Resources

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wordpress real estate websitesWordPress real estate websites create several strategic advantages for brokers and agents because of their versatility, ease of use and speed.

That’s why WordPress is one of the most effective website platforms in the world and the most user-friendly for busy real estate professionals.

Let’s just give one example.

One web strategy that brokers and agents can use to build up a business is often overlooked. That strategy involves “outbound links” or basically links that you place on your website and in your blogs that link out to other websites.

Many people might think, “Why would I ever put a link on my website that would give people the opportunity to leave. Are you crazy?”

Don’t be afraid to link to other relevant websites

But that mindset is not how the internet community thinks.

There are three important reasons to consider outbound links from your real estate website.

  1. Recognition as a Valuable Resource: one of the great facets of the internet is its interconnectivity. In fact, the web was originally designed by the military as a way to connect various bases and government departments.

People can find your website on the web by searching on Google or clicking on directory listings, yellow pages, links from other sites, etc.

You can find just about anything in the world by visiting search engines or Wikipedia and following the link trails to find the answers you want.

Same goes for your website. People look to real estate professionals to basically know ALL the answers about a particular market or neighborhood. Those are BIG shoes to fill.

To show consumers that you are truly a valuable resource, it’s smart to provide valuable links on your website to important destinations – local schools, hospitals, chambers of commerce, city departments, etc.

Sure people might leave your website and go check out one of these locations. But chances are, they will shoot right back to your site once they see what’s offered.

The sites you should link to are not competitors, but helpful aides for consumers to find the answers they need.

Even if the web visitor does not return right away, you will have established in their minds that your real estate website is the go-to-place for local questions.

  1. Recognition by the Search Engines: as a segue from the resource factor listed above, adding outbound links has valuable implications for how you rank on search engines.

Google and Bing have hundreds of factors they use in their algorithms to determine the relevance and value of a website when they make their rankings.

One of those factors they consider is how valuable is the site as a resource for consumers. They calculate that value by how many outbound links the site provides to other relevant and useful websites.

In fact, an internet marketing company called Reboot conducted an extensive study on outgoing links and found: “Outgoing relevant links to authoritative sites are considered in the algorithms and do have a positive impact on rankings.”

(Note: Did you notice how we linked this blog to the Reboot page for reference?)

Now, who do you link to? Warning: not just anybody.

Educational sites such as schools or colleges that have a .edu in their web address are considered valuable. So are government websites that have a .gov in their URL.

You don’t need to worry too much about trying to figure out which sites would be considered valuable by Google and Bing. They already have that figured out.

The best strategy a broker or agent can do is just figure out the sites to link to that they know would be valuable to consumers looking to buy a home in that area. Google and Bing will do the rest.

The one thing you don’t want to do, is just put up a bunch of links for the sake of having links. Too many links to sites that Google and Bing don’t like can be harmful to a website’s rankings. Choose carefully and sparingly.

  1. Referrals and Goodwill: you can also use links to help you connect with other people who might be helpful to you for referrals or to spread the word about your brand.

For example, perhaps your town has a really cool museum. You decide to write a blog about that museum. You add an outbound link to the museum’s website.

Next time you visit the museum, perhaps you might mention to the director about the blog you wrote and the outbound link you provided

Any entity looking for publicity will love this and be truly appreciative. Perhaps one day, that museum director will refer you to a friend who just moved to town and needs a house. Perhaps one day that museum director will list their house with you.

Or, perhaps that museum director will be so thrilled that they will blast a note out on their Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest accounts about the article you wrote about the museum. That could be quite a few eyeballs seeing your brand name and visiting your website. All for free.

WordPress real estate websites are built for simplicity

WordPress makes it easy for the average person to add links. (Actually, it makes it easy to do a number of functions).

A broker or agent might think, “Oh boy, here’s yet ANOTHER task I have to do.” As if you already didn’t have a list a mile long.

Here’s the great thing about WordPress real estate websites.

Adding outbound links is easy. (“Easy” is another word for user-friendly and that’s a phrase you will see constantly associated when WordPress real estate websites are mentioned.).

Many of you probably already know how to link to another website.

All you need to do is go to the website that you want to link to and copy their web or url address in the browser’s address bar on the top of your screen. For a shortcut, just hit the Control button and the letter “C” on your keyboard.

Then open up a WordPress page. Type in some text in the content box.

Run your cursor over a word where you want to insert the outbound link.

Go to the menu at the top of the page. Look for the icon that shows what looks like a chain and click on it. (Similar to the one you use for hyperlinks on Microsoft Word pages).

A window will appear. Paste the url address into the window (hit the Control button and then the letter “P” on your keyboard.)

Bazinga, you are done. Hit the “Preview” button at the top of the page to check out how the text and link appear. When you are finished posting content, always click the outbound link to make sure it works.

With WordPress real estate websites you don’t need to be a coder. You don’t need to call up your webmaster to get him or her to add a link. You don’t need to know how to program HTML code or Java script. You don’t need to take a half hour to add one link.

With WordPress real estate websites, this function is fast. In fact, that’s the basic idea. All WordPress functions are built to be fast. And simple to do.

Sure we get it, how does a busy broker or agent find the time to add outbound links, photos, blogs, videos, etc?

Well, WordPress real estate websites, compared to other platforms, will give you the time and the tools to get it done, quickly.

 

Real Estate Map Technology Helps You Create A Story About Amenities That Will Boost Home Prices

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real estate map technologyEmbedding the right real estate map functionality on your website can be a powerful tool when you approach sellers.

Let’s face it. Experts will tell you that people love to talk about themselves and second to that, people love to talk about their homes.

What if you could use real estate map technology to talk about their home in a way that would blow them away?

As every real estate professional knows, there are many factors that contribute to the value and attractiveness of a home beside the home itself.

When you are asking buyers to pay $200,000 for a property, they’re important. When you are talking about asking someone to plunk down $1 million for a property, those factors are very important. (And the added value you show those million-dollar-homeowners is also critically important.).

According to CheatSheet.com, there are several factors outside the home that can boost home prices.

Savvy brokers and agents know this already.

But here’s a tool that will help sellers see how you are going to use those amenities to boost the value of their home in the mind of potential buyers.

Use real estate maps to show rather than tell

Here are some suggestions:

Schools – of course, we all know the value of good schools to home buyers (and sellers who live near them). Here’s where the right real estate map technology and data come in handy (both provided by Home Junction, of course).

For one, Home Junction provides in-depth, valuable school data. A complete breakdown of the school including the name of the principal, location, phone number, etc.

There’s more. A broker or agent can also post critical school data such as teacher/student ratios, demographics of the student population, etc.

Sure, an agent can tell a seller they are going to let the seller know, “There are really good schools in this area.”

A savvy agent will show a seller how they are going to provide factual in-depth data on everything a home buyer needs to know about a school.

Who is going to impress the seller more?

real estate map plugin

Home Junction’s real estate map technology plug-in.

Parks – people love parks. What’s great about this amenity is that this can be a critical selling factor that costs the home owner nothing. Sure, remodeling the kitchen for $30,000 is always a great upgrade. But don’t dismiss the value of a park two blocks away. You can turn that greenery into some greenery for the seller’s pocket.

With Home Junction real estate map technology, a broker or agent can point out on a map relative to the location of a property for sale, just where all the parks are located and their proximity to this home. That’s powerful.

Home Junction achieves this by integrating their geospatial mapping functionality with a local MLS database.

So, as a savvy agent, you discovered that a couple of potential home buyers are big hikers. Use the Home Junction map to show them where there are great hiking trails nearby.

Does the home buyer own a dog? Point out the nearest dog park and that buyer will practically jump up on the couch and wave their tail in glee. (Yes, people are that passionate about dogs).

Found a couple that love to bike around town? Use the map to show them bike paths and bike lanes nearby.

Cheat sheet said trees are a big plus. Parks have plenty of them. Be sure to point them out. Places photos of the parks on your website. (If you used a WordPress real estate website, this would be very easy to do with their user-friendly platform. Ask Home Junction about this valuable service as well).

All of those park amenities can start to erode away the presence of a not-so-great kitchen. You can always fix a kitchen, Mr. and Mrs. Homebuyer, but you can’t find too many houses this close to a hiking trail/dog park/bike path.

Stores and Restaurants – researchers have found that properties located close to trendy stores historically sell for higher prices.

Using the real estate map technology, show buyers how that Starbucks is just two blocks away. Or a Whole Foods is just around the corner. Maybe there’s a Trader’s Joe’s about to go up on a vacant lot located here.

Do your potential home buyers like to read? Check out cool clothing stores? Do they have a hobby?

Point out the cute little downtown retail area. Trendy shops. Vintage clothing stores. An independent book store/cafe. A hobby shop nearby.

What if they are foodies? Show them how they are going to love this Zagat-rated new age Italian restaurant right over here. Or, this Asian fusion sushi shop just down the street.

Community Associations – a community association is a big plus for home buyers. It shows that all of the home owners nearby have teamed up together to make their neighborhoods pleasant and well-maintained, you can point this out on the map as well.

In fact, with the map, you can point out all boundaries involved. County and municipal boundaries. School district boundaries. As you know, these boundaries are important in regard to where children can go to school, who will able to use city water and sewer, and also how much people are going to be taxed.

Tell a better story about amenities near any property

Imagine showing a potential seller how you going to present their home in regard to all of these neighborhood amenities.

You can almost see the smile growing on their faces. Be sure to remind them how all of these amenities that you plan to show will also grow the value of their home and in the minds of the buyer.

After all, at the end of the day, the true value of any property is what people are willing to pay for it. Hey Mr. and Mrs. Seller, this is how I’m going to show buyers why they should pay top dollar for your home.

It’s will become very apparent to them very quickly. This broker or agent knows how to package their home in regard to neighborhood amenities. And this particular broker or agent has the most sophisticated real estate map technology embedded on their website to make a very persuasive case, not just verbally, but visually as well.

It’s a fact, neighborhood amenities can boost home prices. It’s also another fact, displaying the latest real estate map technology can boost your value in the minds of sellers.

 

Be The Source Of Local Home Sales Data When The National Data Is Released

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national real estate dataHere’s one simple tactic agents can use with hyper-local home sales data to impress customers, competition and the media.

This tactic will impress buyers and sellers.

This tactic will establish an agent as the local agent with local knowledge.

This tactic is very easy to implement (because other people do all the work).

Here it is. Every month the National Association of Realtors releases their Existing Home Sales Report.

Those releases cover the latest home sales data and then compares it to previous months and years.

The report also mentions median existing home prices, average time homes are on the market and breaks down activity for single family homes, condos, townhomes, and co-ops.

They also examine regional activity for the Northeast, West, South, and Midwest.

For extra measure, the researchers will throw in some facts about mortgage rates from Fannie Mae.

Tie in local home sales data with national news

Then the NAR economist will add some analysis. Such as this one in the latest release:

“Closings were down in most of the country last month because interested buyers are being tripped up by supply that remains stuck at a meager level and price growth that’s straining their budget,” said the economist.

“The demand for buying a home is as strong as it has been since before the Great Recession. Listings in the affordable price range continue to be scooped up rapidly, but the severe housing shortages inflicting many markets are keeping a large segment of would-be buyers on the sidelines.”

“The good news is that sales are still running slightly above last year’s pace despite these persistent market challenges.”

Certainly very interesting information. So interesting in fact, that you will see those national home statistics read by newscasters on the major TV networks. You will even see that home sales data reported by regional TV broadcasters. Local newspapers will be sure to pick up this information as well.

It’s a fact. Everybody loves to hear how home sales are performing.

Make your own observation about local home sales data

This is where hyper-local home sales data comes into play and makes a powerful statement about your value as a broker or agent in your particular marketplace.

Sure, the national information is important. It will catch the attention of many home owners and every home owner to be.

But here’s where an agent can swoop in.

With your own hyperlocal real estate feed, from reliable providers such as Home Junction, you can provide insight into a place where it matters, your target neighborhoods.

Because after all, Jim and Jan Homeowner don’t really care what happens in Manhattan, NYC if they live in Manhattan, KS.

You can cite the statistics from the NAR report. But with your local home sales data, you can point out how in XYZ neighborhood, prices are escalating even faster than the national average.

Or, with local home sales data trend charts, an agent can show how property sales are flat in an area, and the national increase has not hit this neighborhood yet.

In fact, you can offer consumers an insight into their particular zip code or even dig down to the neighborhood level.

Tease them with the information and offer to show them an in-depth report if they call you or fill out a lead form.

Or, let them know the full search functionality for local data is available on your website.

Play up the contrast between national real estate data and your local data on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.

Contact a business editor at the local newspaper. They are always looking for a local angle to national news. Offe to make a comment about local conditions.

A website visitor is not easy to generate. These are effective ways to get them to your site. Perhaps while there, they will start browsing through listings. And turn into a buyer.

For sellers, perhaps it’s just enough to convince them that you are the go-to agent in that area.

Act like an economist. Cite the NAR economist’s remarks. Then make your own. After all, you are in essence a real estate economist in your town when it comes to real estate. Show people how nobody knows the current state of their neighborhood better than you do.

As an added bonus, let consumers know there is a full array of tools for them to research all the relevant information they need about a neighborhood. There’s school information with enrollment figures and student/teacher ratios. There are cost of living indexes. Demographics breaking down the profile of who lives in the area. Even crime statistics.

National home sales data is attention-getting information. You see it all over the media.

Provide contrasting local home sales data with a local analysis to show everybody that you as an agent, know their particular neighborhood where it matters most.

 

 

 

How To Be Recognized As THE Local Real Estate Data Statistician

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real estate data statisticsHere’s a strategy on how you can use real estate data to establish yourself as the leading local property statistician in your target market.

Let’s face it, people love statistics.

Since the first caveman threw the first rock, people have been recording statistics.

Take sports for example. People eat this stuff up. How many hits has Derek Jeter managed to blast out of the infield? How many passes has Dan Marino completed? How many basketball shots did Michael Jordan take and make during his incredible career?

Statistics get attention. And they have a beautiful way of cutting through all the b.s.,  noise and hype.

There are three huge advantages of using statistics.

  1. Clarity – sure, people can sit in a bar and argue all night long about who is a better ballplayer, but that argument is easily settled when you pull out the statistics on the number of home runs, runs batted in and overall batting average. Those numbers are an acceptable means of measurement. The same is true of home prices, sales trends, etc. Someone can claim a market is hot, but where’s the proof?
  2. Perspective – statistics also give people a sense of perspective, a way to compare one entity to another. Maybe ballplayer 1 and ballplayer 2 are super popular one season, but when you dig into the numbers, you can see one player was great at getting on base, but could never cross home plate. While the other player may have a lot of strikeouts and a low batting average, but still managed to drive in more runs. It’s a way to contrast and compare that humans can comprehend. A way to measure apples to apples. Ditto for properties. How does this current market compare to last year? Are home sales rising since the last quarter? Is it time to list a home for sale?
  3. Honesty – in this day and age of fake news, fake advertisements and fake information flowing all over the internet, this attribute is more important than ever. Sure, someone can claim Joe Shmoe is the greatest ballplayer since Babe Ruth, but when you dig into the statistics, you can see it’s nothing but hype. The hype that is perpetrated by a player’s agent for a multi-million, multi-year contract. Same goes for homes. What is hype and what is real? Numbers don’t lie. And the last thing a home buyer or home seller wants to hear are lies and hype.

All those qualities of actual, hard numbers apply to real estate – Clarity, Perspective, and Honesty.

An agent can offer those numbers with a hyper-local real estate data widget embedded on their website.

In this day and age of big data technology, where you can store a thumb drive that holds 64 gigabytes, the equivalent of an encyclopedia in your pocket, data is more accessible than ever.

By partnering with a national data provider such as Home Junction, a broker or agent can easily embed an API that allows them to tap into a gigantic warehouse of real estate data, or in other words, local statistics.

How to compile real estate data statistics

There’s a wealth of data available on:

  • Local schools – enrollment, student/teacher ratios, demographics
  • Property sales – charts showing the latest trends in a marketplace for home sales. Not just the county, or the zip codes where properties can vary greatly, but down to the neighborhood level.
  • Demographics – who lives in what area and what are they like? Demographic data gives you an idea on local incomes, education levels, gender, etc.
  • Crime statistics – every parent is concerned about crime in their area. Here’s a way to avoid any opinions or hype and to give hard numbers on the safety factor of a particular area.
  • Market trends – someone can say a particular neighborhood is “hot” or in “high demand” all day long, but if they can’t back it up with actual data on home prices, well, how credible is their assertion?
  • Cost of Living indices – a person might make a remark to give the impression that a particular area is “way too expensive” but when you pull out the stats, maybe that is not actually the case. Sure, it seems like everybody in that area drives a Mercedes, but when you dig deep into the numbers, the stats show most of those people might actually be leasing those expensive cars rather than owning them.
home price trends

Sample market trend data.

Here’s the point. Sure people love sports. But at the end of the day, who hit a home run the night before is not that important compared to what a consumer is about to spend on a house.

By using Home Junction real estate data, you can establish yourself as the local real estate statistician with all the relevant facts about properties in your target marketplace.

Social media is a perfect medium for this. The great thing about these platforms is that they are free. The bad thing about social media is that it’s free to everybody else to flood with inane information.

To stand out, you need to post content that counts.

Post regular market stats on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.

Consistent content has a powerful impact. Put a note on your calendar to post new real estate data every time it comes out on your data feed.

People will notice. Over time, they will start to look forward to reading your posts about local real estate statistics. They will turn to you for a realistic picture of the marketplace.

Because after all, you are not talking about their favorite ballplayer, you are talking about where they live or where they are about to invest a large portion of their paycheck.

As we said, people love numbers. They believe in numbers. They will trust people who provide them with those valuable numbers.

Add real estate data to your website and you can knock it out of the park when it comes to promoting your brand as the broker or agent with real, trustworthy local knowledge.

 

 

Hyperlocal Content

Does Your Website Suffer Through Lack Of Hyperlocal Content

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What is the state of your hyperlocal content on your website?

If your real estate website has not provided you with the website traffic that you have hoped for, it may be time to re-examine the content on its pages. Google and other search engines are increasingly not ranking websites where the content does not bring real benefits to their users.

If we look at local search results from this prospective, we may find that they are faced with many issues when ranking local real estate websites.  For sites that aggregate MLS listings, they can be faced with determining which website has the most authority and provides the best benefits to the user.

Ranking in Google with aggregated content

Real estate websites that use MLS data to populate listings, provide direct access to properties that users are searching for in their local market.  Google can be challenged as to which website to rank, if there is not additional content on the webpage, and/or other factors such as relevant links to the page. Many times Google will crawl the exact same data across different websites.  Google poses the question: what makes your webpage unique from countless other real estate websites that are displaying the same MLS data?

Providing value to web visitors, while selling the location

When hyperlocal content is well written, it compliments aggregated data.  For that to happen in your local real estate market, the content needs to inform the web searcher, why they might be interested in purchasing a home in the city/Geo they are searching in.

Typical sub-topics:

  • Amenities
  • Local Attractions
  • Resources
  • Homes Values
  • Investment Opportunities

All sub-topics need to be relevant to the area, and the surrounding Geo farm pages.  This is always a great way to add internal linking to neighboring Geo farm pages.

In addition, you should not be afraid to link out to the local amenities, attractions and resources. Not only does Google like this, but you can then start up a conversation with the local business that you linked to, after you are acquainted with each other, and ask for a link back to this specific page.

This starts your local link building process.

What does Google look at when they rank web pages?

Hyperlocal Content – A website providing additional hyperlocal, static content, that helps sell the location, educates the potential home buyer to the amenities, attractions and resources in the town they are looking to purchase in, with links to these resources.

Domain Rating – The domain authority or domain rating of the website is a large factor. Domain Rating, is a metric that is used by Ahrefs.com to calculate the authority of a website domain by the amount of links they receive from other referring domains to their website. Domain rating can help in the ranking of keywords, without direct links to webpages.

URL Rating – The URL rating is a metrics that measures the amount of backlinks,  and their quality to your page’s URL, and the likelihood of the page ranking.

Learn more about SEO metrics and domain rating and URL Rating here

Gaining authority through hyperlocal content

In order to gain authority and relevant links to your pages, you need to have content.  You need hyperlocal content for your pages that are showing MLS listings.  At Home Junction they are called Geo farm pages.

How can build authority to your hyperlocal content:

  • Using Link Magnets – A link magnet is great piece of content that can be served up on your blog. In real estate, this content usually comes in the form of local guides to an area. These guides go in depth to local resources and typically are between 2,500 to 3,500 words.
  • Passing Link Juice Through Internal Links – Link magnets internally link to hyperlocal content. This is important as most sites will link to great content, but typically do not link to sales pages. This process allows the link juice from the linking site to travel through internal links to the hyperlocal page.
  • Warming Up Potential Linker In Link Outreach – When starting a link outreach campaign, you do not want to be seen as a spammer. The easiest way to avoid this is to warm up the potential site for link building.

This can be done through:

  • Relevant comments on their site, after reading their posts.
  • An e-mail introduction, where you can once again comment on their site, (this can also be done through their contact form).
  • You can also directly introduce yourself with a phones call, and tell the webmaster how their post provided value.

Only after warming up the contact do you e-mail them back and ask for their opinion on your piece of  content that is acting as a link magnet. You are forming relationships!

All of this can’t happen until relevant hyperlocal content, and link bait content is researched, and written your site.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Webinars

Home Junction is hosting weekly search engine optimization webinars to help you improve your rankings in Google’s local search results.

Learn Why Hyperlocal content is critical to ranking real estate websites for keywords with local real estate search intent that have higher search volume then long tail keywords,

Home Junction Next Webinar:

5 Steps to Creating Hyperlocal Content, That Can Rank in Google’s Search Results

During this free LIVE webinar you will learn…

  • Why relevant, optimized content is critical to ranking hyperlocal pages in Google.
  • A very specific proven 5 step process to creating hyperlocal content (even if you have never created SEO friendly content before).
  • How to find hyperlocal keywords that have search volume for content topics.
  • Learn how your competition is ranking in Google.
  • The most common content creation mistakes that can get you banned or penalized in Google and what to do instead.
  • Plus Live Q&A and much more….

Webinar Times & Reservation

Register today space is limited to 500 seats

Thursday, November 2nd at 3:00 PM Pacific, 6:00 PM, Eastern – Register Here

Real Estate Data Is The Honey That Attracts, Not Repels Customers

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real estate honeyTimes are a’ changing and the use of real estate data may be more important than ever.

Why? Take a look at what is happening in several boroughs in New York State.

The residents there have become fed up with super-aggressive real estate solicitors.

Apparently, home prices in that area have skyrocketed.  Disreputable agents are climbing over each with overzealous marketing campaigns to try to find more sellers.

People talk about having agents walk in their offices and drop five or six brochures on their desk every day. Mailboxes are stuffed. People are approached on their front porches. Daily.

Residents there have had enough. They actually contacted state legislators who created a “cease and desist” zone where residents can sign up for a “Do not contact” list.  Real estate solicitors are not allowed to bother them anymore. There could be severe penalties. It’s gotten that bad.

Don’t think this practice doesn’t just take place in New York. Probably happens all over the country. Especially in markets that are overheated.

What’s the result? People get turned off by real estate professionals, which ends up throwing the reputable ones in the same basket. The trusted agents who will greatly assist a consumer when they do decide to sell.

This could be a future trend. Certainly one that agents need to be concerned about and to monitor in the event there are grumblings in their marketplace.

Real estate data is a powerful magnet

There’s a lesson here.

It starts with the old adage, “You can attract more flies with honey than vinegar.”

Naturally, we’re not saying home buyers and sellers are insects. They are people. Who deserve not to have their privacy violated.

What we are saying is that you will attract more customers by offering the right product to help them, rather than harass them.

One of those products is hyperlocal real estate data.

After all, what is the role of a real estate agent? One of their main responsibilities is to be an “information resource.”

An agent can approach consumers in one of two ways. They can constantly bug them about why they should be selling their home or buying one (and giving the agent a big fat commission check).

Or, they can act in a consultancy position. Provide consumers with a big helping hand to lead them through one of the most complex, expensive and nerve-wracking decisions they will make in their lives.

Providing local, relevant real estate data is one way to be THE RESOURCE for consumers.

Add real estate data on your web site showing recent home sales, charts with trends in prices, school information such as rankings and student/teacher ratios, demographics, crimes statistics, cost of living indices, municipal boundaries, tax districts, and more.

school data

Local school data.

That’s the “honey” that will attract buyers and sellers.

You can promote that honey in a number of ways.

On social media, share recent developments in the local marketplace. Perhaps sales reached an all-time high last quarter. Post a link that goes back to your website showing a chart with housing trends.

Send out a direct mail piece (not every day) with local real estate data stats (and the web address to find out more information).

Make it known you and your website are the place for buyers and sellers to turn to when they are ready to act.

Many people interviewed in those New York boroughs acknowledged that most real estate agents are not annoying. But those few nasty real estate agents in New York still don’t get it.

People don’t want to be “sold.” They want to buy. And they want to talk to professionals with in-depth local knowledge who will help them make a decision, not trick them into selling or buying.

Let your valuable hyper-local real estate data create an atmosphere where customers want to reach out to you, not run away from you.

 

 

Home Value Estimates Gain In Accuracy and Popularity, Nearly Challenging Appraisers

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home value artworkHere’s another indicator that every real estate broker and agent must have a tool for home value estimates  on their website.

And it’s a little bit scary. At least for real estate appraisers.

Perhaps you’ve seen the news lately.

Real estate pundits are sounding the horn that perhaps the days of real estate appraisers might be approaching an end. Just like the knockout punch that hit travel agents for example and cut their numbers way back.

There are an estimated 78,000 licensed appraisers in the US right now. That number used to be 120,000.

Should they be worried?

Why are the experts saying this?

Zillow and Redfin for two reasons.

Tools for home value estimates becoming more advanced

Experts are noticing that the Automated Valuation Models used by both Zillow and Redfin are becoming more refined as the years go by.

Those companies are diving deeper into relevant databases to supposedly report a more accurate estimation of the value of a property.

They are continually tweaking their algorithms.  Scraping more relevant data. Their machine learning techniques are becoming more sophisticated.

And both companies are now boasting how accurate their home estimator tools are becoming.

Well, just like people keep hinting at the demise of real estate agents (which will not happen since 95% of the population still employs an agent to buy or sell a home). They are predicting the same thing for real estate appraisers.

Even Zillow admits this is very premature.

The challenge is, home value estimates are still just that, estimates. Even both Zillow and Redfin sometimes show big differences in the value of a property.

As seasoned real estate professionals know, there are quite a few factors that go into establishing the value of a home such as market conditions, mortgage rates, the condition of the home, upgrades to rooms, etc.

Here’s the big point.

As machines for home value estimates become more sophisticated, they are becoming more popular. It’s a proven fact that consumers love them. They get to instantly see the rough value of their most precious possession.

And the more buzz that is generated by home estimator tools, the more popular they are going to become.

The good news is that with advances in data coding and algorithms, these valuable tools are no longer the sole propriety of the mega real estate sites.

Basically, any broker or agent can now add the same type of tool to their websites.

home value estimates tool

Home Junction’s Automated Valuation Model format for home value estimates

National data providers such as Home Junction have made it their mission to provide similar data resources to individual brokers and agents to level the playing field. Even to related companies such as mortgage brokers and banks (and perhaps real estate appraisers, too).

It should be evident by now, that adding this type of functionality to a local real estate website is a necessity.

If you are going to compete with the big boys for customers, you need to provide the same benefits that they offer.

And you can.

With Home Junction’s home estimator technology, consumers can enter their home address and instantly get a result with an estimate of their home value.

Home Junction’s functionality goes several steps further to give home owners a broader picture.

For example, included in the home value estimate are high and low ranges. So a home owner has some parameters for where their property might appear within those estimates.

Next, Home Junction gives additional insight into individual appraisal factors.

For example, it will indicate the average prices per square foot. Then it will give a percentage on how homes in the market fit that particular window of data.

Same with the age of the home.

For example, one property might be relatively new, so the readout will show how that home is in a smaller percentage of homes in that marketplace, thereby adding more value.

All of these factors help to give that property owner a true consensus on their property.

They will appreciate that. Even to the point of filling out a lead generation form if necessary.

Those consumers will also establish in their minds that this local real estate broker or agent is on top of the game in the marketplace when it comes to local knowledge. They will also recognize this broker or agent as being a real pro when it comes to the latest in real estate-related technology.

What it will also do is persuade consumers that they don’t need to go to the mega sites for information. Their local broker and agent provide it for them. That’s including the local in-depth market experience and knowledge that those mega sites will never have.

The writing is on the wall folks. Home estimators tools have taken a quantum leap as far as reliability.

You must add this functionality to your website if you are going to survive in the 21st century. Compete with the big sites. Generate your own leads.

Fortunately for savvy brokers and agents, the ability to add functionality for home value estimates is now in your hands.

 

 

 

 

Real Estate Data Feeds Are A Great Resource For Bloggers

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real estate bloggerReal estate data can help you write that all important 1,000-word plus blog.

A 1,000-word real estate blog you might say? Are you kidding? Doesn’t “War and Peace” have that many words?

Yes, coming up with something to write about on a regular basis is certainly not easy.  Most people have a hard time writing any blog. To think of one every week, well that’s downright torture. And now you want a 1,000 words?

Sure, the first month that a blogger starts they are chock full of great ideas. Then comes month three, four and five, etc. In fact, the months don’t stop. They just keep coming.

All of a sudden that keyboard isn’t so friendly anymore.

The key to writing a blog on a regular basis is to have a source of information that provides you with fresh ideas on a regular basis.

One of the best sources for hyperlocal ideas is a hyperlocal feed of real estate data from providers such as Home Junction.

With a real estate data feed, you literally have a fire hose constantly feeding you constantly changing local information.

  • Recent homes sales.
  • Trends in home prices.
  • School information.
  • Local business information.
  • Demographics
  • Cost of Living Indices
  • Crime statistics.
  • Etc.

Use local real estate data to lengthen blogs

Because here’s why you need as much hyper-local information as you can gather.

Google and Bing. That’s why.

The search engines Google and Bing and all the others like content. (Inman says so.) Fresh content.

And they like in-depth content.

The quality of content is one of the main factors that Google and Bing use in determining rankings. (Sure, there are about 200 other factors as well, but Content is a Big One. Be sure you have that one nailed down. It’s within your reach).

What do Google and Bing prefer in regard to content?

First of all, the verbiage needs to be relevant.

So, if you want your website to rank for Lucky Putter Country Club, it’s smart to have content about the Lucky Putter Country Club on your website and add words related to the club.

With a WordPress real estate website (also offered by Home Junction) you can easily upload tons of content on any subject. WordPress is one of the best platforms in the world for Search Engine Optimization. The software is coded in a way that Google and Bing can easily understand and index in their rankings of websites.

That’s why more than 25% of the content based websites out today use WordPress.

The second item that Google and Bing look for after relevant content is updated content.

Sure, someone can set up a web page about the Lucky Putter Country Club and not touch it for years. But if someone else posts updated and fresh content about Lucky Putter, well Google and Bing are going to notice.

Search engines are all about determining which sites offer the best answers to search queries. Fresh content is one criterion they use. Too many sites are just created and left abandoned with outdated and many times, wrong information.

Google and Bing see that a website that is continually updated, is a website worth paying attention to.

Third, there’s the length of the content.

Sure, the bots that Google and Bing deploy are very sharp. They are equipped with many mechanisms to determine quality content.

But after all, they are still bots (mini-robots).

They aren’t human.

So, one of the factors these bots rely on to measure quality content is the number of words written about a subject. Most experts say a blog or any bit of content should be at least 300 words. Many say the optimum length is 1,000 words (Yikes!).

Some experts will claim blogs should really be 2,500 words. (You’ve got to be kidding. That’s the length of a phone book, right?).

Yes, those numbers are daunting. Or writing anything on a regular basis, say weekly, is challenging as well.

That’s where real estate data can come in handy.

With your own real estate data feed, you have access to an incredible database of local and yes, relevant information.

For example, you could talk about certain neighborhoods you are targeting.

Provide a write-up about the community. The type of homes. The number of homes. The location.

Then go into your real estate feed.

Start pulling up charts for Recent Home Sales in that community. Talk about the results.

Do a screen shot of the chart. (Another key factor that Google and Bing like are images with blogs. Images, break up long blocks of text and make it easier for people to read).

property sales data charts

Do the same with trends in Home Prices in that neighborhood. Talk about where the market is going – up, down or in between. Give some predictions on where you think it is going.

With your real estate data feed, you can also talk about recent homes sold in the community. Point out how that home over there sold for a record amount per square foot, or how that home over here sold in record time for that neighborhood.

Dig deeper.

Talk about the demographics of the community. Maybe the average income is above average for the area. Or perhaps there are a lot of young people who happen to live in this particular area.

Check out your real estate data feeds for the latest school information. Talk about enrollment sizes, student-teacher ratios, rankings for the middle school that sits in the middle of that particular neighborhood.

If the population skews older, use the information from the feed to talk about the different medical facilities in that community.

Crime statistics are always important.

Not only can you use local real estate data to talk about a particular neighborhood, but it’s also great as a comparison tool (in fact Home Junction offers a comparison function that consumers can use themselves).

Comparisons are powerful for helping people sort out information and make decisions. It gives them perspective. A way to evaluate.

For example, perhaps Neighborhood A is a hip, super-desirable neighborhood. The perception that everybody has is that this is the place to be. But, with your real estate data tools, you can do a comparison with Neighborhood B and show it has as many of the EXACT same characteristics as the other neighborhood, but with home prices that are not as inflated.

Perhaps by now, the point is sinking in. Real estate data provides you with plenty of information to elongate your blog posts or your posts about a target neighborhood you want to farm.

With that information, it makes it a lot easier to reach 1,000 words in length. Just like we did here.

Do yourself a favor. Tap into real estate data feed. Your fingers and your followers will thank you.

 

 

 

Real Estate Data Can Enhance Direct Mail And Improve Response Rates

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direct mail real estateDirect mail may seem old fashioned, but when you add the new advantages available with real estate data, it’s smart to pull this strategy out of the marketing toolbox.

Sure, today it seems like all you ever hear about is social media. Even the President of the United States is enamored by his Twitter account.

The reasons are obvious. For one, it’s free. Secondly, it’s fast. All you need to do is post something and your messages instantly get served to the public on a platter of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or Instagram.

All those factors make social media seductive.

But is it the only effective way to reach people?

And what about its many flaws?

Don’t ignore direct mail. Most experienced real estate professionals know this medium can be super-effective for reaching the right prospects – both buyers and sellers.

What’s happens is that many people get lured into the ease of social media. But there are lots of holes in your marketing plans if you just depend on social media.

First of all, many of your prospects are not reachable through social media. They don’t follow you on Facebook. In fact, tons of people don’t even bother with Facebook. Or if they had an account, they got tired of it and never go there anymore.

Same with Twitter or Instagram.

Not only that, for the people who do use social media, the deluge of posts and information is absolutely overwhelming. It’s not a stream of information that is coming at web users today, it’s a deluge. A digital tsunami.

The information passes by an internet user so fast, experts say you have only THREE seconds to catch their attention.

Click rates on ads and posts are brutally low. A 1% click rate on ads or links is considered good.

Real estate data can create an enticing offer

Now, take the time-tested value of direct mail.

A recent study by Epsilon researchers found 98% of people check their mail daily. Talk about high touch. Just about everybody you mail to is going to see your message. You can target whoever you like, whatever neighborhood you want and how often you like (unless they request you don’t, which is unlikely).

There are no spam folders. No one is pushing your post down. People have to touch their mail and many actually enjoy doing so.

According to experts, the open rate for a mail piece is about 45%. That sure beats the web any day. And like anything, that open rate depends on the message on the envelope or post card.

Sounds great, but like any marketing campaign, how you do make it effective? How do you compete with all those other pieces of direct mail? How do you compete with other real estate agents doing the same thing?

Experts will tell you – the key to direct mail marketing is not telling people who you are, how long you’ve been an agent in the market, or how many homes you’ve sold. That’s all important, but it’s not the catalyst that will compel a consumer to act.

You need an offer. A way that will generate a response. An offer that answers questions. Solves problems.

With today’s advancements in “Big Data” technology, one of the best offers you can provide is a sampling of valuable, hyper-local real estate data. Data and statistics focused on a consumer’s particular neighborhood.

The first one’s a no-brainer.

Offer consumers a Home Value Estimator tool. You know the technology that made Zillow so popular? Guess what? Now local brokers and agents can offer the same feature on their websites.

Everybody wonders: “What is my home currently worth?”

Offering a way to answer this question is powerful.

Secondly, with a real estate data feed you can also offer to answer these related questions:

“How is my neighborhood trending as far as home sales? Are homes selling in my area? Is it flat?”

“What’s the current trend for home prices in my neighborhood? Are they increasing? Is it time for me to sell? Is it time for me to buy?”

A broker or agent can now easily acquire this information by just partnering with a real estate data provider such as Home Junction. These data providers have access to enormous databases of local information – tax rolls, boundaries, home sales, demographics, cost of living indices, crime statistics, etc. etc.

Use that information to make your direct mail pieces more effective. Give people a reason to visit your website, sign up for your newsletter or call you. Tailor the message for each particular neighborhood or demographic you are targeting.

Sure, in the past thirty years we’ve entered a new age of communication with emails, text messages and social media.

But don’t ignore a means of communication that has been around for centuries. People still read the mail. Their mailboxes are waiting for your offer. Make it a good one. Offer them valuable real estate data and information about their most precious possession.

Here are some tips and resources on direct mail marketing for real estate professionals.

Real Estate Data Is One Simple Hyper-Local Tool To Create A Successful Seminar

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real estate seminarAs a broker or agent if you ever considered offering a home buying or selling seminar, we recommend you include one critical element – local real estate data.

Sure, with all our Androids, iPads and Tweets society today is knee-deep in a high-tech world.

But most real estate professionals know the high-touch benefits of speaking to people directly. A live presentation can yield tremendous benefits in leads, referrals and brand awareness.

Here are some reasons why:

– People still want to get out of the house. This gives them an excuse and when you talk about a subject as important as investing in a property, a compelling reason to attend is certainly obvious.

– Real estate, finance, contract law and other aspects of buying or selling a home are complicated. People still grow up in a classroom setting and still believe in the power of listening to a speaker in order to truly understand what they are discussing. And they need a way to ask questions comfortably.

– In this high-tech world of viruses and fake news, making decisions is surprisingly more difficult than ever. It’s not easy to trust everyone you meet on the web or what they say. People still want to be able to evaluate people face-to-face.

All those reasons sound legitimate, a broker or agent might say, just as the sweat beads up on their forehead.

But geez. How do I meet the expectations of people today?

There are actually some easy solutions.

For one, the best formula for organizing a successful seminar is to take any idea of a sales pitch and pitch it out the window. Ironically, the less you make your seminar sound like a sales presentation, the more likely you are to generate sales from it.

To do that, you must have a program that educates people, holds their attention, and is flexible enough to answer individual questions.

So you need material. Really solid material. Material that is geared locally, for the people sitting in front of you, and not some canned speech developed by a corporation 1,000 miles away.

The best way to do that is to have a real estate data feed in your toolbox. Nowadays, with big data technology offered by companies such as Home Junction, an agent can tap into a gigantic storehouse of neighborhood data.

They can embed an API into their website that gives them instant access to a vast and current database of local property sales, trends in home prices, school data, local demographics, crime data, cost of living indices, boundaries, local businesses and much more.

More than enough information to fill any hour-long seminar.

It gets even better.  Here’s where you can create your “wow” factor.

With this big data technology, an agent or broker has the ability to go granular, so they can address the needs of John Doe on Maple Street and Jane Spain on Oak Terrace.

For example, start the seminar with some visuals on local market conditions for the county.

Show trend lines in charts for Recent Home Sales. Show some individual sales and how much the homes sold for per square foot.

Here comes the wow factor.

Ask a member of the audience where they live. Then go into the database and pull up the real estate data for just their neighborhood. Not the county, which is too big to be truly relevant. Not even the zip code, where market conditions can vary.

But the neighborhood. Their neighborhood.

Think how impressed that person in the audience will be to learn what is taking place next door to them.

Think about how ALL those people will be eager to go home, visit your website, and pull up the real estate data in their neighborhoods that is relevant to them.

Also be sure to round out the presentation.

Invite a colleague with a real estate specialty to speak as well. Perhaps an attorney, or a loan officer or a home inspector.

Provide plenty of visuals. But don’t provide a ton of PowerPoint slides with too much text. People don’t want someone to read to them, they want someone to talk to them. Get out from behind a podium and work the crowd.

And be sure to provide plenty of time for questions and answers. That’s a big reason why people are there – to get answers in person to their specific needs. Answers they can’t always find in the jumbled and screwed up digital universe.

Put all this together and you have one powerful seminar that is simple to put together.

Many people don’t like to speak in public. One of the big obstacles is trying to figure out what to say.

With today’s technology, you don’t need to write a prize-winning speech on local real estate.

Your extensive, hyper-local real estate data feed, will supply you with most of the talking points you’ll ever need.

 

 

Why New Technology Won’t Replace Agents But Agents Must Embrace New Technology To Survive

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agent neighborhood dataHere we go again. Every once in a while, talk surfaces about technology replacing the need for real estate brokers and agents.

Look at Expedia and travel agents people say. Or look at Uber and taxi drivers.

Now that Zillow introduced their “Instant Offer” service where investors will offer to buy a home quickly, another round of articles have surfaced about the fate of real estate professionals.

Here’s the crux of the issue. There’s a big difference between booking a $10 ride downtown or a $199 airfare compared to the purchase of a $475,000 home. A humungous difference.

And Zillow’s “Instant Offer?” We all know how investors act. They buy low and sell high. How many sellers are going to accept their low offers? We will have to see.

But if you look at the latest statistics in 2016, about 95% of home sales involved the use of a licensed real estate professional. That percentage has actually increased over the years.

The one big flaw is trying to turn homes sales into commodity sales is that homes are far from anything resembling a commodity.

Just about every home is different. Every street is different. Every neighborhood is different. That’s just on the seller’s side.

When it comes to the buyer’s side, every home buyer is different. They are at different stages in their lives – first time home buyers or retirement home buyers. That are different stages in their family makeup. They are at different stages in their financial situation.

Agents can tailor real estate data for each client

The great thing about humans is that they are not made with cookie cutters. We all have different preferences and tastes. One home buyer might love to golf and would never think about sitting on a yoga mat. Another home buyer needs to sit on a yoga mat three times a week and thinks a birdie is that creature in the bird bath in the backyard.

Every market is different. Some are hot, some are not. Some have numerous amenities, others don’t.
This argument about tech replacing agents is going to continue for decades.

One key strategy brokers and agents can use to squash this talk is not to scoff at technology but embrace it.

Sure, Mr. or Mrs. Real Estate Agent may still rely on wearing out the tires driving buyers to look at homes or scuffing up the shoes walking people through open houses.

But the savvy agents will also be immersed in the latest technology that makes them a better agent and resource for the worried home buyer and home seller. That might include drones and virtual reality videos.

And take real estate data for example. Sure, with the web, home buyers can search all over the place for neighborhood information. They can look up crime statistics, school information, and demographics. Or they can turn to national websites.

But, how great would it be if the local broker and agent already had that information available on their website?

Because here’s a fly in the Internet ointment. There is soooo much information pouring out of the web these days, that it’s difficult to tell what’s credible and what is not.

The beauty of the Internet is that it’s an open source of information. Anybody can post relevant content. The bane of the Internet is that it’s an open source of information. Anybody can post content and pretend it’s reliable.

Look at all the fake news out there. How many articles have you seen with the fake headline about how “Oprah did this” or “Obama did that.” Fake. Fake. Fake.

People don’t have time for fake.

If you as a real estate professional, gather up all the relevant information a homeowner might need, then you take away the need for a buyer to conduct their own searches (along with the frustration).

With data providers such as Home Junction, a local broker or agent can literally provide everything a consumer needs:
– Recent Home Sales
– Trends in Home Prices
– School Information
– Crime Statistics
– Demographic Information
– Local Businesses within a certain radius
– Boundaries
– Transportation hubs
– And more…

In essence, a broker or agent can make it seem like when a consumer visits their office, they are also visiting a gigantic data warehouse of hyper-local information.

(However, instead of having banks and banks of high-end servers in a room, an agent would simply load a simple real estate data API with a few lines of code onto on their website. Home Junction would actually gather and manage all that data on their website. It doesn’t get any better than that).

Agents and brokers can also embrace the latest geo-spatial technology.

Present maps on their website showing property listings from MLS integrated into a neighborhood database.

Location is still critical in real estate.

Show where the schools are located compared to properties in question. Show the golf courses and the yoga studios as well.

Here’s the big flaw in all this talk about the end of the real estate professional.

Buying a home, especially in today’s market where prices are booming, is still a big, scary decision. In fact, there is so much real estate content out there that it becomes overwhelming at times.

Consumers are still going to need to hold the hand of a dependable real estate broker and agent.

The smart agent or broker will have their other hand on their smartphone or laptop, ready to access a wealth of high-tech services such as real estate data feeds that they can provide with confidence and credibility.