School Data API Helps Sellers Justify Higher Prices
Using a School Data API is frankly one of the quickest and easiest ways to defend home prices.
First of all, where kids go to school is a hot button with home buyers. It’s near the top of the list of their concerns. It’s emotional. It’s a major cause of concern and worry.
Secondly, data shows that people are willing to pay more for homes in top school districts.
In fact, according to one study, more than 50% of home buyers said they would be willing to spend over their budget to get in a house with great schools.
Breaking those numbers down even further, 9% said they would they would be willing to go from 11% to 20% over budget and 21% said they would go from 6% to 10% over.
What would those surveyed give up for a great school district?
About 60% would skip a pool and 44% would forego an extra room in the house.
It’s obvious, the quality of schools is a powerful, persuasive asset when it comes to home seekers.
School Data API provides instant school data expertise
So how do you as a real estate professional address this concern?
How do you as an agent in a crowded field of other agents, persuade a seller that you are the best choice for them to emphasize this school district selling point?
There’s a very simple answer.
Add a School Data API to your website.
Data aggregators and software developers such as Home Junction use “big data” technology to create national school databases that have just about everything a home buyer would need to answer their questions about schools in a particular area.
The beauty of a School Data API is that the agent does not have to go out and dig up this local school information on their own.
Who’s got time for that?
Secondly, even if you did find your local school data, how are you going to keep it updated and current?
Third, and this is a critical point, there are websites that already exist that are sources of hyper-local school data. But why would you want to send home buying prospects to other people’s websites? You risk losing them to other agents or national mega-lead generation websites.
Heck no.
Simply add a School Data API to your website by inserting a few lines of code (Home Junction will assist you) and make your website the local resource on school data.
All relevant school data on agent’s website
This is what that School Data API will be able to show:
– location of the school
– location of the school relevant to the location of a property pulled from the local MLS listings
– school district boundaries
– school attendance zones (this is supercritical)
– school attendance zones outlined geo-spatially on a map in relation to property addresses
– school enrollment figures
– school rankings
– student demographics
– student/teacher ratios
– dollars spent per student
– name of the school’s current principal
– private and public schools
– the religious denomination of private schools
– school website address
And more.
Now that’s a local school database.
Imagine approaching a seller and telling them, “Look. I know your home is located in a desirable school district. But I’m not going to just tell home buyers, ‘By the way, schools are great here.'”
At that point, pull up an example of the massive amount of data supplied by the Home Junction API.
“No, Mr. and Mrs. Home Seller, I am going to show that home buyer this huge amount of key school data, to drive the point home about why their children should attend this school. And that’s why they might have to pay slightly more for a home in this district.”
Everybody knows home prices in northern California, particularly the San Francisco area are high, practically insane.
Well, guess what? A recent article in the San Francisco Chronicle pointed out that many families were willing to pay $200,000 more for homes that were in popular school districts.
That just goes to show the power of schools.
That also illustrates the power your School Data API can have on how you attract home sellers and buyers.
Use School Data API as source for social media posts
Think of the many opportunities you can create to promote the fact that your website offers this hyper-local school data.
Nearly 91% of agents say they post on social media.
With your ability to tap into Home Junction’s national school database, you have something of value to post.
With your School Data API, you have a wealth of critical school data to draw upon for interesting content.
For example, say you are farming a certain neighborhood or subdivision.
Post a notice on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram about this school data you now have available on your website.
Pull out little snippets of school data from time to time.
Say, for example, the school’s ranking changes. Or the student/teacher ratio gets smaller. Maybe there’s a new principal.
Keep pushing this school data out on social media. You will establish in the minds of your audience that you are the go-to source for local school information.
Use this data in your email blasts as well.
Test various phrases for the subject line.
For example, “Click here for latest update on school data for Got To Be There Middle School.”
That will catch the attention of parents. Not only potential home buyers, but also people who are thinking about putting their homes on the market.
You can accomplish this all with an embedded school data widget.
(By the way, Home Junction also offers a wealth of other real estate market data such as Recent Home Sales, Market Trends, Demographics, Boundaries, Cost of Living Data, Crime Data, etc. There’s also a geo-spatial component that puts all this data together on a map. For example, the map can show school district boundaries for homes for sales from a local MLS database. And Home Junction has an IDX to tap into MLS databases as well).
This is the digital age. The age of “big data” technology.
Computers now have the ability to tap into a huge national school database.
All you need to do is add this simple School Data API to provide that school data on your website.