Category Archives: Portal & Industry News
Ads Coming to Street View?

Google Street View has been added to so many real estate websites by now that it’s almost an expected part of the listing landscape. But there could be a change on the Street View horizon.
Google previously floated the idea of ads appearing in Street View that are tied to the listings in its Local Business Centre and Favourite Places program.
What makes it seem like more than an idea is Google’s recent filing of a patent application titled “Claiming Real Estate in Panoramic or 3D Mapping Environments for Advertising”. In other words, we could see something akin to virtual billboards appearing in a Street View image as users browse through an area.
New Mapping Product Launched

US company Digital Map Products, which lists redfin.com, zillow.com, and trulia.com amongst its clients, has released a new mapping tool that visualises how home prices change over time.
The product, dubbed SpatialStream, animates property price fluctuations as colours on a map, changing from green to red as prices fluctuate. The company says this is an easy way to show what would otherwise be thousands of separate data points on a spreadsheet.
Listing Tips from funda.nl

Leading Dutch property portal funda.nl recently commissioned market research to find out what consumers thought of it. The results are as revealing for agents as they were for the portal itself.
The research, conducted by Heliview, showed just how important video and interactive floor plans are when it comes to listings. 53 percent of respondents said they were more likely to spend time looking at a listing if a floor plan was included, while 61 percent said they were likely to prefer listings if a video was available.
A New Decade and a Brand New Property Ad Guru!

We’re excited to announce the launch of our recently redesigned website. We hope it will better inform you on all the global information, trends and products relating to successful online advertising in real estate.
If you can’t find what you are looking for, use our “Ask a Question” facility on the Home Page and the Property Ad Guru Team (with around 50 years combined experience in online advertising) will do their best to provide the answers for you.
Let us know what you think of the new site by sending your feedback to editor@propertyadguru.com as we are constantly looking to improve and ensure we are presenting the most topical information to our readers.
Regards,
The Property Ad Guru Team.
estatecreate.com Builds for Agents

We first reported on UK-based single property website creation tool estatecreate.com when it launched in February last year. At the time, it was pitched as a challenge to agents in that it offered an alternative selling tool for home owners.
After launching, estatecreate.com decided to include an agent-focused option in its subscription offerings, allowing agents to create single property websites to promote their clients properties.
Since then, it seems agents have been clamouring for an option that doesn’t involve them creating the websites on their own.
2010: What’s in Store for Agents?

With the effects of the global financial crisis still being felt in plenty of places around the world, many real estate agents will be more than happy to see 2009 come to a close. “Recovery” is the word on everyone’s lips as we start the first year of the next decade, even though no one can really predict how long it will take.
The new year’s technology trends are probably just as difficult to pinpoint, but that won’t stop us from trying. Here’s what propertyadguru.com sees in its crystal ball for 2010:
realtytrac.com Goes Social

US foreclosure marketplace realtytrac.com has introduced a social media element to encourage discussion amongst users.
RealtyTrac Community, which is free to join, covers topics such as buying, selling, home values, investing, and realtytrac.com features.
realtytrac.com says visitors can seek out local real estate experts and ask questions on neighbourhoods, schools, market conditions, financing, and foreclosure activity.


