Searching Real Estate Listings By Brand
I stumbled upon this interesting tidbit recently while doing some research for another post. It looks like you can now filter a search for real estate listings by brand using Google.
This looks likes the initial implementation of the deals signed last year to feed listings into Google base (more on StartupSquad).
Right now the results are confined to two brokerages; Prudential California/Nevada/Texas Realty and Keller Williams. Listings are kind of sparse and the search results pages feel half finished so I’m guessing this is still early stages or just a proof of concept.
PruCal/NV/TX listings
Keller Williams listings
Also, no sign of any of Realogy’s listings yet, who have also signed a deal to feed Google Base (see Trulia Lands the Big One).
It raises an interesting question however — do consumers have any brand preference when searching real estate?
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
11 Comment(s)
2 Trackback(s)
- From Survive the Slump, Google + Short Selling : Real Estate Marketing Blog | Jul 20, 2007
- From Google’s Gunning for Real Estate Professionals - HouseReview | Jul 21, 2007
Eric Ransom | Jul 20, 2007 | Reply
I think there may be some attachment to brand, but Real Estate remains a people business and it really is the agent who matters at the end of the day. Certainly, at a macro level people may have a preference for one company over another, but I would not think they would limit there options based on a company allegiance.
Black Tie Todd | Jul 20, 2007 | Reply
Joel,
I think the question eventually becomes, which feed do search engines prioritize as “the” feed to promote a home?
For example, vFlyer sends a feed of my team’s listings, our broker sends a feed of our listings, our virtual tour provider sends a feed, our board sends a feed….at some point, the search engine would have to priortize which of the dozen or so feeds gets exposure.
Maybe the branding is how Google is aiming to delineate the listings. But what if I as an agent want traffic driven to my domain as opposed to my broker’s domain? Who, ultimately, decides which feed takes priority when it is my listing?
Questions to consider as we move thru web 2.0…..
T
Incredible Agent | Jul 20, 2007 | Reply
Back Tie Todd is exactly right. Who to say that the traffic should go to the brokerages website over the agents website. That will be an interesting factor in the future. Some brokerages seem to be trying to drive traffic to their site, instead of their agents site, which seems a little off to me. We’ll have to wait to see where this ends up. This will definitely be a big issue in the future.
Tom Wolf | Jul 20, 2007 | Reply
I have a very stong opinion that consumers do not want to see sub-sets of houses when they are doing their research. They want to see all of them, which is why I believe that those sites which offer all of the listings (see Realtor.com) continue to hold their own despite a lack of many of the more innovative tools offered by Zillow and others. Also, unlike buying something like groceries, where you may go to a certain store despite slightly higher cost based on the service, cleanliness, etc. this is a home purchase. In my humble opinion, getting the right product at the best price is way too important to be overshadowed by brokerage preference.
Galen | Jul 20, 2007 | Reply
Here’s what it says to me: Google “gets” the real estate industry and they’re not trying to rock the boat. Brokerages are pretty protective of “their” listings and they want recognition and traffic in exchange for sharing them.
Brokers are the key to getting tons of listings - it is much harder to gather listings agent by agent.
Hawaii Life | Jul 20, 2007 | Reply
Google is still in development with the real estate side of things. But watch out everyone, here they come! And I’m sure they’re gonna go big. I do agree with Tom that users do not want to see sub-sets of houses when researching their market. They’re gonna wanna see everything. Lucky for us here in the Hawaii real estate market, Google was not able to secure the MLS info for the islands of Maui and Oahu. I hope it stays that way because that give us a leg up on them.
Louisville Real Estate | Jul 20, 2007 | Reply
Interesting. I wonder if a feature like that is something users will actually find useful?
Staten Island Real Estate - Chris Burdzy | Jul 22, 2007 | Reply
I doubt that any home buyer has a preferrence on what real estate they’re buying their house from - unless they had some bad experience with a particular company, and are trying to avoid dealing with such again. Buyers do want be sure that they are getting a good deal on their future house, and they want to know what else might be out there. So, selection is more important than the brand.
Teresa Boardman | Jul 23, 2007 | Reply
How does it serve the consumer to be able to look up homes by real estate company? For one thing real estate companies do not buy or sell real estate. Real estate is sold by independent contractors with real estate licenses. Home buyers should look for the best home with the best price.
John Schroeder | Jul 23, 2007 | Reply
To me it seems more like a bookmark for different Real Estate Brokerages within each city. Useful for most…probably not. But if it’s useful for somebody out there than why not have it as an option. Can’t see it being too much of a big deal for them to implement.
Frank Borges LL0SA- Broker FranklyRealty.c | Jul 29, 2008 | Reply
One can do this on my search site. Just type in Redfin and see all the listings.
http://www.FranklyMLS.com
It is all based on keyword.
Frank