Real Estate Script - Web 2.0 and Real Estate Web Sites

Where parked my guests if I buy a house in SanThe new real estate script portals:
Francisco? Is it worth the daily commute to SanWe entered We seek a home in Plano, Texas. This is
Francisco to live in Palo Alto? What is the normal pricea typical residential town in the north of Dallas. We
of a parking space in Pacific Heights? " Thesechose one of the houses at random. In the very form
questions, along with their answers, are a small sampleof housing, we see what has been the evolution of
of common content in the latest batch of real estateprices for that neighborhood (bounded by houses that
scripts that have signed up to new trends of what hasshare the same postal district) in recent months. We
been called Web 2.0: a whole fresh and revolutionarycan even compare average sales prices for homes of
way of understanding what is Internet and how to1, 2, 3 or 4 bedrooms in closed sales in recent months.
harness the full potential of Network communicationAnd we can also see a graph of developments in the
user is asking or answering other users in a commonprice of housing for the city of Plano since 2000 until
meeting point: the real estate script, which is convertedtoday. Obviously, if buying a home is done in part or in
by the constant feed of content from their visitors andtotal investment reasons, this is a fact that we
the integration of information and functionality fromdefinitely want to meet.
other portals in a potent tool in the service of a moreWe can also see the evolution in the average price
informed decision purchase or sale in the largestper square meter, changes in the number of sales and
business transaction that most people usually carrywhat have been the most popular neighborhoods in
along his life that related to your home.recent months.
But... what is Web 2.0?If we have children, information on available schools will
Web 2.0 is the term coined in 2004 by Tim O'Reilly tobe key to making a purchase decision. can see the
describe a second generation of web siteslevel of schools in this district postal comparing the
characterized by greater interaction with and amonglevel of district schools on the level of the state
users, which aims to facilitate creativity, collaborationaverage according to the TAKS standards in both
and information sharing among users. It refers both toEnglish and math.
a new language or to a new protocol, but a new wayThe panorama of the neighborhood is complete with a
of understanding the web and benefiting from all itsstatistical table whose data are so extensive that
features.make us feel a certain shamelessness. For example,
If the first generation websites were characterized bywe know the average income per household, per
a centralized creation and dissemination of content, thecapita income, the average value of each property
company decided it wanted to include on theirand applied the average price in homes offered for
websites, creating content and functionality, andsale. All these data also compared the average of the
published their pages through a web host disseminatestate. So, we know that only a 2.44% state income
them, at most, through newsletters and bulletins, webbelow $ 10,000 annually while 8.39% confess win over
2.0 sites are characterized mainly by the integration of$ 200,000 a year, for example.
content and functionality of other portals (eg Googlealso allows us to access crime statistics for Plano and
Maps, Google Earth, YouTube, etc.). and becausewe discover that we would have a 3.35% chance to
users take on a role protagonist have multiple ways tobe a crime against property (4.08% statewide) or
generate feedback or feedback that is integrated as0.29% of suffering a violent crime (a 0.32% for the
additional content in the actual development of thewhole state of Texas). Of course, we know these
website, enriching it.figures broken down, if you allow us the courage to
The creator of the World Wide Web, Timknow the possibilities that we would have to suffer a
Berners-Lee, disagrees with the concept of Web 2.0burglary, a violent assault, murder, rape or theft of
because, he argues, all these potentials were presentvehicle decided to settle in the neighborhood.
in the concept of network communication that gaveTurning to more mundane topics, informs us that a
birth to the Web as we know it today. Were the10.41% of the residents of Plano take 45 minutes to an
companies said, they moved to the Web a traditionalhour to get to work. About 50% take less than 25
one-way communication model that largely untappedminutes and 7%, more than an hour. Almost all of them
possibilities of the new medium. Indeed, firms in thetravel to their workplaces driving his own vehicle.
economy and cement larillos (brick & mortar)rounds this flood of data featuring a complete
Accessed the Internet reduces the role of theirdirectory with links to local area maps, attractions,
websites to a mere showcase on line the same offerparks and recreation areas, census data, statistics and
communicated via other means off line: TV,studies about the area, community organizations,
newspaper, radio, outdoor advertising, direct marketing...issues related to the environment and local
but that did not use all the potential of the Web:government, schools and other educational institutions,
multidirectional communication, and informationand references to the media, press and radio.
integration capabilities, data sharing between users...The integration of information from the users
It has taken several years of experimentation, a boomthemselves as well as real estate agents with
and subsequent crash of dotcom and perhaps ainterests in the region comes through Trulia Voices: this
whole new generation of professionals whose careersis where the potential buyer has the possibility to leave
have developed since the beginning with the Internetyour question to another user with the necessary
as part of integrated scenario management positions ininformation can answer. Thus, the users themselves
companies, so that finally we got to really understandbecome major generators of information and high
what they mean by concepts like "networkvalue-added content, and high credibility, to the portal.
communication "and we began to see theIf you seems overwhelming, do not miss the chance to
development of business models that capitalize on thatcome by It has an amazing integration of maps, to the
potential.point that it can provide not only the aerial view of
The value of the environmentalmost any home, much like Google Maps, but also a
We are back to the misconception discussed twoperspective view from any angle. One of the most
paragraphs ago. The focus on real estate portalsstriking features is the concept of Zestimates: this is an
giving information about the property itself, neglectingestimate of the appraised value of a home. Thus, one
the fundamental aspects like the environment. Owncan enter your own neighborhood and find out what is
perspective is a manufacturer of a vision: who makesthe approximate market price of your home not only...
a product usually is felt as proud of their product thatBut that of all its neighbors! Indeed, the aerial view all
believes that only highlight its many virtues should behomes listed with the corresponding estimate of
enough to convince potential customers of its benefits.price-Zestimate-overlay.
However, this view forgets that people acquire goodsalso does a great job in submitting alternative
or services according to benefits, tangible or intangible,proposals for any home that interests us, allowing
we expect that these products or services wecomparison with other similar benefit of their
provide. That is, do not buy by the technicalenvironment.
characteristics of products, but for the benefits orUnlike Trulia.com, qualitative data gives us some very
value that these products are going to bring.interesting environment: for example, percentage of
In the case of buying a home, it is important whether itsingle, married, divorced and widowed in the
is a townhouse or an apartment, buy a villa or whetherneighborhood. Percentage of homes in which children
we will settle for a flat. But no less important to knowlive and where not, and the distribution of population by
how to be our neighbors, how I may move to myage ranges (pyramid of local residents) and also,
place of work or, if I have children of school age,Trulia.com, the average time of commuting to the
between which schools may choose to carry them.workplace.
Therefore, since important information is collected onOther data that may be of interest are the ethnic
the potential buyer the home itself, and on thecomposition of the population, the degree of training
developer to know the level of confidence that youachieved (primary, secondary, graduate, graduate,
deserve, or even financial guarantee their payments, itpostgraduate) and the type of work you do:
is equally all data that can discover about theexecutives, engineering, administrative, sales... Thus, a
environment, about what it's going to bring, as his socialquery about the type of people who live in Plano, Tex.
life, their children, their quality of life and, ultimately, thesays that often lead to work alone, that a large
enjoyment of housing will depend on both thenumber of them have a master's degree and tend to
environment and the house itself.have high income.
This is what they have discovered real estate portalsincluding direct contact with neighbors in the area of
like pioneers in what we term as Web 2.0 Trulia.com,consultation to which we can question what I want to
or. A visit to any of them opens a world of informationknow: from the quality of schools, to shopping centers
that seems light years away from everything we'veor parking problems.
seen so far. The paradigm shift is threefold:o Firstly,Another striking aspect is its concept "Make me
these sites comprise a vast amount of informationmove" These are people who are not yet intending to
presented in an orderly, logical and connected, allowingsell your home, be willing to do so whenever they
users to form an idea of how a neighborhood can bemake an attractive enough offer.
determined in a multitude of variables.o Second, theJust some of the most striking aspects of
portals provide a multitude of information to knownext-generation real estate script: basic information of
whether the price asked by a building bears a properthe home, of course. Complete with drawings, building
relationship with the actual characteristics of the pricespecifications, descriptions and photographs. But all
compared to sales of similar homes in the environmentintegrated with a comprehensive information
in recent months. Many have even what has been theenvironment, with reliable data on changes in the
evolution of the average sales price per square meterhousing market each district level and the ability to
in the area.o On the other hand, the users of the portalinteract in real time with people living in these places
players and become content contributors withand can be a source of unbiased, credible and helpful.
questions and answers. They are the people who liveTherefore, we believe this new type of portal will set a
in certain places know best what are the advantagestrend in the short or medium term, is also copied here.
and disadvantages, problems or opportunities to buyMaybe not so much by national portals, but for
there and now. So the first hand information from aEurope-wide real estate portals aimed at increasing
source more credible and impartial apparently it doesthe floating population will bring in the future social
not conceal business interests and responds to realmobility data of the Old Continent to which are
questions from potential buyers is used to make morecommon in the United States. In this new scenario, it is
informed purchasing decisions and informed choices.clear that the type of information that potential buyers
Let's look first at what level can access informationwill demand will be much more related to Web 2.0 that
with the new breed of real estate portals.brings the traditional portals we've seen so far.