One of my clients loves a certain popular online listing site (not mentioning names because I don’t want to censor what I am about to say). If you have been searching for properties online, I can guarantee that you have been on this site or one like it.
I am working with a buyer and we are deep in a search for a Surfside single family home. I have a detailed search laid out for him and the homes we previewed are marked off, those that are under contract noted and the ones he likes “starred”. The only problem is that after we look at properties, because he wants to feel like he is being thorough (and I would do the same if I were a buyer), he goes back to that particular website and sees more listings.
Later, he sends me an email like this:
“Jamey”, he writes “are we missing anything? Where are these listings?”
Then I go back, look them up and they are either no longer on the market, sold circa 2007 or don’t exist.
For a detailed oriented person like myself, this is really drives me nuts. Not nuts from my buyer but nuts from my industry. Now I have to go back and prove that I am not missing any listings. Rather than looking for more properties, I spend an hour or two proving to my client and myself that they are not on the market.
Here is what you need to know? I cannot speak to exactly how every site works in aggregating listings but with my website this is how it works…
My web developer has special permission and rules set forth by our local MLS, he obtains permission to get a live data feed and then he places that live data feed on my site. He updates it daily.
We also do a lot of advertising online and when we do this it is our responsibility to do our best to make sure the listings are as updated as possible. Sometimes they are rented, go under contract or sold and we have to quickly edit and update. But it’s not all an automatic process. Some sites are loaded through the MLS, some are manually edited by the agents themselves. It just depends on the site.
How inaccurate is this one site?
I did a search for an area just north of Miami Beach named Surfside. I searched for minimum 3 bedrooms/2 baths from $500,000 to $750,000.
Issues?
On their search result there were 45 properties listed, in the MLS, there are 16. Ok, so I know that the MLS may not be the end all be all of listing databases but still that is a pretty big discrepancy. Upon further evaluation I looked up the properties in my database that were displayed as active on their site but not listed as active on mine…… and what did I find? Mostly, outdated listings. There were even some properties listed as active but sold in 2008 or worse 2007?
Let me be clear in stating, that I have NO PROBLEM with these sites, I love educated buyers and sellers. In fact most of my clients are known to walk around with spreadsheets, I love it! If I were not a Realtor, I would be using these sites myself. I am also “pro” advertising for agents and other agents alike. I advertise listings in my database that are listed as “ok to advertise” and I allow other agents to advertise my listings. So I am definitely an “open source” kinda gal but…..these sites should be more accurate.
And what do I tell my clients…… work with someone you trust and be sure that they are sending you everything that matches your needs. My buyers send me listings all of the time and by the time we go out to look at properties, they may be off the market, under contract or something else.
It’s our job to verify the properties for you, so USE US!! Of course you have to be my buyer client first!
