In the previous installments we discovered the two major real estate search engines, Realtor.com and Craigslist. Today we’ll take a quick look at Yahoo Real Estate and then spin by Zillow and Trulia to wrap up the series.
Yahoo Real Estate puts a different spin on things. Remember that Realtor.com is Realtor® controlled and Craigslist is totally uncontrolled, except by the community and system moderators. Yahoo on the other hand, has entered into agreements with real estate brokers to display listings as well as into agreements with local MLS’s to display their listings. So you end up with a pretty good representation of what is available from real estate professionals.
Last time we looked at Realtor.com, this time we will take a hard look at Craigslist.
It’s hard to take some shots at Craigslist without running the risk of getting shot back at by the hardline Craigslist users, of which I am one as well. CL offers so many people a free way to advertise (or inexpensive depending on what you are advertising) that most of us are willing to overlook its flaws.
So say you want to buy a house. If you read the newspapers or watch TV or even pickup your news online, you can’t help but notice that the US real estate market is in the tank. There are many good deals to be had, if you could only find them, and then be sure that they were really a smart buy.
But where do you start? The local newspaper? The homes for sale magazines in the supermarket? Do you drive around (at $4.55USD a gallon?) and look for signs?
There are so many websites now where you can search for real estate and each one has their own quirks, foibles, specialties and value to people looking to find a home. It seems that each week another one pops up. You can search these sites by geographic area, price, size, room count and much more. You can see pictures, videos, school scores, vital statistics on the homes and contact the real estate agent who has it listed. You can arrange for showings, get more information and map the home’s location.
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