Former Yahoo! Manager Launches HomeZilla
October 2, 2008
Former Yahoo! Manager Launches HomeZilla, the Next-Generation Real Estate Website to Help Canadian Homebuyers - “HomeZilla will transform the Canadian homebuyer experience with a one-stop neighbourhood information source.”
TORONTO, CANADA – September 30, 2008 - HomeZilla (www.homezilla.ca), the powerful next-generation Canadian real estate website, launched today with an open invitation to visit their site. Visitors to HomeZilla can easily find specific neighbourhood information such as schools in the area, demographics, distance to parks, restaurants, and much more. During the development of the site, HomeZilla worked closely with home buyers to ensure the site is easyto- use and provides information that home buyers find critical to their purchasing decision. The idea for HomeZilla came to former Yahoo! manager and founder, Sandy Ward, after talking with friends and colleagues about the amount of time they spent trying to find neighbourhood information online. After moving to Toronto from Silicon Valley three years ago to work with Yahoo! Canada, Sandy found it difficult to find the perfect neighbourhood. “We believe home buyers, and real estate agents, deserve a tool that helps them save time when researching the neighbourhood where a house is located,” said Sandy Ward, Founder of HomeZilla. “People are moving more than any other time in history, whether from Cape Breton to Fort McMurray or between different neighbourhoods in Toronto. HomeZilla makes the home buying process faster and easier.” According to the 2007 National (US) Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 84% of all homebuyers used the Internet as an information source in their home search.
“I like HomeZilla because it is designed for Realtors and their customers – homebuyers,” said Al Kroch, President, Royal LePage Partners Realty. “HomeZilla not only provides comprehensive details about local area amenities, giving homebuyers a unique view of prospective neighbourhoods, it’s also the quickest and easiest one-stop resource for researching neighbourhood profiles, saving me lots of time when researching a new listing.” HomeZilla has been in stealth mode since April 2008 but is now having an online open house where anyone can visit and use the site – registration is not required. Homebuyers or real estate agents can simply go to HomeZilla, type in an address, and select the information they want to know. HomeZilla includes unique information such as the location of 99% of all public schools in Canada. And they are committed to continually adding data, providing even more information to home buyers to aid in their purchasing decision. Real estate agents will benefit from using HomeZilla because they can print neighbourhood reports for free. “Location is the most important consideration when it comes to buying a home. The neighbourhood around a Vancouver area condo has a dramatic effect on the price. HomeZilla allows me and my buyers to quickly learn about the area, find out locations of surrounding businesses and neighbourhood demographics. As a real estate agent, it is an invaluable tool for both my clients and my business.” Kert Fu, Sutton Group - West Coast Realty.
About HomeZilla
HomeZilla is a next-generation real estate website that provides homebuyers with efficient access to information about neighbourhoods. HomeZilla is a private company headquartered in Toronto, Canada. For more information visit www.homezilla.ca. About the founder
Sandy Ward, 34, previously worked at Yahoo! as a Senior Engineering Manager where he ran the Front Pages for Canada, Quebec, Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico. Sandy was part of the hyper-growth of Yahoo! Canada in 2006 and 2007 where he served on the Senior Management Team. Sandy moved to Yahoo! Canada in 2004 after working with Yahoo! at their headquarters in Silicon Valley. Prior to Yahoo!, he rode the dot com wave in Silicon Valley starting in 1999 working with several startups including HotLinks, AudioBasket, and PhiWare. Sandy began his career with Nortel while pursuing his Bachelor of Computer Science at Dalhousie University. His education continues at MIT where he is working on an Executive Certificate in Product Strategy and Innovation.
CondoDomain.com Opens Dallas Condo Market
September 10, 2008
CondoDomain.com is pleased to announce the launch of their web-based, flat fee real estate brokerage in the Dallas, Texas marketplace. This is the second market launch for CondoDomain.com as they expand into their pre-existing 33 U.S. markets as a web-based buyers’ brokerage focusing on urban properties and new construction condominium developments.
(PRWEB) September 10, 2008 — CondoDomain.com is pleased to announce the launch of their web-based, flat fee real estate brokerage in the Dallas, Texas marketplace.
This is the second market launch for CondoDomain.com as they expand into their pre-existing 33 U.S. markets as a web-based buyers’ brokerage focusing on urban properties and new construction condominium developments.
Keith W. Smith has been named the Southwest & City Vice President for the Dallas marketplace and will now be in charge of all of the real estate brokerage in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. With over twenty years of experience, Smith is a valuable resource for buyers in the Dallas marketplace.
“We are very excited to join the CondoDomain.com team and to infuse the local Dallas market with this new web-based buyers’ brokerage business model,” says Smith. “The Boston team has proved the business model to be an instant success. With the positive response from buyers, the flat fee model makes all the sense in the world for educated individuals looking to share in the search and compare process and to be rewarded by receiving a large rebate of the brokers’ commission.”
A web-based buyers’ brokerage company offering full, buy-side services for a flat fee, CondoDomain.com LLC has given back more than $300,000 in refunds to their clients in Boston so far this year. On average, clients have received more than $13,000 at closing. As an innovative and forward-thinking company, CondoDomain.com continually implements the latest technology components into their platform to bring all real estate-related data, without exception, to the surface so clients can get a transparent and complete view of each property.
Utilizing the cutting-edge search platform, site users are able to browse the entire website for Dallas Condos and luxury Dallas real estate. Here they will find every MLS listing, every new development and existing luxury building, foreclosure listings, FSBO (for sale by owner) properties and even upcoming auctions.
“Each market is incredibly unique. By partnering with passionate leading market experts like Keith Smith, we are growing our network and brand as a top-notch buyers’ brokerage firm in each city,” says Brian-Logan Reid, National Director of Real Estate at CondoDomain.com. “The timing could not be more perfect for us to roll out our alternative brokerage model, giving consumers a choice and an opportunity to save money during a time when they need it most.”
About CondoDomain.com
CondoDomain.com is a web-based real estate brokerage based in Boston, MA. The company is expanding nationwide to offer its buyers’ brokerage services in more than 30 cities around the U.S. Currently operating in Boston and Dallas, CondoDomain offers an innovative flat-fee business model allowing the majority of the commission to be refunded to the buyer. By combining up-to-date MLS feeds, new construction buildings, FSBO, Foreclosures, Lofts and Auction listings all on one site, CondoDomain has become one of the most popular and user friendly real estate websites available. CondoDomain.com offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee to all of its clients, ensuring a professional, efficient, and pleasant transaction. Visit www.CondoDomain.com for more information or feel free to dive into our blogs at www.CondoDomain.com/Blog.
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Failure for Business Owners and Entrepreneurs has been Virtually Eliminated
September 9, 2008
Overcoming challenges in life many times leads individuals towards finding a solution (http://HotLeadTool.com) that creates a better environment that affects numerous lives. And for Clouse, that story defines the inspiration behind his new Business Model that is allowing entrepreneurs to take complete control of their business careers.
Clouse previously had created a successful career in the Property Management Industry that would be the dream path for many. ‘I had on my portfolio all the glowing credentials with a beneficial compensation package, and thru hard work and dedication I reached a Vice President position with one of the top companies in the state. I eventually bought into ownership with an investment of $65,000 that led to a 1% partnership status that involved an incredible sacrifice personally, on a daily basis, while taking time away from my great family. I was caught in the glamour lifestyle that many experience that rewards one financially but effects negatively the critical aspects of their personal life and at that stage I personally decided that family time over career status was a higher calling for me and found the solution. Life is short and when you have a core value of a great wife and 2 kids, you need to make it count, and I do every day with my new business venture,’ Clouse said.
“What I wanted to accomplish was to provide a means to an end. Any real estate entrepreneur or business owner wants success. Let’s face it. That is the reason they started their business. I saw to many good people fail and so I made it my mission to help any real estate professional and business owner generate good quality leads. Without leads or clients for your business you are as good as dead in the water” said Clouse. “In my search for the perfect model I came across this long sought out technology and at once new that I had to share this with other business owners and entrepreneurs.”
iBuzzPro™ Independent Sales Affiliates Have Earned over $1,000,000 selling iBuzzPro in just 4 months. That’s One Million Dollars Since APRIL 22, 2008.
iBuzzPro was started in 2006 by John Breck, a veteran Home Based Business Entrepreneur. Throughout 2006, 2007 and the first quarter of 2008 iBuzzPro™ was practically a hidden secret. That all changed in April of 2008 when iBuzzPro™ made several major enhancements to their Voice Broadcasting and Marketing Strategy.
The company projects that ISA (Independent Sales Reps) earnings will soar during the month of September to over $500,000 for one month.
The company is also generating over $250,000 a month in Voice Broadcasting Services. That’s $3 Million a year in Voice Broadcasting.
iBuzzPro operates their own voice broadcasting software which allows the company to keep the prices low and provide excellent service and training.
“If you are looking for success in your business than you must visit us online at http://www.hotleadtool.com or call me directly at 480-200-4222.”
SimplyConnect Newsletters Make it Easy for Real Estate Agents to Connect
September 3, 2008
EmailFlyerAds.com launches a system which enables custom newsletter creation in minutes.
Grover Beach, CA (PRWEB) September 3, 2008 — Recognizing the time challenges that face busy Real Estate Agents, EmailFlyerAds has developed a unique newsletter creation system to help combat the issue. SimplyConnect allows agents to create custom newsletters in minutes by providing a library of compelling articles from a variety of valued sources.
Real Estate professionals can customize the look of their real estate newsletters by choosing from different color schemes, as well as company branded or non-branded layouts. The user may select up to five articles from a growing library of real estate related news, current events, and tips for home buyers and sellers. Topics can be filtered by type to ensure relevance to the target audience, whether real estate professionals or potential clients. Agents can also write their own stories from scratch if they wish to share local news or make announcements.
“Most agents do not have the time or resources for designing and sending regular professional newsletters. While this is understandable, it comes at the cost of missing out on valuable marketing and networking exposure. The beauty of our SimplyConnect system is that it takes the work out of creating a newsletter by providing a variety of interesting and relevant content for you. This allows professionals to stay connected with clients and colleagues without spending a lot of time and effort,” says CEO of Go Smart Solutions, Misty Lackie.
The newsletters also feature the agent’s current listings, contact information, and links to their other online marketing material. SimplyConnect automatically arranges the information into an organized layout, making the entire process achievable in less than 15 minutes.
Time efficiency developments are a current theme at EmailFlyerAds, with the SimplyConnect system coming on the heels of another recent time-saving product release, the SmartTemplate. This e-mail template offers a web-friendly, multi-page layout which features a large central picture of each listing, and can be created in minutes.
EmailFlyerAds.com has reached over 17,000 members and is owned by Go Smart Solutions, LLC. The service provides marketing tools to professionals in the Real Estate industry and offers e-mail marketing, online listing syndication, single property websites, and other online tools. For more information, please visit http://www.emailflyerads.com/.
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RE BlogWorld Real Estate and Mortgage Convention September 19 - 21 in Las Vegas
August 21, 2008
The real estate and mortgage Industry’s largest blogging and new media event, RE Blog World will be in Las Vegas, NV September 19 - 21 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Produced by Todd Carpenter, RE Blog World has an all star cast of top mortgage and real estate industry presenters that will show how they have successfully integrated blogging, technology, and new media into their daily marketing routines.
This three day event features more than 50 seminars, panel discussions and keynotes from iconic personalities on the leading-edge of online technology, and Internet-savvy business.
Hundreds of the top bloggers, SEO experts, and innovative real estate technology leaders will be sharing their strategies. View complete schedule HERE.
Pricing is $100 off for registrations prior to August 22.
Event Schedule
Day 1 - RE BlogWorld Conference
A full day of seminars, panels & workshops focused on the nuts & bolts of leveraging social media tools like blogs to enhance the marketing efforts of real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and anyone working within the field of real estate.
Days 2 & 3 - BlogWorld & New Media Expo
The worlds largest blogging & new media trade show opens along with dozens of seminars on blogging, social media, search engine optimization, podcasting, video-casting, online journalism, small business strategies and more.
Special opportunities for beginners
Don’t wait for RE BlogWorld to start blogging. Click hereto find out more about our blogging for beginners pre-conference program.
Video Changes the Way the World Sees Real Estate
August 2, 2008
RealtyVID, LLC, a new entrant in a group of streaming video listing sites and a unit of iMediaVIDs, Inc., today announced the release of StreamSender®, its easy to use movie making tool that takes the guess work out of hosting video listings.
Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) August 2, 2008 — RealtyVID, LLC, a new entrant in a group of streaming video listing sites and a unit of iMediaVIDs, Inc., today announced the release of StreamSender®, its easy to use movie making tool that takes the guess work out of hosting video listings. Agents can now drag and drop video clips into the software and send to www.realtyvid.com where it is hosted on a powerful Content Distribution Network (CDN) and syndicated to major real estate portals. To make it affordable for every listing their basic service is free.
With a somewhat unique perspective the people at RealtyVID believe that every property warrants a video listing. “Video listings do not have to be costly or complicated. They just need to show the important parts of the property you’re trying to sell. When we stepped back to think about the needs of the customer [buyer we recognized that first they are looking for a convenient way find a property. Next they want to see everything that the property has to offer in a short space of time. And lastly they want realism. Since video is the obvious answer to all of these needs our only challenge was to make a solution is easy and affordable enough for every listing to have one. We believe that StreamSender® and realtyvid.com hits that mark,” commented Robert McMillan, CEO, RealtyVID.
McMillan went on to say that even though the solution is easy and affordable the service should not be considered a lightweight. It easily supports the needs of those wanting a professional quality video with high quality play and distributed players. In addition to their free service RealtyVID provides custom labeled solutions. The CDN service behind the website is Limelight Networks, the same infrastructure used by larger organizations like YouTube, MySpace, or CNN to deliver high volume content globally.
About RealtyVID
RealtyVID was founded by Chris Jones and Robert McMillan in early 2007 and has been in public beta since November or last year. McMillan holds a BS in Physics and an MBA from Rollins, Crummer Graduate School of Business. He is also the sole owner of ScotCro, LLC, a consultancy that designs efficiency and financial enterprise applications for State and Local government. He and Jones connected on a government project and decided to launch realtyvid.com. Jones has headed up research and development teams for CNN.com and is deemed a foremost streaming video expert. Jones was also on the initial team with Microsoft and Razorfish to roll out the first commercial implementation of Microsoft’s Surface table for AT&T this past spring.
Media Inquiries to: John Kellogg, CMO, RealtyVID, LLC
Email: jkellogg @ realtyvid.com
Name: John
Phone Number: 877-577-9707 x Sales
Fax Number: 678-868-2515
Cell Number: 336-254-7559
Web Address: www.realtyvid.com
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Social Networking Brings Real Estate Industry to the Next Level
July 27, 2008
BuyerBeacon, The Official Real Estate Matchmaker, offers an interactive and user friendly tool for home buyers and sellers. The website is in response to an online real estate marketplace where it can cost hundreds of dollars to sell your home online. Owners Peter Fabbri III and Cory Ruell believe that “it’s time to make the home buying process smoother, quicker, easier and more affordable, and that is why we have developed buyerbeacon.com!” Development of the Buyer Beacon website started in August 2007 and nearly one year later, is being unveiled to the public.
Lake Orion, MI (PRWEB) July 27, 2008 — Buyer Beacon LLC (http://www.buyerbeacon.com), operating out of Lake Orion, Michigan, is a residential real estate website that leverages the matchmaking ability of a dating site. Buyerbeacon.com allows homebuyers and sellers of properties to network and communicate with each other through the website. Home buyers create a buyer profile and enter specified search criteria (including location, price range, etc. of their desired home) while home sellers create profiles detailing what makes their home perfect; Buyer Beacon collects the information to match users up via e-mail notification. Users are also free to search, browse, and communicate through the website to find their perfect match. Realtors may reap the benefits of the site by utilizing it as an instrument to aid in finding a perfect buyer for clients. Realtors can interact with the buyers by sending and receiving emails, they have the ability to list 15+ homes, add up to 15 pictures per property, and have access to a listing management tool inside of their profile. SAMSA Programmer, Josh Taylor, adds, “The Buyer Beacon site ventures into a new tier of social networking unlike any other because it focuses on property listings.”
The idea for this social networking website tailored for real estate buyers and sellers was created by owners Peter Fabbri III and Cory Ruell as a solution to the hassle of trying to find a home. One of the Co-founders of Buyer Beacon developed the initial plan for the website after driving around weekend after weekend looking for the perfect home with no success. Fabbri comments on the new site, “The concept of our website has not yet been seen in the Internet real estate industry. We offer a free, no obligation way to market and find buyers for your home that is very interactive and user friendly.” He goes on to say, “In an online real estate marketplace where it can cost hundreds of dollars to sell your home online, it’s time to make the home buying process smoother, quicker, easier and more affordable, and that is why we have developed buyerbeacon.com!” Fabbri and Ruell plan on marketing Buyer Beacon, “The Official Real Estate Matchmaker,” nationally, within the next year.
Development of the Buyer Beacon website started in August 2007 and nearly one year later, is being unveiled to the public. Buyerbeacon.com could not come at a better time as the U.S. real estate industry is suffering and sellers cannot find buyers for their homes. Buyerbeacon.com offers sellers the ability to take the initiative and for the first time ever use the Internet to find buyers. Fabbri commented, “The beauty of buyerbeacon.com is that home sellers and homebuyers both benefit from using the site. Sellers can pursue buyers anxious to buy a home. Buyers can find their perfect home without a lot of legwork. It’s a win-win for both buyers and sellers! Internet matchmaking at its finest and its free!” SAMSA (http://www.samsa.com) provided web development including database design and PHP programming. SAMSA used cutting edge scripting, (Spry technology) to make subtle effects throughout the website and used a PHP-programmed site backed with a mySQL database for the website’s data. They also provided graphic and web design and web host the Buyer Beacon site.
When it came to developing the website, Buyer Beacon owners explain, “We performed a lot of due diligence selecting our website vendor, as it was the heart and soul of our idea. SAMSA stuck out from the crowd through their professionalism, their dedication to their clients, and their reasonable prices.” Ruell adds, “Peter and I would 100% recommend SAMSA to any other business clients and acquaintances. SAMSA did a wonderful job with our site in a reasonable time frame.” In regards to working with the SAMSA team through the process of getting the website developed and ready to go live to the public, they state, “SAMSA has been a treat to work with; they handled everything we asked of them professionally and diligently. They took the vision we gave them for the site and created a final result that exceeded our expectations.”
Buyerbeacon.com User Benefits:
The Standard Profile for sellers is free and includes one home listing, ability to upload eight pictures, search homebuyer and seller profiles, add favorites, and receive new homebuyer e-mail alerts.
The Premium Profile for sellers is $10.95/month after a one-month free trial and in addition to the standard profile perks includes, 15 additional free listings, the ability to send and read emails, upload 15 pictures per listing, add and manage additional listings, and it provides premium display within search results for each listing.
The Premium Profile for buyers is free and includes the ability to send and read e-mails, upload a profile picture, search seller listings, add favorites, and receive new seller e-mail alerts.
AltosXplorer: The First Real-Time Real Estate Data Web Application
July 22, 2008
Award-winning technology brings the most current real estate data to everyone’s fingertips. Just a few clicks for incredibly detailed local or national real estate market analysis.
Mountain View, CA (PRWEB) July 22, 2008 — Altos Research, the premier resource for real-time real estate data, today announced AltosXplorer, the first rich internet application to let anyone analyze today’s current real estate market conditions.
AltosXplorer is the newest product from the company that won the Inman News “Most Innovative Technology” award in 2007 for its real-time real estate data products. AltosXplorer is available today at the Altos Research real estate data page.
Traditional real estate information is weeks or months old before it becomes available for even the most connected real estate professionals. Analyzing, charting, and communicating that data is an arduous task of database queries, spreadsheets, and email.
“Thousands of real estate professionals, investors, traders, and consumers leverage our unique real-time market information for insights every day,” said Michael Simonsen, co-founder and CEO of Altos Research. “We’ve learned that our clients love our detailed market reports, but many have their own unique analytical needs. We built AltosXplorer to empower a whole new class of class of real estate problem solving.”
AltosXplorer is the first rich internet application that enables users to:
1. Instantly query the vast Altos Research real estate database: Altos publishes hundreds of useful statistics covering nearly 10,000 zip codes around the country every week. AltosXplorer opens the massive 2 terabyte (2TB) Altos Research database to live queries.
2. Automatically chart local market trends: Just a few clicks to grab local market trend charts for your blog, emails, or unique individual analysis.
3. Quickly analyze today’s conditions: Sift through mountains of statistics to compare local market opportunities, identify previously hidden trends, and make decisions.
4. Export the data: Easily save graphical charts and export historical data directly to your PC.
Need to compare investment opportunities in Tampa vs. Orlando? Or condo inventory trends in two Chicago neighborhoods? AltosXplorer can tell you in just a few clicks. In addition, AltosXplorer makes it simple to include the data and trend charts in your work– whether preparing a detailed investment analysis, or blogging for your clients– the answers are only a few clicks away.
“AltosXplorer is insanely cool,” said Kris Berg, Broker Associate with Prudential California Realty “Real-time market data into my blog posts and to my clients - click, click, copy, paste. I love it when I can give my clients more and make my life easier.” Kris blogs at San Diego Home Blog.
AltosXplorer also makes available, for the first time, 16 market measures not available anywhere else. The Advanced statistics track, for example, the average percentage price changes of homes on the market and year over year changes in inventory and demand levels.
Pricing and Availability
AltosXplorer offers basic access for free to anyone. Current Altos Research Professional and Premium subscribers get professional-level access to AltosXplorer at no additional cost. For investors, appraisers, and institutions, pricing depends on market coverage and statistical depth and starts at $99/month. For full subscription details see Altos Research or call 888.819.7775
About Altos Research:
Altos Research LLC is the Internet’s premier source for real-time real estate data. The company’s market analysis products give people better information about current property prices and market dynamics than ever previously available. Our customers include real estate professionals, individual home buyers and sellers, corporations and financial institutions. The privately held company, based in Silicon Valley, was founded in 2005. For more information visit Altos Research: Real-Time Real Estate Data
Foreclosure.com to Enhance Existing Foreclosure Listings on LiveDeal.com
July 22, 2008
America’s top provider of foreclosure data to provide leading local online marketplace with access to more than 1.8 million nationwide distressed real estate listings. Foreclosures are hot and getting hotter
Boca Raton, FL (PRWEB) July 22, 2008 — Foreclosure.com today announced that it has struck a data deal with LiveDeal.com, providing the online classified leader and its site visitors with access to millions of nationwide real estate and foreclosure listings.
Visitors can access the listings online at www.LiveDeal.com/realestate.
As part of the partnership, LiveDeal.com will integrate Foreclosure.com listing into its existing database, providing future homebuyers with seamless access to the most comprehensive database of foreclosure listings in the nation through an innovative co-brand site creation.
In particular, site visitors can now search an additional 1.8 million real estate listings without ever leaving LiveDeal.com.
“Our focus is to provide our visitors with the best local products and services on a nationwide scale,” said Mike Edelhart, CEO of LiveDeal. “Foreclosure.com is a natural partner to help us achieve this objective within our real estate channel. Through this new partnership, LiveDeal is adding valuable local foreclosure content to the site and enabling its new partner to reach its target consumers in every neighborhood in the country.”
The data from Foreclosure.com includes property information and in-depth details such as exclusive tax roll information, property photos, as well as seller/listing contact information.
“Foreclosures are hot and getting hotter,” said Foreclosure.com Founder, President and CEO, Brad Geisen. “There are tremendous investment opportunities for homebuyers and investors to choose from right now. This partnership ensures that we will be able to pass these great deals along to millions of people so that they can save (or make) the money.”
To view the site or to search more than 1.8 million real estate listings right now visit www.LiveDeal.com/realestate.
About Foreclosure.com
With more than 1.8 million foreclosure, preforeclosure, bankruptcy, FSBO and tax lien listings in one place, Foreclosure.com delivers America’s largest and most accurate searchable database of foreclosed homes and investment property information to its customers and business partners. Based in Boca Raton, Florida, Foreclosure.com works with hundreds of top lending institutions and government agencies to list diverse property types on its Web site, including Real Estate Owned (REO); Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); Department of Veterans Affairs (VA); Fannie Mae; and other government agency and financial institution properties; as well as listings from an extensive network of corporate sellers. On the Web: www.foreclosure.com.
About LiveDeal Inc.
LiveDeal, Inc. is a leader in the local online classifieds and yellow pages marketplace with millions of goods and services listed for sale in every city and zip code across the U.S. Through its online properties LiveDeal.com and YP.com, LiveDeal offers businesses and consumers a simple and affordable way of creating a web presence and marketing their products and services to local audiences. Buyers and sellers come together through LiveDeal’s vast local marketplaces to find and list business services, merchandise, real estate, automobiles and pets. LiveDeal, Inc. is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information please visit www.LiveDeal.com.
Media Contact:
Thomas Myers
Foreclosure.com
tmyers @ foreclosure.com
Tel: (561) 981-5337 ext. 381
Bid4Assets Announces its New Real Estate-Only Auction Web Site and Real Estate Disposition Program
July 21, 2008
Bid4Assets introduces Bid4Homes, an online real estate auction site that brings the expertise of listing agents together with its online auction experience to accelerate the sale of REO property.
Silver Spring, MD (PRWEB) July 21, 2008 — Bid4Assets (www.bid4assets.com), the nation’s online auction expert in selling distressed assets since 1999, today announced its new real estate-only auction Web site, Bid4Homes(sm) (www.bid4homes.com), and its unique partnership with listing agents. Bid4Homes, which specializes in selling distressed real estate from banks, government agencies and private parties, is introducing a powerful new tool to accelerate the sale of REO properties, called the 3in1 Listing Program(sm). The 3in1 Listing Program is intended to maximize revenue and minimize holding time compared to traditional methods. Bid4Homes’ unique 3in1 Listing Program combines the power of online auctions and the local expertise of real estate agents to triple the chances the property will sell. Bid4Homes will pay listing agents a commission on a successful sale.
This first phase in Bid4Homes’ unique 3in1 Listing Program starts with an online auction, which usually takes less than 30 days. It is anticipated that improved residential and commercial properties and unimproved land will be auctioned on Bid4Homes. Properties will be in an online ‘preview period’ to give bidders time to conduct due diligence prior to the bidding period. During the preview period, Bid4Homes targets its best prospects from its subscriber group and uses the power of the Internet to instantaneously expose the properties to an exponentially greater number of buyers than on-the-ground auctions. More bidders drive higher prices. Bid4Assets, its new real estate-only Web site, Bid4Homes, and its partner RealtyTrac®, will expose properties to more than three million potential buyers, and that is just the first step in this unique selling process.
If the property doesn’t sell through the initial online auction, Bid4Homes will support the efforts of the asset manager’s real estate agent to sell it through traditional means–this is second phase in the Program. The properties will be listed on all three Web sites as a ‘make an offer’ sale. Bid4Homes will forward all inquiries and offers to the listing agent for the property. When listing a property with Bid4Homes, sellers pay nothing until a property is sold. The cost of selling property on the Web site is equivalent to using a real estate agent and considerably less than an on-the-ground auctioneer. “There is absolutely no risk to try this Program. Sellers only pay if the property sells, so why wouldn’t banks give it a try?” said Lisa Lauroesch, vice president of business development and REO sales for Bid4Homes. Unlike some other online services, when a property is sold through Bid4Homes, the listing agent can earn a commission, regardless of what phase the property sells in. “Bid4Homes integrates online auctions with listing agents to provide end-to-end asset disposition services for banks and real estate sellers,” said Lisa Lauroesch.
If the property doesn’t sell in phases one or two of the Program, the third phase is to re-auction the property online. At this time, the asset manager will have a better understanding of what the market will bear and can take what he/she has learned about pricing and, together with Bid4Homes, develop a highly customized approach to getting the property sold. Bid4Homes also simplifies the transfer of property by providing a web-based service that brings together all of the information necessary for a smooth closing.
Bid4Assets and Bid4Homes have sold over 53,000 properties in 50 states since 1999. Since January 2008, 21 percent of listings in its auctions sold within 30 days, and 58 percent brought more than the asking price. “It only makes sense to capitalize on the efficiencies of the Internet particularly in a slow market. Online auctions have unlimited reach. Since the market became soft, almost 60 percent of all properties we’ve sold at Bid4Homes have been sold to out-of-state buyers. Greater reach means more bidders and more bidders mean more properties move quicker at higher prices,” said Lisa Lauroesch. And she should know. Lauroesch has seen the real estate market in all types of conditions with her past experience at Freddie Mac, most recently as Senior Director of Offerings Development.
Lauroesch continued, “With a traditional agent, buyers hold the power to try to bid the price down, but since online auction bids are viewable, they encourage competitive bidding therefore driving prices up. That’s ideal for the seller in any market.”
In addition to bank-owned properties and properties from private sellers, Bid4Homes helps many federal, state and local government agencies dispose of forfeited, seized, surplus and tax-foreclosed properties. Some of its clients include the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Department of Defense and more than 50 counties nationwide.
“We’re excited to team up with Bid4Homes and its sister site Bid4Assets, which have experienced enormous success in the online real estate auction space, with more than 50,000 property sales in 50 states,” said Rick Sharga, vice president of marketing for RealtyTrac. “There is tremendous value in this Program for the asset manager. The online technology pioneered by Bid4Homes wedded with the wide exposure available through RealtyTrac provides one of the best options for disposing of distressed properties.”
As a leading online real estate auction expert in the REO industry, Lisa Lauroesch of Bid4Homes, alongside Rick Sharga of RealtyTrac, will be appearing on a panel at the upcoming 2008 Five-Star Default Servicing Conference and Expo in Dallas as an industry expert discussing how technology will significantly impact the future of real estate.
About Bid4Homes
Bid4Homes (http://www.bid4homes.com) is the real estate-only Web site from Bid4Assets, Inc., the nation’s online auction expert in selling distressed assets since 1999 for government agencies, financial institutions, private sellers, bankruptcy attorneys, trustees, for sale by owners, real estate agents, brokerage firms and non-profits. Bid4Assets has had a legally binding real estate auction platform since 1999 and has more experience with online real estate auctions than any other online auction service in the country. More than 53,000 REO, forfeited, tax-foreclosed, and distressed properties have been sold through these sites including homes, unimproved land, commercial, residential and agricultural property.
Founded in 1999, Bid4Assets (http://www.bid4assets.com) developed one of the first sales platforms for government-controlled property on the Internet and formed its premier relationship with the U.S. Marshals Service. Bid4Assets has conducted sales of seized, surplus and non-strategic assets for more than 80 federal, state and local government agencies nationwide. Clients include the U.S. Marshals Service, the Department of Energy, U.S. Department of the Treasury, and many of the states and counties throughout the United States. The company is located in Silver Spring, Md., phone (301) 650-9193, fax (301) 650-9194.
