A Bird’s Eye View

Great Article on Roost.com in July Issue of The Pennsylvania REALTOR®

July 3, 2008 · Leave a Comment

Exciting news in the Roost.com nest! We just found out that a great story on Roost.com has appeared in the July issue of The Pennsylvania REALTOR®. Our own Alex Chang provided some color commentary on the Roost.com value proposition and Steve Storti, Senior Vice President of Marketing for Prudential Fox & Roach, provided his own take on Roost.com as well as the Internet landscape in the real estate space.

We are very excited that a local MLS board would think highly enough of Roost.com to include us in their monthly publication.

Here is the story:

If you are interested in downloading the entire magazine, it can be found at: http://www.parealtor.org/content/PA_REALTOR.htm.

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Roost Real Estate Speak Report

July 1, 2008 · 7 Comments

 Are you and your REALTOR® speaking the same language?

We see a lot of property listings here at Roost. And we’re self-confessed data geeks. So, when someone came up with the idea to analyze what those listings really tell home seekers, we couldn’t resist the challenge, and dove right in.

We wanted to take a look at some of the most commonly used words brokers use to describe homes for sale, and see how they varied by region and price bracket.

This was a fascinating project for us, and gave us a real insight into real estate trends across the country. Even simple adjectives like ‘new’, ‘nice’, ‘beautiful’ and ‘wonderful’ can give you a sense of how tastes vary region to region, and we also found some quirkier terms, including ‘wow’, ‘cool’, ‘savvy’ and my personal favorite ‘fussiest’.

It also gave us a look at how house prices are faring across the US, with many listings featuring the words ‘reduced’ or ‘reduction’ in their descriptions.

You can find more on this here: http://www.businesswire.com, but here are some of the top-line results to take a look at. It was definitely a fun project, but of course, there’s a serious point. Everything we do here at Roost is aimed at making the home search experience easier, faster and less painful for consumers. By helping both buyers and sellers learn which features and characteristics are most marketed in their city and within their price range – we can help them make the right decisions.

So, here’s the data, but let us know what you think. What’s the weirdest word you’ve ever seen used to describe a property? Are quirky descriptions helpful, or a hindrance? Do they help you stand out, or filter you out of the game? Looking forward to your feedback.

Top ten adjectives used to describe homes, by metropolitan area:

 
Boston
Chicago
Dallas
Washington, D.C.
Miami
Orange County
San Francisco
San Jose
St. Louis
1.
New
New
Large
New
Great
Large
Large
New
New
2.
Large
Great
Great
Large
New
New
New
Great
Large
3.
Great
Huge
New
Great
Beautiful
Great
Great
Large
Great
4.
Colonial
Large
Open
Finished
Large
Beautiful
Remodeled
Beautiful
Newer
5.
Beautiful
Open
Beautiful
Beautiful
Spacious
Custom
Beautiful
Open
Lower
6.
Private
Beautiful
Huge
Fenced
Corner
Huge
Spacious
Spacious
Beautiful
7.
Open
Gourmet
Covered
Open
Nice
Spacious
Open
Nice
Finished
8.
Finished
Private
Custom
Huge
Motivated
Nice
Formal
Remodeled
Open
9.
Spacious
Cherry
Nice
Spacious
Huge
Private
Huge
Newer
Updated
10.
Custom
Finished
Spacious
Well
Remodeled
Newer
Lower
Custom
Custom

Top ten adjectives used to describe homes, by price and metropolitan area:

 

Homes less than $250,000

Homes $251,000 to $500,000

Homes $501,000 to $750,000

Homes $751,000 to $1,000,000

Homes $1,000,000 to $1,500,000

Homes $1,500,000 to $2,000,000

Homes more than $2,000,000
Boston New
Great
Large
Nice
Newer
Updated
Fenced
Finished
Beautiful
Colonial		 New
Large
Great
Open
Beautiful
Colonial
Private
Finished
Spacious
Updated		 New
Large
Colonial
Private
Open
Great
Custom
Beautiful
Spacious
Finished		 New
Custom
Large Private
Colonial
Open
Great
Beautiful
Spacious
Finished		 Custom
New
Private
Colonial
Large
Great
Open
Beautiful
Formal
Spacious		 Custom
Private
New
Colonial
Open
Large
Beautiful
Gourmet
Designed
Spacious		 Private
Custom
New
Colonial
Spectacular
Detail
Designed
Beautiful
Large
Magnificent
Chicago New
Large
Great
Newer
Fenced
Huge
Nice
Finished
Beautiful
Updated		 New
Large
Great
Huge
Beautiful
Newer
Finished
Spacious
Open
Updated		 New
Large
Custom
Huge
Great
Beautiful
Story
Finished
Open
Spacious		 New
Custom
Large
Huge
Great
Beautiful
Open
Finished
Private
Gourmet		 New
Custom
Great
Huge
Large
Beautiful
Cherry
Gourmet
Private
Open		 Custom
New
Gourmet
Huge
Great
Beautiful
Large
Cherry
Private
Open		 New
Custom
Private
Stunning
Beautiful
Finished
Construction
Large
Cherry
Great
Dallas Large
Great
New
Open
Beautiful
Nice
Covered
Paint
Huge
Spacious		 Large
Custom
Beautiful
Great
Open
New
Huge
Covered
Spacious
Gorgeous		 Custom
Large
Beautiful
Great
Open
Huge
Gourmet
New
Private
Gorgeous		 Custom
Large
Beautiful
Great
Open
Gourmet
Huge
Private
New
Covered		 Custom
Large
Beautiful
Gourmet
Private
Open
Great
Gorgeous
Huge
Spacious		 Custom
Large
Beautiful
Gourmet
Private
Open
Huge
New
Covered
Fabulous		 Custom
Large
Gourmet
Beautiful
Private
French
Huge
Great
Gated
Country
Washington, D.C. New
Great
Large
Fenced
Nice
Finished
Sold
Beautiful
Spacious
Updated		 New
Large
Great
Beautiful
Finished
Open
Fenced
Huge
Spacious
Well		 New
Large
Great
Beautiful
Finished
Open
Huge
Colonial
Custom
Gourmet		 New
Custom
Large
Gourmet
Beautiful
Great
Open
Huge
Private
Finished		 New
Custom
Gourmet
Large
Private
Open
Great
Huge
Finished
Beautiful		 Custom
New
Gourmet
Private
Great
Open
Beautiful
Large
Finished
Huge		 Custom
Private
New
Gourmet
Large
Great
Beautiful
Spectacular
Grand
Open
Miami Great
New
Beautiful
Large
Nice
Owned
Single
Spacious
Motivated
Corner		 Great
Beautiful
New
Large
Spacious
Nice
Corner
Remodeled
Huge
Motivated		 Beautiful
Great
New
Large
Spacious
Miami
Corner
Huge
Gated
Private		 Beautiful
Great
New
Large
Gated
Corner
Huge
Miami
Updated
Spacious		 New
Beautiful
Great
Large
Spacious
Remodeled
Gated
Updated
Private
Gorgeous		 New
Beautiful
Great
GatedCustom
Renovated
Spacious
Best
Finishes
Gorgeous		 New
Gated
Custom
Private
Beautiful
Construction
Spectacular
Prestigious
Miami
Magnificent
Orange County Great
Large
New
Nice
Beautiful
Newer
Spacious
Open
Paint
Huge		 New
Large
Great
Nice
Beautiful
Newer
Spacious
Huge
Open
Remodeled		 New
Large
Great
Beautiful
Custom
Newer
Spacious
Remodeled
Private
Huge		 Large
New
Custom
Great
Beautiful
Private
Formal
Huge
Open
Spacious		 Large
Custom
New
Private
Beautiful
Great
Huge
Formal
Open
Spacious		 Custom
Large
Private
Beautiful
New
Formal
Great
Gourmet
Huge
Center		 Custom
Large
Private
New
Gourmet
Beautiful
Gated
Formal
Great
Huge
San Francisco Great
Large
New
Newer
Nice
Maintained
Sold
Big
Spacious
Beautiful		 Great
Large
New
Beautiful
Nice
Spacious
Remodeled
Well
Open
Newer		 New
Large
Great
Remodeled
Beautiful
Updated
Spacious
Easy
Formal
Open		 New
Large
Formal
Remodeled
Spacious
Great
Lower
Beautiful
Open
Huge		 Large
New
Remodeled
Open
Spacious
Beautiful
Landscaped
Huge
Custom
Gourmet		 Large
Formal
Remodeled
Spacious
New
Huge
Beautiful
Great
Private
Custom		 Large
Great
Open
Private
Stunning
Custom
Beautiful
New
Lower
Modern
San Jose Great
Large
New
Nice
Beautiful
Owned
Well
Newer
Open
Perfect		 Great
New
Large
Nice
Beautiful
Spacious
Newer
Well
Open
Huge		 New
Great
Large
Beautiful
Remodeled
Newer
Spacious
Nice
Pane
Open		 New
Large
Great
Beautiful
Remodeled
Open
Spacious
Custom
Private
Huge		 New
Large
Great
Beautiful
Custom
Private
Open
Remodeled
Spacious
Huge		 New
Custom
Large
Great
Private
Open
Beautiful
Spacious
Gourmet
Remodeled		 New
Private
Large
Custom
Great
Gourmet
Beautiful
Open
Formal
Spacious
St. Louis New
Large
Great
Newer
Updated
Lower
Finished
Beautiful
Ranch
Open		 Large
Great
New
Custom
Beautiful
Open
Lower
Finished
Spacious
Newer		 Custom
Large
Great
New
Private
Beautiful
Lower
Open
Finished
Spacious		 Custom
Large
Great
Lower
New
Beautiful
Private
Finished
Hearth
Spacious		 Custom
Private
Great
Large
Hearth
Beautiful
Lower
New
Luxury
Finished		 Custom
Great
Private
Large
Hearth
Lower
Beautiful
Finished
New
Gourmet		 Custom
Large
Hearth
Lower
Great
Private
Beautiful
Finished
Fabulous
Gourmet

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Three reasons why Kayak sets the standard

June 30, 2008 · 1 Comment

Three reasons why Kayak sets the standard

OK, I know firsthand that there are more reasons why Travel is unlike Real Estate then there are similarities. Real Estate is fundamentally local; I do not believe REALTORS® can/will be disintermediated; the purchase cycle happens over months if not years; and so on.

But despite all that, I still look to Kayak.com for inspiration more often than I’d care to admit.

Full disclosure, there are a few extenuating circumstances that influence how much I pay attention to it. First, two of our Board members at Roost sit on the Board of Kayak as well, so we certainly share some DNA. Second, I know one of the founders, Paul English, relatively well and he is never shy about giving advice. Finally, Kayak is my Mother in-law’s favorite travel site…nuff said.

Never-the-less, I’m unabashed in my belief that they set the standard for search in ways that apply to many, many verticals – not the least of which is Real Estate. And I think some of the principles that make them so good at what they do, can, and should inspire us in this space as well.

First, Kayak does one thing and one thing extremely well.

From content…to community…to widgets, the allure of offering all the various types of information & gadgets a consumer could possibly want is incredibly seductive. This is equally true in Travel (if not more so). And yet, Kayak has done an incredibly good job of being disciplined & staying true to its mission of search. When I visit as a consumer, there is no question what I’m going to get. I’m going to get laser focused search and it’s going to be better, easier, and faster than what I’d find anywhere else. I don’t use Kayak to get reviews of places to vacation. Perhaps that’s on there somewhere and I don’t know it. But when I want to search through a lot of airfare or hotels, I’m going to use Kayak and know it will deliver.

Second, they are constantly iterating

Every time I visit Kayak I come across some new candy (in fact that’s what inspired this post). And I’m not talking about extraneous features. I’m talking about candy that improves my experience of doing the core of what I’m there for. In my latest visit I discovered that they had added a mouse over event that makes it easier for me to filter on one flight’s time from within the search result. Very cool – see below. I feel like every time I come back…there’s something new like this that just works.

Third, they are obsessed with customer feedback

One of my first experiences with Kayak involved emailing them a bug. You’d think this would be a bad thing, but amazingly it turned out to be just the opposite. That same night their Chief Architect emailed me back personally to ask a follow up question, and they had the bug fixed the next day. That blew me away on pretty much every level. Can you imagine if you had a customer service issue with a big retail store and a VP level person emailed you that night?

This all adds up…

I was at a online marketing summit where someone asked how many folks in the room had used Kayak, and probably 2/3 of the room put up their hand. Then they asked how many had discovered Kayak via an ad and virtually no one raised their hand. Almost all those folks had heard about it from a friend. That is a powerful dynamic my friend…and no accident.

We try very, very hard at Roost.com to emulate Kayak in order to make it easier for folks to search through accurate & up to date homes for sale. I think we have a long way to go, but let’s hope a little of it is starting to rub off…

alex

Alex Chang
CEO
Roost.com
2008 Inman Innovator Award Finalist

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Social Networking Pays Off…But It’s Not The Only Thing

June 27, 2008 · 2 Comments

Bernice Ross, CEO of RealEstateCrunch.com wrote an interesting article on Inman News today titled “Social networking pays off“.  One of the key points that Ms. Ross made upfront in the story was that “Social networking may soon overtake virtually every other source as being the most important strategy for lead generation”.

As I was reading that statement I heard myself question it and was surprised upon perusing the comments I was not alone.  John Rowles, Managing Director of MainRhode LLC, questioned that statement also.  Now Mr. Rowles was a little more critical than I am stating that “Not to pour sour milk on your social networking cheerios, but Search is the necessary killer app for real estate and the web in general”.  

Now I find it interesting because separately I don’t necessarily agree with either statement 100% but combine the two and I feel you have something very powerful.  If you can successfully marry your social networking skills and platforms and search engine optimization (SEO) enhancements, you have a chance to hit a Grand Slam.

Another statement that Mr. Rowles made was “It is not about you.  For 94% of the audience it’s about the listings, but many agents still want to believe it’s about them, and the focus on social networking in Real Estate plays to that ego”.  1000Watt Consulting had a similar take on this with their clever video.

While I agree the listings are vitally important (I work at a real estate search site for Pete’s sake) I also think the agent is still very important in the process too.  Now maybe their role as keeper of the information has subsided, I still feel their role as a trusted advisor or consultant during the offer to close of escrow process cannot be discounted.   

Derek Overbey
Senior Director of Partnership Strategy
Roost.com
2008 Inman Innovator Award Finalist

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Hold your breath but…REALTORS® are ahead of the technology game!

June 25, 2008 · Leave a Comment

OK, maybe not every one of them.  Maybe not even most.  But I have to say I’m getting a bit tired of reading how Real Estate Brokers and Agents are in the Stone Age when it comes to understanding technology. 

 

I probably shouldn’t admit this, but what the heck…I’m the CEO of a technology start-up…I live in SF, the heart of Technology OZ…and I work 3 blocks from where Steve Jobs announced the new iPhone – and yet every day I’m amazed by how much I pick up about technology from watching what some REALTORS® are doing with their toys!

 

Let me ask you a few questions to illustrate my point:

 

-          How many Lawyers do you know who are on Twitter?

-          How many Financial Advisors are blogging the way the folks are on ActiveRain or BloodhoundBlog?

-          When is the last time your Accountant sent you a text message from his phone (ok fine, my accountant never calls me but you get the point)

-          What small business owner do you see giving SEO advice to his peers?

 

My read is that a significant segment of this industry understands that technology tools and services give them an edge to compete.  And this is especially true in a tough market.   I applaud all those folks who are going out of their way to learn new skills and market themselves creatively.  Good for you.  Separate yourself from the pack and don’t look back!

 

Incidentally you can follow me as I get my feet wet at http://twitter.com/AlexChangSF.  Oh, and BTW, it wasn’t one of my engineering friends who got me started on it…

 

alex

 

Alex Chang

CEO

Roost.com

2008 Inman Innovator Award Finalist

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Roost.com Lays a Golden Egg

June 19, 2008 · 1 Comment

So you thought you could keep your little real estate search gem a secret all to yourself. Well I’m sorry to inform you that the word is out and you are not alone in your discovery of the coolest and most innovative real estate search site around.

Roost.com is proud to announce that it is one of the five finalists in the “New Technology” category for the 11th Annual Inman News Innovator Awards. Other nominees in this category include BlueRoof360, Mixpo, Obeo and Terabitz.

Alex Chang, CEO of Roost.com, stated “We’re thrilled to be in the finals for this.  The Inman folks have shown a great eye over the years for emerging technologies that benefit the Real Estate world.  We know we’re building something great for REALTORS® here at Roost.com and it’s cool that others have noticed as well.”

We hope all of you are as excited as we are here at Roost.com for this extraordinary honor. Winners will be announced in a July 25 ceremony during Inman’s annual Real Estate Connect SF technology conference, held July 23-25 at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco.

Link to story on Inman News:

http://www.inman.com/news/2008/06/16/inman-news-announces-innovator-awards-finalists

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Roost.com adds more industry savvy to the pedigree

June 17, 2008 · Leave a Comment

We’re very excited to announce a new member of the Roost.com team! As of today, Derek Overbey has joined Roost to help drive our Industry & Broker partner network strategy.

Derek comes to Roost.com from Intero Real Estate Services, a leader in the Bay Area real estate brokerage world, where he served as Vice President of Marketing. At Intero, Derek was responsible for the management and development of marketing, Internet, advertising and communications programs. His focus was on supporting Intero’s agents, brokers and owners, and he was actively involved in the development of various technologies including the company’s website & blogging platform.

“We’re thrilled to add someone as well respected in the Real Estate community to our team” said Alex Chang, Roost.com CEO. “Derek has become a recognized thought leader in this world of technology enabled real estate marketing. And we’re confident he will be a key voice in ensuring Roost’s marketing platform is laser-focused on providing measurable ROI to both brokers and agents .

At Roost.com, we’re committed to building solutions with the needs of our REALTOR® clients in mind, and to do that, it’s obviously critical that our team includes folks with hands on knowledge & experience from the industry. ”

Please join us in Welcoming Derek.

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Roost.com launches in Denver with every home for sale!

June 3, 2008 · Leave a Comment

Attention homebuyers in the mile high city. You can now search for all homes for sale in the Denver Metro area in one place. Roost.com. Roost.com, through strategic relationships with local real estate brokers and the MLS provides consumers up-to-date and comprehensive access to all area MLS listings, For Sale by Owner listings and New Construction listings.

 

Search for homes by School District, neighborhood, MLS ID, keyword, and more! www.Roost.com

 

And if you’re a Real Estate broker in the Denver area looking to find an edge, be sure and contact us about our IDX partner network at sales@roost.com.

 

Roost.com now offers the most comprehensive (we mean all) set of homes for sale listings – including MLS, For Sale by Owner (FSBO) and New Construction, in over 350 Denver area cities. A sampling of the cities covered: Arvada, Aurora, Bailey, Boulder, Brighton, Broomfield, Castle Rock, Centennial, Commerce City, Denver, Elizabeth, Englewood, Erie, Evergreen, Golden, Greenwood Village, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Larkspur, Littleton, Longmont, Northglenn, Parker, Thornton, Westminster and many, many more.

 


…and we’re in thousands of other cities across the nation including; ; Baltimore; Boise; Boston; Chicago; Dallas; Denver; Fort Worth; Houston; Miami; Minneapolis; Orange County; Orlando; Philadelphia; Phoenix; Portland; Sacramento; San Diego; St. Paul; Tampa; Silicon Valley; St. Louis; and Washington D.C. areas, ensuring the results for each local search are complete. Founded in 2007, Roost.com is based in San Francisco, Calif. To start your home search, visit http://www.roost.com. Keep your eye on Roost.com.

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Roost.com launches in Miami

June 2, 2008 · Leave a Comment

If you’re in the market for a home in Miami metro area may we recommend a new favorite site? Roost.com.

Roost.com launched in Miami Florida late last week. (sorry for the blog delay. We’ve been busy building the best homes search site on the web!)

Through strategic relationships with the local MLS board and local brokers like Prudential Florida WCI Realty consumers can use Roost.com to access full MLS listings updated multiple times each day. In addition, consumers will find For Sale by Owner property listings and New Construction listings. There are over 30,000 homes for sale on Roost as of a few minutes ago in the greater Miami area.

Even if you’re not in the market right now, visit Roost.com and set up email alerts. Alerts on Roost.com are the best on the web for Miami buyers because we update our homes for sale data multiple times each day. You’ll quickly know when a new property meets your search criteria. (And we never spam.)

In addition to Miami, Roost.com covers Homestead, Miramar, Hollywood, Coral Gables, Pembroke Pines, Hialeah, Miami Beach, Doral, Weston, Miami Gardens and many, many more cities. Check them all out at Roost.com

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How do I search for homes on Roost.com on a particular street?

May 30, 2008 · Leave a Comment

We received a question from one of our users. He was trying to search for properties on a particular street. If one user has a question – there are probably others. So here’s how:

First way:

  • Start at www.roost.com
  • Enter in the city or zip that you’re interested in searching for homes for sale. Hit enter or search.
  • Once the properties load, you can use our “customer search terms” box in the upper left hand corner of the page to search on a particular street. Just enter in the street name – eg: “trailside loop” or “main st” or “main street” and you’ll see all the listings that have that street name in the listing.
  • If you want to search multiple streets, each time you enter a custom search term it’ll appear with a checkbox next to it below the entry field. Just click it on or off to search for each term.
  • You can click the “view on map” link below each listing to verify where the property is on the map.
  • You can also narrow your results by price, beds, baths etc. using all the tools surrounding the search results.

Second way:

  • Start at www.roost.com
  • Enter in the city or zip that you’re interested in searching for homes for sale. Hit enter or search.
  • Once the properties load, click the “Map view” tab at the top of the search results. Navigate to the street you’re interested in looking for properties on and click on the blue dots to see more detail on all the homes for sale in that area.
  • You can also narrow your results by price, beds, baths etc. using all the tools surrounding the map.

Thanks for the question. Let us know if this helps. Once you find the search steps that get you the best results you might consider “saving the search” or signing up for “email alerts” on that search. Roost.com updates MLS property listings multiple times each day so alerts on Roost.com help to ensure you’ll be the first to know when a new property has hit the market.

You can also check out this little video that reviews much of what I discussed in this post.

 

 

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