Back before the holidays Matt Dollinger, the performance coach at @properties in Chicago invited me to preview the new website they were about to launch. It was impressive.
There are lots of mediocre broker sites out there, so sometimes it is nice to see something good or even great. I'd say the new @properties site qualifies.
Here are some of the things that I like about the site:
- Homepage
- Simple, clean layout.
- Key functions front-and-center
- Property Search
- Neighborhood Search
- Market Reports (great market reports, at a granular neighborhood level)
- Calls to action
- Property search form is right there to begin your search. No need to choose it in a menu first. Ditto with Neighborhoods and Market Reports.
- List with us call out links to concise but powerful benefits page with testimonials (so many sites forget about sellers)
- Showcase of luxury properties featured prominently in scrolling band in the middle of the homepage.
The folks at @properties understand that buyers aren't just buying a house, they are buying a lifestyle. In a big city like Chicago that often means that the neighborhood and the location are as important, sometimes more important, than the amenities of the home or apartment (you can always renovate!). So, in addition to the typical property info they have integrated some pretty rich neighborhood information on the details page for each property. Coming from NYC, I appreciate seeing the 6 closest restaurants listed with ratings!
- Property Details Pages feature rich neighborhood info
- Reviews of the closest restaurants, and shopping from Yelp!
- School reviews from Education.com
- Neighborhood news from OutsideIn and other sources
- Google map with the location of the property and boundaries of the neighborhood
- Summary market statistics for that specific neighborhood (with the full neighborhood report one click away)
- Average Sale Price + Trend
- Average Days on Market + Trend
We know the critical importance to affluent buyers of good market information...
There is a nice, simple layout and great functionality on the Neighborhood Search pages too:
- Big photos for the property listings (good, well-presented photos really help sell homes)
- Easy to switch between views (Gallery, Map, List)
- Clean map view that shows property locations and neighborhood boundaries, with the option to also view locations of local businesses (restaurants, schools, banks...).
- Ability to easily modify the search without have to go back
- Links to save the search or quickly set up an email alert based on the search.
As I understand it, the site also offers some nice functionality for agents. Among other things agents can:
- Register existing clients on the site
- Generate property fliers
- Set up custom searches and reports for clients which update automatically and can be delivered online or via email
- Custom property searches (multiple areas and property types)
- Custom neighborhood updates (including new listings, solds, price changes, pendings, etc.)
- Market reports
- Seller reports-custom comps and market conditions, hits, searches, views, syndication reach, etc.
All-in-all it is a really nice site that features good presentation, functionality, and usability. If you are looking for examples of good broker sites, I recommend you check it out.
In developing the site, @properties worked with Terabitz and the brainiacs at 1000 Watt Consulting.
In the interest of full disclosure, we have no relationship with Terabitz or 1000 Watt. @properties has hosted our CLHMS training courses, and we have trained a number of their agents.
