Coldwell Banker Debuts Real Estate Search For iPhone

Sarah Perez — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 11:01:00 -0800

Coldwell Banker isn't letting the nation's financial crisis get them down. Instead, they're debuting some innovative technology in the form of a customized online platform optimized for iPhone users. With their new iPhone-ready site available from iphone.coldwellbanker.com, you can perform real-time searches for homes or home values right from the palm of your hand. This launch makes Coldwell Banker the first full-service national real estate brand to launch a customized online platform just for the iPhone.

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]]> Although this iPhone "app" isn't a true app in the sense that you download it from the iTunes app store, it may as well be. This fully-functional home search tool is available to anyone who visits coldwellbanker.com from their iPhone. The web site will recognize that the visitor is using an iPhone and will redirect them to the new iPhone version of the site.

How It Works

From here, there are two tabs available: "Find Homes" and "Home Values." To look for a home, you can search by entering in criteria such as city, state, zip, minimum and maximum price, and number of beds and baths. You can also specify via checkboxes whether you want to see new listings only (new in the last 7 days) or open houses listed first.

The search results appear in an easy-to-read scrollable format that surprisingly manages to fit 8 per page. The listings show price, number of beds/baths, location, realtor, and even a photo. To see more information, you only need click the "View" button.

For anyone who has ever been house-hunting, you know that sometimes what you need isn't a set of listings, but a general idea as to whether the neighborhood you're touring is even in your price range. For that, there's the "Home Values" tab, which will display the prices of the homes in a certain address.

See it in action:

This iPhone platform represents a further embrace of modern technology by Coldwell Banker. Earlier this year, they became the first national real estate company to deliver listings to in-car GPS devices through Dash Navigation. That device integration let drivers pull up Coldwell Banker listings, map them, and get directions. Now with the iPhone app, they've made another step towards engaging the gadget-loving consumer...a wise move perhaps since those with the shiniest of toys may be the only ones who can afford to move right now.

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MoveSmart: Mashups for Housing Integration

Marshall Kirkpatrick — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 11:25:56 -0800

Chicago based MoveSmart.org is a project aiming to make housing integration a reality, years after legal changes have left de facto segregation intact, by using mashups. The project will combine collections of data concerning public amenities and services, demographic data and economic numbers together with housing search.

Think of it as Trulia plus, with a social justice angle, or Zillow for people interested in more than just the price of a house.

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]]> The idea is that people without a whole lot of money have less access today to in-depth research about the areas in a city they might want to move to. By giving anyone the ability to research the public services, cultural opportunities and racial diversity of a neighborhood, traditionally less empowered people can make more informed decisions about moving.

I think this is a great idea and hope the project will succeed. Launching first in Chicago in Q3 of this year, it would be great to see MoveSmart go nation wide. MoveSmart is one of the first entrants in the NetSquared Mashup Challenge, an event that will bring nonprofit mashups together with developers, feedback and funding. $100,000 will be distributed by NetSquared to selected finalists at the event in May. Check out the work over there and consider lending a hand.

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housing - ReadWriteWeb

Coldwell Banker Debuts Real Estate Search For iPhone

How It Works

MoveSmart: Mashups for Housing Integration