Data for the months of April and May 2022 show that the real estate market, particularly the housing market is settling down. This comes on the back of record growth in American home prices for the period between March 2021 and March 2022.
For all the hype that accompanied it, this growth has cooled down. It’s either stopped or has paused. These signs point to a slowdown in housing prices.
But what if you want to buy a house? Perhaps this is the right time, when prices are low, and no one wants to predict anything or look too much into the future. You can see that the best part of this phase is the huge inventory that has accumulated. So take advantage of it and quickly.
Let’s say you want to buy a house. To buy it, you need to look at it first. What could be better than getting 360-degree views of potential houses while you’re sitting at your desk? More people are finishing the process of purchasing houses online, than ever before. Statistics show that more than half of homeowners found their future homes online.
Nonetheless, to be successful, the best real estate websites and home listing websites need to be clean, and more importantly, they need a human touch. Home selling sites should focus on buyers as well as sellers. The value should be created for both parties.
To help you, we’ve compiled a list of the best real estate websites. All these home selling sites have been assessed on performance, support, and cost. The intent here is to help you find the best home listing websites and to help you in your search for your dream home.
1. Houzeo – Many studies rank Houzeo at the top of their lists when it comes to for sale by owner websites. It is often the best site on overall characteristics. They call themselves a technology company. But they do offer the best experience for sellers and buyers. Their flat fee MLS listing comes at a price of $349 and promises to save you thousands of dollars in commissions. Their unique selling points are –
- The paperwork is fully online.
- They are syndicated to hundreds of local MLS, and also to all the sites that you see below.
- Sellers across the US have given Houzeo an average rating of 4.9 out of 5.
- They also have a mobile app, where you can view your listings, and compare offers.
You can also check out Houzeo reviews to know more about them.
2. Zillow – Zillow is the go-to site for home listings and data. The app lets you search for homes and apartments, and put up your own home for sale or for rent. You can visit the listed house and make your own videos, and take photographs. It enables you to connect with lenders and agents too. You have a choice to make changes to your search requirements, and the app will send you relevant notifications. Their information is from multiple listing services(MLS) and others which are FSBO(for sale by owner) and from foreclosures outside MLS- approved auctions. What’s important is that there is no cost involved for sellers and buyers. Zillow makes all its money through advertisement. The advertisers may be agents, lenders, or any other service provider.
3. Roofstock – Where Single Family Rentals (SFR) are concerned, Roofstock is considered to be the top platform. This niche market has been captured by Roofstock. The numbers speak for themselves, with billions of dollars in business in a short span of time. They also cater to searches for short-term rental investments, property, and new constructions.
4.Foreclosure.com – They have made the complex tax of purchasing a foreclosure home very simple. They provide documents and links to laws, and they have a learning center with articles on the subject. You can find hundreds of thousands of listings on Foreclosure.com
5.Realtor.com – This might yet be the perfect site for MLS. This site lets you search for houses, has plenty of photographs, and has a detailed set of criteria that lets you compare neighborhoods. You can’t beat Realtor.com when it comes to analysis. What’s more, it has no costs for renters and buyers.
6.Apartments.com – To find a reliable tenant and to find a reliable tenant fast is crucial when you are investing in SFR. As a landlord, you can attract hundreds of thousands of clients looking for rentals, on Apartments.com. They provide services like screening applicants, drawing leases, and also set up rent payments. You should try this site for even multi-units, and condominiums.
7. Redfin – When you are looking for a reliable source for analysis, and you want information on housing sale trends at a local level, you should visit Redfin. All the statistics and ratios, ratings, sales, prices, and year-on-year growth can be found in this website.
8. Trulia – Along with an advanced website, Trulia has understood the power of the mobile phone. They have the best mobile app. You can get a good view of your future neighborhood. You can filter your searches by price, the number of rooms, style of the home and much more. The app provides details about the neighborhood which is quite impressive. It is a subsidiary of Zillow.
FAQ
1. For whom are real estate websites intended? Who is the audience?
These sites are primarily meant for the convenience of sellers and buyers. You get to see dozens of properties, and sellers are as much a part of these websites as our buyers.
These sites are also very useful for sales and marketing teams and lenders, for lead generation.
2. Where do the home listing websites get their data from?
Apart from pulling data directly from MLS, these websites allow sellers and buyers to manually add their own listings.
3. What are the requirements for a good real estate website?
- The best real estate websites are simple and easy enough to navigate.
- The site needs to be enabled to track visitors and generate leads that can be converted.
- It should be responsive and platform-neutral. It should be mobile-friendly, most of all. Most people open such sites only on their mobile phones.
- Needless to say, the content should be useful, informative, and analytical about trends, and it must teach sellers and buyers a few tricks of the trade.