Thanks to the advent of powerful new platforms like Zillow and Trulia, today’s house hunters are hyper-informed about a variety of arcane data points that could previously only be found buried in proprietary databases or municipal archives.
Potential new clients walk into realtor offices armed with a dizzying array of statistics: neighborhood property values, school ratings, crime rates, sale prices, foreclosure alerts.
But transparency and big data works for realtors as well. In addition to serving as vital advertising platforms, Trulia and Zillow feature a number of dedicated tools for sellers as well as buyers. New lead generation platforms like BoomTown and Zurple as well as intuitive file solutions like Box and DocuSign are helping agents find clients, place properties and close deals at a record clip.
