Technology has become a part of our daily lives, whether it simplifies our lives, increases our productivity, or creates new opportunities for communication. This is also significant in the real estate sector.
The internet was used by 97% of prospective homebuyers in 2020. Due to social distance and new health regulations brought on by the COVID-19 epidemic, technology has become even more important in the purchasing and selling of property.
In their hunt for a property, 76% of homebuyers used a mobile or tablet search device, millennials used mobile devices almost two times as frequently as the silent generation.
Almost all industries are shifting online and building their digital presence. So how to develop a real estate website? What kind of features need to exist on the real estate website? When you need to develop your real estate website, let’s take a look at the guide below.
Things to consider when building a real estate website
If you already have a real estate website, you can take a look at the real estate website features section below. However, if you are just starting out, here is a list of Real Estate Website Design Companies that might inspire you to choose the most suited company to build a website that enhances your business.
1. Domain name
It's essential to choose a catchy domain name for your website. These are the things to think about because this decision is typically only made once, so you should be careful and effective in connecting your business to the market right away:
- To stay consistent with your personal brand identity, keep it concise, precise, and short.
- Use real estate-related keywords, if possible.
- If your reputation isn't already set, stay away from using your own name.
- Don't shorten words or phrases using acronyms.
- Make sure the spelling is accurate.
To prevent users from being forwarded to other websites when attempting to reach you, purchase misspelt versions of your domain name.
2. SEO
Real estate agents who want to promote their expertise should develop a blog on their website. The advantages of blogging, though, might go even further. It may eventually assist in generating more leads.
When the content of your website or blog is updated to make it more relevant and useful to search engines, search engine optimization is considered as well. It's also a good idea to work with any SEO experts who can develop specific recommendations on how to increase your site's visibility in search engines through organic or algorithmic search results.
3. Responsive theme
It might be challenging to explore a real estate website because it typically provides a lot of information. But, a strong user experience suggests that users won't have to waste their time figuring out how to navigate your website.
Further, the theme of your website should reflect your brand and make it as simple as possible for visitors to navigate it. The information, listings, and property photos on your website should be displayed visually attractive, and easy to navigate on your website theme. Make sure the important features are in the right spot.
Real estate website features
Photo by Igor Miske on Unsplash
1. Mobile-friendly
A mobile-friendly website is important for your real estate company. Use with any kind of device is recommended. It responds to the mobile device's screen size, changing how the layout is displayed and how it is adjusted. Google gives mobile-friendly websites a higher ranking, and this result boosts SEO.
The information on your website, including images, texts, videos, and links, is easily available across all platforms when it has a mobile-friendly design, although not all devices will operate effectively with it and static content won't change. As a result, your website must be responsive if you want to ensure that users can access it on any device and enjoy a good UX.
2. Listing and Mapping
Listing and mapping include property description, property image, pricing, and location. Although there are other services on real estate websites besides listing, you may simply think of upgrades for it.
For example, you can provide some consumers with the ability to set up Listing Alerts so they can immediately see all available options. By requesting their emails for notifications, you can also get users' data who might be interested.
3. Search filter
Searches for real estate properties and rentals must give relevant results. Users need a complete set of search parameters.
The search includes the listing type (buying, renting, or selling), price, property type, number of bedrooms, amenities, and more, in order for that to occur. The user will be able to map out accurate search parameters to identify the neighbourhood of a house using a specific tool.
4. Virtual tour
Even more information about a real estate asset can be gained through a tour of a particular house than from the most in-depth and impressive collection of pictures.
A video tour is a great option, but virtual and augmented reality technologies, on the other hand, may give users broad yet thorough knowledge about exterior and interior design.
5. Mortgage calculator
The price is one of the most crucial aspects to consider when listing your property. If you ask too much for your house, you could not find any potential buyers who are prepared to make the offer.
If you list your house for too low a price, you run the risk of losing money while attracting buyers who can't afford the property taxes and insurance. Hence mortgage calculators enable customers in planning their budget by providing them with an idea of the mortgage estimate and final cost of the chosen property.
6. CRM system
A real estate CRM system helps in managing all conversations with leads and clients. Every year, CRM systems increasingly affect the effectiveness of real estate agents' brokerages as well as their day-to-day work.
The ideal real estate CRM will be customised to the sector and include tools for email and text message communication, lead follow-up, and click-to-call functionality.
7. Live Chat support
The fastest and most efficient option for users and agents to contact the homeowner and discuss all inquiries regarding the property is through chat.
You can use live chat on your real estate website to quickly address visitors' questions. The majority of the time, a customer who hasn't discovered what they're looking for on your website will move on to one of your competitors.
8. Social media integration
Additionally, you need to integrate your website with popular social media networks. You can provide consumers with the ability to check in using their social network accounts and share a house page on social media with only a few clicks. Overall, it strengthens the marketing efforts of your business and helps in promoting each real estate listing.
Tech stack for real estate website
Photo by Luca Bravo on Unsplash
Real estate website development requires a number of your tech stack because it can significantly affect your budget, product scalability, and time. For example, Ruby on Rails for app framework, React.js for JavaScript framework, etc.
Wrapping up
You must be updated on the trends and latest developments in this industry in order to build a successful real estate website. Try to include all additional services on your site to ensure users won't have to go to your competitor's websites to find them.
Choose a trustworthy real estate website development company, and keep in mind the list of items to which you should pay special attention during the development stage. Please contact us right away, if you have any additional questions about the development of real estate websites. See you, folks!
