Using Property Data to Enhance the Client's Experience

It's no secret that consumers are facing major struggles in the real estate market today. Housing inventory is low, while home prices and interest rates are high. It's no wonder that so many would-be buyers and sellers are hesitant to enter the market today.

Unfortunately, when consumers struggle with the real estate market, that means that real estate professionals do as well. However, MLSs offer a tool that can empower their members to help consumers feel more comfortable buying or selling a home. Today, we'll explore how property data software can assist real estate professionals in enhancing their clients' experiences.

Telling stories with data

"Providing thoughtful data unique to each client's needs is a surefire way to not only establish trust, but to facilitate and expedite informed decision-making that leads to success for all stakeholders involved in a real estate transaction," said Sara Cooper, Executive Vice President, Real Estate Market at CRS Data.

Thoughtful data is what's key here. A list of property facts and figures is not enough to convince consumers who may still be on the fence. To be effective, data needs to tell consumers a story about a property or neighborhood.

"Real estate professionals can use the data they gather through CRS Data to tell a story, helping them to effectively communicate insights with their clients that are easy to understand," said Cooper. "CRS Data offers users multiple ways to compile reports with multiple data sets that are easy to interpret for both real estate professionals and their clients."

For clients with school-aged children, one crucial data set is school zone information. This data helps buyers understand whether a) a home is in a good school district, a major driver of positive, long-term property values, and b) whether their children will have to transfer schools if the family moves to the property.

For sellers, school zone information can assist in communicating the value of a home, especially when the home is in a well-rated district. CRS Data users can easily include this information with a CMA, or with listing and buyer presentations.

Sometimes the stories that data helps tell need to be in a different language. For those clients whose first language is Spanish, or who are simply more comfortable in the language, CRS Data offers bilingual reporting options.

Zeroing in on the perfect sale

Real estate buyers may have a vision of their ideal home that's more specific than the number of beds and baths. Maybe they want a property with a pool, or on one acre, or within a certain ZIP code. CRS Data offers advanced search capabilities that help agents drill down on these types of property details so they can help their clients be well-informed about the home they want to buy.

"Buyers generally have an idea of where they want to live, but real estate professionals can use our data to help guide that process and even introduce clients to different areas," said Cooper. "CRS Data offers insights into home value trajectories, school zone information and flood zone data, which give home buyers and sellers the context and the peace of mind they need surrounding a given area or particular property, which can speed up the decision-making process."

Sellers, on the other hand, may want to see area sales trends, says Cooper. "With CRS Data, real estate professionals can show their clients recent sales transactions and even compile an area sales trend report that details the number of homes sold in a given area, as well as the percentage of price increase or decrease."

That data may be helpful to buyers, too, according to Cooper. "This type of information may provide more confidence to buyers once they are able to see the full picture of real estate in the area they wish to buy, rather than just data on one particular home."

Whether real estate professionals are serving buyers or sellers, property data can help to ensure that their clients' experience is as smooth as possible.

To learn more about CRS Data, visit CRSData.com.