Realtor.com Review

Looking for homes used to be a tedious, time- consuming task, especially if you were looking for a home in another location. But today, the process is much simpler thanks to the internet and one site that makes home searching enjoyable is Realtor.com, a real estate web service that will help you find a home, get a mortgage approved, obtain a moving quote, and much more.

Web Site Commentary:

The main reason that people visit this site is, of course, to search for a home. When you logon to the site, you can quickly go directly to the state that you want to search for property by clicking the state, on the map. You can also search by city/state or by zip code. And you can narrow down your search to include only properties with a specific number of bedrooms and bathrooms; only properties with a two- car garage; only properties with a pool; etc. You can also specify a price range, if you wish.  

Realtor.com allows users to see their results on a map or in a list format. The properties will display in order of price (lowest to highest) with a percent match indicator. This lets you know which houses matched most closely with your specifications.

Most, but not all, of the listings include a picture of the property and many of them have multiple photos of the interior and exterior of the house. All the listings show the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, interior square footage, realtor (including name, address, phone, and e-mail), and a quick summary of what the property has to offer. If you want to see more, then you just click on the option titled "see listing details", and you will get a complete breakdown of the property, including the rooms (most, but not all, show the sizes) and all the amenities. At the bottom of each listing, there's a user- friendly place to send a message to the realtor, and ask questions about the property. You can also setup an account with Realtor.com and save listings for future evaluation.

Besides properties for sale, Realtor.com also offers rental property to search, home financing assistance, moving quotes, and home decorating tips. There are other resources related to property in general, like buyer's and seller's guides, real estate evaluation guides, neighborhood information, and more.

Realtor.com is generally a very good tool for property searches and I used it frequently when I was looking for my most recent property purchase. Realtor.com is one service among many that specialize in property sales, but it's the one I like the best. I have used others, but I always end up coming back to Realtor.com.

I really like the endless amounts of information contained in this site. You can find out so many things, not just about your desired property, but also about the health of the city and the quality of the neighborhood. And contacting the real estate person couldn't be much easier. Realtor.com provides a quick and easy way to contact the realtor, with a place at the bottom of each listing where you can e-mail a message directly to the agent.

If I had to find something wrong with Realtor.com, it would be the fact that the listings don't always include all of the specifics of a property. For example, the house could have a family room, but when you click to view the specifics, it may or may not show you the dimensions of the room. I don't know if Realtor.com just doesn't have all the information for every property, or if they intentionally omit certain things, to encourage potential buyers to contact the real estate agent. Also, there have been a few occasions where the listed property had already been sold, but it was still not removed from the active listings. You should call first or contact the agent through e-mail, before you get your hopes too high. I also don't like the fact that only a few properties include multiple photos. Some only include a picture of the front of the house. Some do not have any pictures at all- a very unwise decision if your goal is to sell your property.

Bottom Line Viewpoint:

Overall, Realtor.com is one of the better property search sites on the internet and it performs its main tasks quite nicely. It has all the information you need to find the property of your dreams, with prices, general information, moving tips, and even an estimate of your monthly payment. It helps take the stress out of moving and, most importantly, helps you find the exact house that meets your minimum expectations. It's a fun on- line web service for homebuyers and curious onlookers who enjoy searching properties and discovering what is for sale in a specific neighborhood.