Inman

PropertyShark.com swims in new waters

Real estate data site PropertyShark.com on Thursday announced expanded coverage in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The site, which digs deep to find detailed information about residential and commercial properties in major markets, now offers information for Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Napa, Marin, Solano, Santa Cruz and Sonoma counties in California.

Ryan Slack, PropertyShark.com CEO, said the expansion is part of an effort to cover major metro areas across the nation. The site already includes data for metros in 16 states and in Washington, D.C.

The site has “grown organically,” he said, rather than seeking venture capital money. The site evolved from property research tools built for the New York City market in 2003.

While basic search features are free, advanced search capability at the site requires a paid subscription. Real estate investors are among the core group of paid subscribers, and the site is also popular with home buyers and real estate brokers, Slack said.

“We have noticed a trend where not just real estate professionals, but savvy home buyers as well, demand access to detailed property information and sales comparables before making real estate decisions,” he said.

The site offers property reports, including owners’ names, the last sale price and date, whether a property is listed for sale, neighborhood price history and demographics, title documents, automated valuation, comparables, foreclosure listings and color-coded maps that include property outlines.

Slack said there is a trend in the rush to make more real estate information more accessible and affordable, adding that he expects consolidation within the real estate data space and he believes that PropertyShark.com’s value is in the depth of its data.

“It’s no longer going to be about who has the data … it’s about how you make the most of it,” he said.