Yahoo Real Estate retained its top spot as the most-visited real estate website in September, according to a report released today by Web metrics firm Experian Hitwise.
Yahoo Real Estate previously displaced Realtor.com from the No. 1 position for the first time in the report’s three-year history in August.
Market share between the two sites remained virtually unchanged. Yahoo Real Estate captured 5.87 percent of traffic to real estate category websites in September while Realtor.com’s market share was 5.76 percent.
The top nine most popular real estate websites were unchanged from August. Zillow took the third spot with 4.4 percent market share, followed by Trulia (3.17 percent), Rent.com (2.53 percent), MSN Real Estate (2.38 percent), ZipRealty (2.37 percent), Homes.com (1.88 percent), and Apartment Guide (1.47 percent).
HGTV-affiliated FrontDoor Real Estate, with 1.37 percent market share, skyrocketed from the No. 58 spot in August to claim the No. 10 spot last month. The site was also the only one among the top 20 that wasn’t on that list in August.
The top 10 accounted for 31.2 percent of all visits to real estate websites in September, down from 31.8 percent in August. The top 20 websites made up 42.3 percent of visits, up slightly from 42 percent in August. The top 100 sites saw 71.5 percent of visits in September, up from 70.9 percent the month before.
The second half of the top 20 saw a lot of movement in September — not a single site retained its exact spot from August. ConnectWithLife jumped up to No. 11 from the No. 18 spot, bumping down MyNewPlace to No.12, which in turn pushed Apartments.com down to No. 14.
RE/MAX Real Estate dropped from the No. 10 spot to No.13, bumping ForRent.com down to No. 16. AOL Real Estate climbed up to No. 15 from the No. 20 spot, displacing Redfin to No. 17.
Rentals.com was No. 18, falling four places from August. LoopNet and Century 21 Real Estate rounded out the top 20, claiming the No. 19 and 20 spots, respectively.
Five sites joined the top 100 in September: HomePath.com, 9news.coloradonewHomes.com, RealtyNow.com, My Unclaimed Property, and MLSLI.com. These displaced Sublet.com, LakeHouse.com, Edina Realty, Bluegreen, and Utah Real Estate.
The average site visit last month lasted 9 minutes, 30 seconds; down from 9 minutes, 42 seconds in August.
The top 10 most popular real estate-related search terms in September were, in order, "Realtor.com," "zillow," "apartments for rent," "Realtor," "remax," "Zillow.com," "century 21," "real estate," "houses for rent," and "homes for sale."
Fast-moving real estate-related websites include AuctionBrokers.net (up 1,376 places to No. 753), AtlantaMLS.com (up 717 places to No. 761), LinnieBorntoShop.com (up 670 places to No. 1,046), Realestatereserves.com (up 637 places to No. 1,200), Santa Cruz Real Estate (up 507 places to No. 1,156), Bob Hogue School of Real Estate (up 495 places to No. 1,138), Bayshore Home Sales (up 140 places to No. 373), and riliving.com (up 95 places to No. 271).
