- HomeBuzz will do for real estate what Untapped has done for craft beer.
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HomeBuzz is an app that provides agents a platform to review local listings and interact with consumers
Platform(s): iOS and Android
Ideal for: Progressive, social-savvy agents interested in reaching mobile-first buyers
Top selling points
- Clean, engaging interface
- Agent ranking system based on level of local market engagement
- Agent reviews of listing price and quality
Things to consider
The app is in its early roll-out stages but its very fine tuned and engaging. Its value will increase as adoption grows.
Full review
I’m not going to go so far as to call HomeBuzz a game, but I envision it can do for real estate what Untappd did for craft beer.
Instead of letting your friends know what chocolate stout you just ordered, agents let other agent users know what house they just toured.
Then, like the mega-popular beer app, users can rate its quality via a five-star system and input a short text review.
Perhaps the most engaging component is the value estimate visiting agents can offer. Provided they have seen the listing or are within a quarter mile of it, any HomeBuzz agent can offer an opinion of a home’s value.
When a home sells, everyone who has checked in on that listing will be notified of its final price. Those who compile the best track record of accuracy get ranked higher within their market.
Other factors are considered in the ranking as well, such as number of check-ins and general interaction on the app within their market.
Those who compile the best track record of accuracy get ranked higher within their market.
Agent rank can be viewed via the Leaderboard, which can be filtered by number of reviews and value estimate accuracy.
But HomeBuzz is also consumer facing, which means buyers and sellers can see how agents are ranking within their area.
HomeBuzz is nicely designed, with appealing layouts and an obvious visual bias toward real estate.
Listing pages are populated via the market’s MLS link, although developers are considering alternative sources for the data.
The listing price is presented along with an average of other agents’ estimates and the average star rating.
Properties can also be searched with a map view.
Agents can communicate with each other as well as with interested buyers using the app. The value here is that registered users offer agents an actual engaged prospect to interact with, not just an anonymous email form or texted request.
And because agents’ estimate accuracy and level of engagement are made public, consumers have more information with which to make their relationship decisions.
Each user can build a basic profile that displays check-ins, reviews, their accuracy rating and, of course, contact information and company affiliation.
An interesting discussion ensued with HomeBuzz’s developer, Kristian Peter.
In discussing the merits of social-driven listing promotion, we pondered: How long before consumers sniff out the pay-per-view concept that drives the presentation of real estate content on Zillow and realtor.com?
Today’s consumer is all about authenticity, especially when it comes to what they respond to online. If agents who simply spend more are presented as the experts, doubt can be immediately cast upon their actual expertise.
What if the readership of Reddit or 4Chan turns its collective focus on the world of online listing promotion?
Maybe I’m thinking too much about it.
What I do know is that the agent who isn’t afraid to engage the Internet with public discussion about their craft will resonate much clearer with today’s online home shopper.
What if the readership of Reddit or 4Chan turns its collective focus on the world of online listing promotion?
Apps like HomeBuzz are helping more agents do exactly that.
Right now, HomeBuzz is active in San Diego and Las Vegas. More markets are in the works.
Have a technology product you would like to discuss? Email Craig Rowe.
