Realtor.com today announced a new feature to address the increasing number of homeowners who are staying put longer than they used to.
‘My Home’ homepage
The new “My Home” feature coming to realtor.com’s desktop and mobile sites is designed to give homeowners the tools and information they need to assemble an overall view of their home’s value.
In competition with rival Zillow and its Zestimate offering, My Home offers up an estimated home value via an automated valuation model generated by CoreLogic, an AVM typically used by financial institutions.
‘My Home’ equity insights
Insights delivered via My Home include equity; financing options; a home value estimate; neighborhood activity; and trends such as average market rental prices in the area and ideas for potential home improvement projects.
‘My Home’ home value dashboard
In 1985, 10 percent of all homeowners were recent movers; that had dropped to 5 percent in 2015. With more equity in their property, it’s important that homeowners are able to manage their home as an investment, realtor.com said.
Homeowners can update their current mortgage information using My Home and track payments as well as the outstanding principal. They can also view financial savings options on current mortgage rates and equity options.
‘My home’ market trends
The time people spend managing their home as an asset is really limited, said Ryan O’Hara, CEO of Move, realtor.com’s parent company.
Ryan O’Hara
“We’re changing that with My Home,” he said. “Now with personalized data at their fingertips, homeowners have more insight into their investment and are better equipped to make decisions such as when to sell or when to invest in upgrading their home to their dream home.”
‘My Home’ remodeling 101
“My Home is a great resource for real estate professionals to utilize with their existing client base,” said Todd Callow, realtor.com’s senior director of product. “By providing details on home value, equity and recent comps, the agent can begin discussions on the benefits of selling in today’s tight market.”
‘My Home’ design inspiration
For those looking to make improvements to their property, My Home draws from Remodelista, Move’s design-inspiration website, which gives homeowners what it calls a “one-stop sourcebook for curated remodeling guides, daily design inspiration and ideas for every room in the home.”
Realtor.com said it plans to introduce additional home management tools to My Home over time to provide further insights into a home’s value and equity and explore more dimensions of homeownership.
