Real estate web sites are becoming increasingly popular in today’s online culture, which is leading many real estate companies to devote extra time and resources to the creation and management of their sites. The results have been favorable. In fact, Time magazine recently issued their list of the 50 Best Web Sites of 2009 which includes multiple real estate-related sites.

In addition to these rankings, The Nielsen Company, which provides marketing and media information, notes that real estate web traffic increased by 11 percent from June to July. The same time period in 2008 saw an 18 percent growth.

The Nielsen Company reports that a large demographic of buyers are between the ages of 25 and 34. Those buyers are 29 percent more likely to browse real estate web sites. Buyers without children are 32 percent more likely to visit those sites.

PropertyShark.com and Redfin.com, both of which made Time’s best-of list, supply invaluable information to would-be buyers. Site surfers can find local demographic information, photos, property taxes, price history, comparables and even owner names.

As the internet becomes more integral to the real estate industry, an increasing number of sites will be popping up to help drive awareness and consumer information. Sites like CaliforniaCoastLine.org, another of Time’s Best 50, provides thousands of aerial shots of California’s coast. CustomerSearch.com provides home and garden product reviews on a wide variety of items.

Even The Webby Awards, which are sponsored by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, honors the innovators real estate on the Internet. Real estate industry sites can also enter in interactive advertising, video and mobile categories.

The early deadline to enter is Oct. 30, 2009 and the nominees will be announced in April. Winners are honored at a gala ceremony on June 14, 2010 and are invited to give one of the Webby’s famous five-word speeches.

What kind of information are your clients searching for on the web? We want to hear about how you’ve used the Internet to improve business.

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