realtor.com® international faq

Published for the National Association of REALTORS®

November 3, 2011

REALTOR.com® International

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What is REALTOR.com® International?

REALTOR.com®, the #1 homes-for-sale website in the United States, has launched a new global site to

extend its lead as the world’s largest on-line destination for real estate listings. REALTOR.com®

International will strengthen the site’s presence in international markets, attract more international visitors, and increase the exposure of U.S. real estate listings currently on REALTOR.com

® to global markets.

The site will include listings from international content providers, as well as language translation services, currency and unit conversion features to support the needs of international buyers.

Q. How will consumers find out about the REALTOR.com

® International website?

1. There is a prominent link to REALTOR.com® International on the REALTOR.com

® home page.

2. The site can also be accessed directly at the following URL: www.REALTOR.com/International.

3. We will also use traditional means of consumer outreach (press releases and social media) to market the site.

Q. How is REALTOR.com

® International different from the existing REALTOR.com®

website?

REALTOR.com® International offers both U.S. listings and international listings from international content

providers. The site also has language translation, currency and unit conversion features to support the needs of the international buyer. The site has listings from multiple countries and can be viewed in 11 different languages: Chinese, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.

Q. Can agents or brokers enhance their listings on REALTOR.com

® International?

U.S. Showcase listings sourced from REALTOR.com® will automatically display the romance paragraph,

the Agent / Broker business card and up to 25 photos at no additional cost.

U.S. Basic listings sourced from REALTOR.com®

will display four photos coming from the MLS, and the brokerage name and phone number.

International Listings: May include agent and broker name and email address, and all photos in the data feed will be displayed on listings.

Currently there are no additional enhancements available.


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Q. If my listings are on REALTOR.com® International, how will I receive leads and

consumer inquiries?

U.S. Listings: Inquiries will be handled similar to REALTOR.com®. Showcase listings will have both

phone and email contact available, while basic listings will only include the broker name and phone number.

International Listings: Consumers will be able to contact you via phone or email. Sample email inquiries are included later in this document.

Q. Will products that I purchased from REALTOR.com

® be supported by the

REALTOR.com® International site?

Other than some Showcase listings enhancements, no other REALTOR.com® products will appear on the

REALTOR.com® International website. At the present time, there are no member marketing products

offered for the International site.

Q. As a customer of REALTOR.com

®, are my products impacted in any way by the

new site?

REALTOR.com® is not affected in any way by the launch of the International site.

Q. I am a bi-lingual agent and would like to control how my listing is presented.

What options will I have to translate my own listing information?

Main components of the listings are automatically translated for you, although the property description and several other features will remain in the original language it is provided to us, including non-Latin based languages. There is no option to provide personal translations; however, visitors to the International site may individually choose to electronically translate additional portions of the listing display in a variety of languages while viewing the listing.

Q. What languages are supported by the REALTOR.com® International site?

The following 11 languages are being supported at launch: • Chinese (traditional)

• Dutch

• English

• French

• German

• Italian

• Japanese

• Korean

• Portuguese

• Russian

• Spanish

Q. How is the List Price of a listing displayed?

All pricing will be displayed in the native currency of the country that is the source of the listing. For example, in the U.S. the default currency will be U.S. dollars ($). In addition, a currency converter will allow you to see the price in the currency of your choice.

Q. What currency conversions are supported by the new site?

Listing prices may be converted from their native currency to any of the following: • $ US Dollar (USD) • € Euro (EUR)


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• £ British pound (GBP) • $ Australian Dollar (AUD) • ₪ Israeli shekel (IL) • Rs. Indian Rupees (INR) • R South African Rand (ZAR) • $ New Zealand Dollar (NZD) • $ Mexican Peso (MXN) • $ Argentine Peso (ARS) • $ Chilean Peso (CLP) • S/. Peruvian Nuevo’s soles (PEN) • CHF Switzerland Franc (CHF) • $ Canadian Dollar (CAD) • R$ Brazilian Real (BRL) • руб Russian ruble (RUB) • $ Singapore Dollar (SGD) • ¥ Chinese Yuan (CNY) • RM Malaysian Ringgit (MYR) • $ Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) • ¥ Japanese Yen (JPY)

Please note: All currencies fluctuate - Conversion is based on the latest available rate from XE.com. Move, Inc. does not guarantee that the conversion reflects today's conversion rates and is not responsible for any inaccuracies. Move, Inc. recommends that you independently verify any information before relying on it.

Q. Will I be able to make updates to my listings on the REALTOR.com®

International site?

U.S. Listings: The listing display on the International site is pre-formatted. Unfortunately you cannot make any changes only to international listing display. However, listing updates made through the REALTOR.com

® Control Panel and through your MLS data feed will flow through to the international site

for data fields that are displayed on the International site.

International Listings: All updates to international listings will be made through data feeds or bulk upload by the International content provider.

Q. Does REALTOR.com

® International include all the U.S. listings currently

viewable on REALTOR.com®?

The following listing categories from the inventory found on REALTOR.com® are automatically displayed

on the International site: • Homes for Sale (Single Family Home, Condo, Townhome, Multi Family, Mobile Homes, Farms

and Land). • Rentals represented by REALTORS

®.

Q. Can I suppress my U.S. listings from displaying on the REALTOR.com®

International site?

No, suppression is not available.

Q. Does REALTOR.com

® International display “For Sale” listings only, or will there

also be an element of home values/not for sale properties?

The International site contains “For Sale” and “Rental” listings only. The site does not display records for off market or recently sold properties.


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Q. Will the site display “for sale by owner” listings?

No. Similar to REALTOR.com®, no “for sale by owner” (unrepresented seller) listings will be displayed on

the REALTOR.com® International site.

Q. Will the site contain commercial listings?

No. Only single family homes, condos, townhomes, row homes, co-ops, multi-family homes, manufactured and mobile homes, farms and ranches, and land listings will be available at this time.

Q. I am a U.S. real estate agent and have listings located in other countries in our local MLS, will they be viewable on the REALTOR.com

® International site?

Some MLSs accept listings located outside of the U.S., and currently distribute these listings to REALTOR.com

® where they are displayed as out of the area listings for a particular state. These listings

will also be displayed on REALTOR.com® International in the same fashion, but they will not be displayed

under the appropriate country because additional geographic data is required. The MLS may be able to provide a bulk upload of their international listings directly to REALTOR.com

® International and have them

appear in the appropriate areas. For additional information, please call Customer Care at 800.878.4166.

Q. What countries are represented with listings on REALTOR.com

® International?

Currently there are international listings from: Brazil, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Spain. The United States “For Sale” listings, “Rentals” represented by REALTORS

®, and Land listings inventory found on REALTOR.com

®, are also automatically displayed on

the International site. There is a queue of additional countries waiting to be added.

Q. Where does the international data come from?

We are working with NAR’s international partners, franchises and other data content providers (DCPs) in multiple countries to establish agreements to receive their listings.

Q. What if I am an international Data Content Provider who wants to provide listings for REALTOR.com

® International?

Please contact us at [email protected].

Q. What features are available on the Landing Page?

The landing page has the following widgets:

• “My Settings” widget enables the user to set the preferences for language, currency and unit of measurement.

• “Country selection” widget enables the user to select the country in which he wishes to conduct a property search.

• International Partner links, which navigate the user to the International partners’ marketing page and Bulk Upload/Control Panel section of the website.

Figure 1 shows the Landing Page. When a user visits for the first time, a “Welcome” balloon and Country selection widget will be displayed. This balloon will be displayed only for first time visitors. Once the user has selected their preference from the “My Settings” widget, the preference will be stored in the browser cookie and the “Welcome” balloon will be suppressed. Note: Both user preference and country selection will be stored in the browser cookie.


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Figure 1 (Landing Page: Europe selected)

Q. How do I select countries using the Country Selection widget?

The Country Selection widget allows the user to select the desired country for their search. This widget will have buttons for each continent. When the user clicks on a continent name, a list of countries along with the corresponding national flag will be shown (shown in Fig 1). Only the continents and countries with listings in the REALTOR.com

® International inventory will be displayed. Other continents and

countries will be suppressed in this view. Once the country is selected (by clicking either the name of the country or the flag image), the user goes to the search view of the home page.

My settings widget

Partner links

Country selection


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Q. What search features are available on a country home page?

The search view will be displayed on the country home page once the desired country has been selected from the Country Selection widget. The country home page will enable the user to select their search criteria and perform a search. “Search widget” provides the user with multiple search criteria in order to search for the desired listing. The default search view (less-options mode), as shown in Figure 2, will have the following search criteria:

• Location Textbox (with predictive text support)

• State/Region dropdown (this will be displayed in case of countries other than U.S.) Figure 3

below

• Homes for Sale, Rentals and Land tabs

• Bedrooms dropdown

• Bathrooms dropdown

• Minimum Price and Maximum Price textboxes The More-options search view, as shown in Figure 3 will have the following search criteria:

• Property type checkbox list

• Property features checkbox list

• Home size dropdown

• Lot size dropdown

• Age of Home The Map Search

• The map search, as shown in figure 4 below allows the user to zoom in on a particular location and view search results for the geographical location displayed within the map.

Property types and features may vary from country to country depending on data provided by the content provider. When the user returns to the site at a later point in time, the search view will automatically be displayed instead of initial view. User selected preference and country selection will be automatically recalled from the initial session.

Q. What does the messaging “See more details…” appearing on the search page

mean?

If English is selected as the language and the U.S. is selected as the country, the system will display a message (see figure 2) inviting the consumer to visit REALTOR.com

®. Additional features on

REALTOR.com® such as: Virtual Tours, videos, off market properties, recently sold properties, home

values and some other data are not displayed on REALTOR.com® International at this time.


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Figure 2 (U.S. Country page / Language: English)

Figure 3 (French Country page / Language: English / Additional search options expanded)

Call to action for REALTOR.com U.S.

U.S. predictive search

International State selection drop down and city predictive text field

Search Option box expanded


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Figure 4 (Map search view Country: Spain / Language: German)

Q. What criteria are required in order to search for property listings?

For a U.S.-based search, the City/State and/or Zip code are required for searching property listings. For international searches, State/Region/Province or city is required.

Q. Can I perform Zip code/Postal code based property searches for countries

outside the United States?

Zip code based property searches are only applicable for U.S. listings. For all other countries, Postal Code/ Zip code based searches are not supported.

Q. Why will some cities not show up when I type them in the free-form text box?

Only the cities and states that have listings in the REALTOR.com® International website’s inventory will

appear in the free-form text box. Alternate cities will be suggested. The free-form location textbox will support the predictive text feature familiar to users of REALTOR.com

® for U.S. searches (see Figure 5

below). Predictive text will predict the City and State names as soon as the consumer begins typing the characters in the free-form textbox. For international searches the predictive text will also list the county and state in addition to the city. The reason is that in some international states and counties there might be more than one city with the same name. See figure 6 below.


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Figure 5 (Predictive Text feature for the U.S.)

Figure 6 (Predictive Text feature for International countries: France)


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Q. Why are some international listings not properly displayed on the map?

For some international listings the minimum required information to display the listing on a map might not be available, complete or correct coming from the data content provider. In these cases, the listing cannot be properly displayed on the map.

Q. How do I use the Search by Map feature to perform a search?

The map view may be selected at any point during a search. When the “Search by Map” link is selected at the beginning of a search, the map of the selected country will be shown. In this mode, the user can now pan around the map and can click on the “Search” button available under the map. The user then will be redirected to the Search Results Page with listings from the selected region of the map. Note: The “Map Search” feature will be automatically enabled if the user’s search fails. The search could fail for two reasons:

1. The user enters an invalid value in the location textbox

2. The website doesn’t find any listings belonging to the search criteria selected

In either of these cases, a map of the user-selected country will be displayed where any region/location can be selected from the map and the “Search” button will be available. If the user clicks the Search button, they will be redirected to the Search Results Page map view.

Figure 4 shows the “View Map” feature of the home page.

Q. What are the options available in the “My Settings” widget?

The “My Settings” widget will allow visitors to set or change the language, currency and dimension unit preferences of their search experience as shown in Figure 7. The “My Settings” widget has the following controls:”

• Language dropdown – This will enable the user to select/change the language of the website.

• Currency dropdown – This will enable the user to select/change the currency unit of the website.

• Dimension unit – This will enable the user to select either Metric or Imperial (U.S.) units.

Figure 7 (Preference Setting widget)


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Q. What are the features of the Search Results Pages?

Search Results Pages will show the property listings based on the search criteria selected.

The following are features of the Search Results Pages: • “My Settings” widget will be part of the page header

• “Bread Crumbs” will be displayed below the page header

• Search Facets

o Location refinement

o Price refinement

o Bedrooms refinement

o Bathrooms refinement

o Home Size/ Lot size refinement

o Property type

• Result count message (Example: 347 properties found)

• Pagination

• SRP result view tabs (List, Grid, or Map view)

• Sort By – Price, Photo count, Bedroom count

• Bing map in List view – Map view of search results

Search facets also allow the following actions:

Change Country – This will take the user back to the initial view of the home page, where a different country can be selected.

Change Currency – This will open the “My Settings” pop up, so that the currency of the search results being shown on the Search Results Pages can be changed.

Start a new Search – This will take the user to the “search view” of the home page and also clears the previously selected search criteria from the browser cookie. With this, a new search can be conducted.

Update Search – This will allow the user to refresh the search results based on modifications to the previous search criteria.

Figure 8 shows the default “List View” of the Search Results Pages. Figure 9 shows the “Grid View” where the Search Results Page will display 2 listing per row. “Map View” is shown in Figure 10, where a map with property push pins will be displayed. If a property push pin is clicked, the listing details will be shown to the user.


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Figure 8 (Search Results list view)

Figure 9 (Search Results grid view)

My settings widget

Static map with map link to map tab

Sort drop down

View tabs

Refinement features


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Figure 10 (Search Results map view)

Q. What property details will be shown on the Search Results Pages?

Each property listing (in both List and Grid view) will have the following features (shown in Figure 8):

• Property Address Header with hyperlink. The hyperlink will redirect the user to the Listing Detail Page and show additional details of the selected property.

• Property Image (thumbnail image). This will also navigate the user to the Listing Detail Page. • Property Price (Price in bold is the price received through data feed, and grey price is the converted

price based on user’s currency preference). • Property price on “For Sale” listings will be labeled ‘list price’. • Property price on rental listings will be labeled ‘per month’. • Converted price in grey color will be labeled ‘converted*’. • Bedroom count, Bathroom count (Based on configuration settings of country).

OR

• Room count (Based on configuration settings of country). • Plot Size with unit of measurement (in case of Land).

OR

• Home Size with unit of measurement (in case of Homes for Sale and Rentals) Unit of measurement shown is based on user-selected preference.


November 3, 2011

Q. Will all listings be displayed on the map?

For some international properties we may not have sufficient information about the location of the property in order to enable a map view. These properties will not be displayed on the map. A disclaimer has been added on the Search Results page map view and the map tab to explain this (see Figure 10).

Q. How many listings are displayed on a Search Results Page?

The Search Results Pages will display 10 listings at a time, with corresponding push pins on the static map on the right hand rail.

Q. Is the small map on the right side of the Search Results Page zoomable?

No, this map is a static map, clicking on this map or the link above will take the consumer to the searchable map.

Q. Why do I get a message “Over 300 homes…” on the map view?

If the geographical area which is being shown on the map is quite large and has more than 300 properties, the ”Over 300 homesX” message will appear. It is not possible to display property push pins when the property count is more than 300. To eliminate this message, zoom in further using the tools of the map, so that the selected geographical area gets reduced and the property count goes below 300.

Figure 11

Q. What are the features of the Listing Details Pages?

The following are the features of the Listing Detail Pages, as shown in Figure 12 below: • “My Settings” widget will be part of the page header

• Previous and Next Result buttons (does not display for map searches)

• Print, Email and Share links

• Property details (similar to property details as shown for Search Results Pages)

• Overview, Map and Photos tab

• Translate link in overview tab

• U.S. Showcase and International listings

o Agent/Office photo and contact details

o Send Message widget

o Up to 25 photos

• U.S. Basic listings

o Broker name and phone number

o Up to four photos

• Moving Cost calculator widget


November 3, 2011

Figure 12 (Listing Detail Page)

My settings widget

Navigation: back to SRP, previous and next listings

Agent business card

Lead form for Showcase Listings

Print, email, share

Overview, Map & Photo tabs

Translation tools

Translation tools

Broker Name and phone

Moving Calculator


November 3, 2011

Q. What is the functionality of the “Translate” link in the Overview tab?

The translate link is for a visitor who would like to see the property description in their native language. When the translate link is clicked, a drop down will be displayed with the available languages. Different languages can be selected from the dropdown. The property description will then be translated to the selected language. If the “Show Original” link is selected, the translated language will be translated back to the original language as provided in the data feed.

Please note: Translations are provided by a third party translation service. Translations are not verified or guaranteed by Move, Inc. It is recommended that you independently verify any information before relying on it.

Figure 13 (Property Overview and translate widget)

Q. What is the functionality of the “Photos” tab?

When selected, the Photos tab will display all the images available for the property (as shown in Figure 14). The “Photo gallery” view (as shown in Figure 15) will be displayed only when the user clicks on an individual image from within the photos tab.


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Figure 14 (Photos Tab)


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Figure 15 (Photo Gallery)

Q. Explain the Email functionality of a Listing Detail Page?

The Email link at the top of the Listing Detail Page will enable the user to share property details with family and friends via email. When the email link is clicked, the Email popup will open as shown in Figure 16. An optional message can be added before sending the email.

Figure 16 (Email Listing)


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Q. Explain the Print functionality?

The Print link at the top of the Listing Detail Page will open a printer friendly popup window. The print popup window will have property, agent/office, broker details and images of the property as shown in Figure 17 below.

Figure 17 (Print View of Listing Detail Page)


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Q. For U.S. listings, why can’t I click directly from the listing detail page over to

REALTOR.com® to view the same listing on the traditional site?

This functionality is not currently available because there is no way to cleanly retain the exact listing page. Clicking over to REALTOR.com

® will force the user to re-initiate their search and would not be an ideal

experience coming from the listing detail page.

Q. What notification do real estate professionals receive when a consumer submits

an inquiry on one of their properties?

For U.S. agents with U.S. listings, there is no change to the notification they will receive, regardless of whether it is sent from REALTOR.com

® or the REALTOR.com

® International site. They will receive the

same notification they receive today from REALTOR.com®.

For international agents, a text email in English will be sent to the appropriate real estate agent with the following information:

This is an automated inquiry sent by a consumer from REALTOR.com(R)

International (www.realtor.com/international). Please do not reply to this email. Please contact Jane Kelly directly using the information

below. First Name: Jane

Last Name: Kelly Email Address: [email protected]

Comment:

I would like more information regarding a property at 688 ABC Road in Los Angeles (MLS #323546413165)

This consumer inquired about:

Property Address: 688 ABC Road Los Angeles, CA 90077

MLSID # 323546413165

Basic Property Attributes:

$40,000,000 Bed: 30

Bath: 41 Property Type: Single Family Home

View this listing on REALTOR.com(R): http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/688-ABC-Road_Los-

Angeles_CA_90077_1127354606

Courtesy of: The REALTOR.com(R) International Site


November 3, 2011

Q. What will be received when a consumer sends an email of a particular listing

from the listing detail page on the REALTOR.com® International site?

If a consumer uses the “email” functionality on the Listing Detail Page (figure 19) to send the listing to a friend, spouse or their own personal real estate agent, the functionality operates very similarly to the “send a friend” functionality on REALTOR.com

®.

A text email in English will be sent to the email the consumer entered in the “send a friend” form. There is no HTML version of this email available at this time. The following information will be included in the email the “friend” receives:

This is an automated message sent by a consumer from the REALTOR.com(R)

International Site (www.realtor.com/international). Please do not reply to this email. To reply to this person, please use the following email

address: [email protected]

This email is from:

First Name: Jane

Last Name: Kelly

Email Address: [email protected]

Hello,

I thought you really would like this property….

Best,

Jane Kelly

View this listing on REALTOR.com(R): http://www.realtor.com/international.122344testlisting.com

Property Address:

123 Cherry Lane, Anytown US 12345

MLS # 215558664

Basic Property Attributes:

$500.000

3 Bed, 3 Bath,2600 SqF, 1/2 acre

Sincerely,

Jane Kelly

Courtesy of:

The REALTOR.com(R) International Site (www.realtor.com/international)


November 3, 2011

Q. What features of REALTOR.com® are not currently available on the

REALTOR.com® International site?

The following features are not available on the site at launch:

Site wide: • Registration / Sign up for an account

Homepage: • Advanced Search feature

SRP: • Different treatment for Showcase listings

• Save Listing option

• Price Reduced icon

• Photo Count coin

• Sign Rider

LDP: • Save Listing option

• Price Reduced icon

• Agent’s/Broker’s other listings

• Custom Headlines

• Virtual Tours and Videos

• Open Houses

Q. How many photos are displayed on a U.S. Basic Listing on REALTOR.com

®

International?

We will display four photos coming through the MLS for U.S. Basic Listings.

Q. How are consumer media display ad spots sold?

All inquiries for international brand or agency advertising should go to [email protected] for more information.

Q. If I notice anything wrong with my listings on the REALTOR.com

® International

site, who can I contact?

For U.S listings please call: Customer Care at 800.878.4166 For International listings please email: [email protected]

Q. What if I am an international Data Content Provider who wants to provide

listings for the Global REALTOR.com®?

Please contact us at [email protected]

realtor.com® international faq

Real Estate