Friday, November 2, 2007

The real estate market's beacon of hope

Like the newspaper industry, the residential real estate market is increasingly turning to the Web for comfort. And it seems to be working.

The NYT reports that Curbed.com, a real estate blog network that operates sites in New York, San Francisco and L.A., has been given $1.5M to expand to more cities and add staff. Might we see a Washington-or-Baltimore Curbed in our future?

The sites don't just advertise property listings; they provide a portal for visitors to talk about their 'hoods. And national advertisers like American Express like that.

Would you turn to blogs if you were buying or selling a home? Is the Web the answer for the fledgling industry?

Check out Zillow.com and Realtor.com while you're at it.

-JACKIE SAUTER, Multimedia Editor

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