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We are partnering with MLS organizations to replace Homes.com listings sourced from services less reliable than the MLS. Through this partnership, all listings sourced from a local MLS are displayed on Homes.com with the new MLS Trusted badge.

This is interesting. Dominion Enterprises, the parent company of Homes.com, ForRent Media Solutions and a glut of other online classified sites is launching "MLS Trusted," a broker verification service.

I wonder if this will have the stated effect of actually refining the quality of property data and listings, or create another pay wall restricting consumers from directly accessing data. The goal seems to be transparency, but a pay-to-play, metaMLS, might result in the exact opposite effect, by letting brokers pay for visibility.

Tracking the changing makeup of the city.

By FORD FESSENDEN and SAM ROBERTS

Published: January 21, 2011 -->

A century ago, Israel Zangwill popularized the term in his play, “The Melting Pot.” New York has evolved into a greater crucible of race and ethnicity today than it was back then, but the city also remains very much a mosaic — a variegated montage of neighborhoods in which certain groups predominate.

In a month or so, the 2010 census will most likely confirm a record high in the city’s foreign-born population. American Community Survey data released last month revealed a striking metamorphosis during the last decade. Traditional ethnic enclaves sprawled amoeba-like into adjacent communities. Once monolithic tracts of white and black and native-born residents have become bespeckled with newcomers.

Population Change in New York City Neighborhoods Since 2000

One of the principal demographic trends of recent years, U.S.-born whites moving into cities, is apparent in Manhattan and northern Brooklyn. White populations are declining in northeast Queens, where immigrant populations are increasing, and parts of Staten Island, which are attracting more blacks.

Native Whites

Black populations are declining in some traditionally black areas; in central Brooklyn and Harlem, where whites are moving in, but also in southeast Queens, which black families may be leaving for the suburbs. In Canarsie, the U.S.-born black population has grown 20 percent. In nearby Brownsville, it is down nine percent.

Native Blacks

Chinese immigrants are declining in Lower Manhattan, and yielding to Indian and Bangladeshi growth in Jackson Heights and Woodside. But their numbers are rapidly growing in Flushing, Fresh Meadows, Sunset Park and Bensonhurst.

East Asians

The Real Estate Board of New York is planning to launch a new website this fall, after ramping up its online efforts with a new dedicated social media specialist, Amanda Wood. The revamped site, which will allow users to interact online, aims to enhance members' ability to share input and comments.

"We're creating an infrastructure so they can create blogs and share information that way," Wood said of the site. REBNY has created a 15-person website committee to help determine which web features to include on the site. Among the committee members are: Prudential Douglas Elliman's Corinne Pulitzer, Warburg Realty's Steve Goldschmidt and Studley managing director William Montana. The trade organization will also seek feedback from its membership beyond the committee.

The new website is part of a larger effort REBNY has begun to increase its online presence, according to Wood, whose hiring this past summer was part of that new initiative.

"I was hired to open REBNY up and supply more information. ... We're working to make more information public," said Wood.

While REBNY declined to comment on the website's cost, Wood, who is overseeing the effort, did note that "it's surprisingly affordable, as far as websites go."

 

 

 

Here are the 10 winners of our first Ads Worth Spreading competition. With this competition, we're seeking to reverse the trend of online ads being aggressively forced on users. We want to nurture ads so good you choose to watch. On TED.com, ads run after our talks, not before. This means they can run longer than the TV-standard 30 seconds. And that's the key! In 2-3 minutes, there's enough time to really tell a story, share an idea, make an authentic human connection, become unforgettable. Instead of ambush, they offer pleasurable, intelligent engagement. We invite you to view, comment, rate -- and share!

We are happy to announce that RentJuice has acquired Kahoots!

Since launching Kahoots, we've appreciated all the enthusiasm and positive feedback from our users. We're excited to continue to build our vision for the rental industry as part of the RentJuice team. RentJuice and Kahoots are committed to create new and better ways to make your rental business succeed.

For now, Kahoots will continue to function as it does today. Your Kahoots account and data will not be lost. We'll be providing more details on future plans for Kahoots in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!

Team Kahoots

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We are proud to announce that MapThatPad now interfaces with New York based real estate listing website, UrbanEdge.  In fact, as you see in the image above, UrbanEdge listings have an image right on the website which allows you to save it!  So you have three ways to save an UrbanEdge listing into MapThatPad: click on the icon on the listing as shown above, copy-past the listing URL, or use the MapThatPad bookmarklet.

Just like us, our friends at UrbanEdge are committed to making the apartment hunting process easier. First of all, apartment hunters want real listings of real apartments with real addresses and that is exactly what they provide.  Also, let's face it, broker aren't for everyone - they can be pushy, misleading, and ask for a fee.  UrbanEdge works directly with the owners and property managers of the apartments listed on their site.  This means that their database is real and kept up to date.  You don't have to click through multiple listings for the same apartment posted by different brokers or owners as on other sites.  Simply put: no brokers; no re-posts; no fees; no bs.  They also have a great Renter's Guide section that helps newbies navigate through some treacherous real estate terminology and a Neighborhood Guide that helps New-Yorkers and New-New-Yorkers learn what's what with different neighborhoods.  So, overall they're a great resource for your NYC apartment hunt - make sure you give them a try on your next one!  We sure are fans.