Google adds real estate listings to Maps

Google Maps now shows real estate listings.

(Credit: Google)

Zillow, watch out.

Google Maps now can show real estate listings, presenting pushpins that show houses for sale.

To show real estate results, click "Show search options," then select "Real Estate" from the drop-down list. The Web site then shows a list of properties for sale on the left tied to pushpins on the map on the right.

Search results can be refined by specifying price range or number of bedrooms and bathrooms. In addition, there's a text mode that will be more familiar to the classified ad crowd. (Huh? Text mode for a mapping site? There's still a small map visible.)

I can't help but be reminded of one of the first really interesting uses I encountered of Google Maps, a mashup by that showed Craigslist real-estate listings overlaid on Google Maps. At the time, back in 2005, Google hadn't released its maps programming interface, but times have changed. Not only is the API public, but the programmer behind the service, Paul Rademacher left DreamWorks Animation and joined Google.

(Via Google Maps Mania)

[libertyforall1776]

The real estate listings are sub-par, many houses for sale are missing, including one that I noticed missing but on the market for 2 years now...

[mxfive4]

How is this different from what has been available on Google Base for over a year?

[JamesInLV]

As long as Google sticks with FSBOs and listings posted by agents themselves, they will do just fine. As soon as they start turning into a marketplace, they will run afoul of many state laws about real estate sales listings. I think Google has some amazing partnerships with a few real estate companies. 1ParkPlace, Birdview, and a few others that do agent website solutions for whole companies. Eliminate millions of dollars necessary to create a custom solution like John L Scott's website so people can do real estate searching using a map system.