[alistairSH]

Agreed. While Redfin, Realtor.com, etc didn't cut a realtor out of my RE transactions (1 purchase a decade ago, then 1 sale + 1 purchase last year), they did do a good job showing me what was on the market. And not just at a single point in time (when I was actively shopping), but over years, so I could see neighborhoods that were smaller or had less turnover. While actively searching, the often gave me a heads up as to what was coming on the market in the upcoming week - I wasn't at the mercy of the RE agent calling me with new listings.

Unfortunately, agents in my area still take a pretty standard % of any transaction, so those tech sites haven't made a dent in the cost of the transaction.

[ghaff]

Everything from Zillow to online property listings to Google StreetView to just the Web generally probably makes it hugely easier to get a feel for the market, find properties, and scout locations than when I bought my house. But, based on friends who have bought and sold relatively recently, I'm not sure the process of actually making a purchase is much easier or cheaper and that's where the stress really lies. (Well, that and just inflated property values in locations many consider prime.)

[shostack]

How did you go about assessing the evolution of a neighborhood over time? Do any of them have visualization tools specifically for that?

[alistairSH]

No specific tools, but many home listings stay online for years. And any single home’s sale history is online too. Between the two, you can see how much a lake view is worth relative to the house one row away, or how quickly a neighborhood recovered from 2008, or the high and low sales over the last few years, etc.