Luxury Real Estate

"Our previous website was a consumer favorite when it launched in 2003," said Randall Kostick, Chief Operating Officer, Zephyr Real Estate. "With all the advances since then, we wanted to maintain -- and surpass -- that precedent, to provide our agents and their clients with the best tools available."

Zephyr began the process about 15 months ago with the goal of creating a new website with a simple design, intuitive user interface and meaningful content that would be a useful, relevant real estate and community resource. Months were spent analyzing peer websites as well as those of other industry leaders, attending conferences and assembling a team to build the vision.

"The top three things most visitors seek when they visit a real estate site are a comprehensive property search, neighborhood information and market trends," stated Melody Foster-Brown, Director of Marketing.

"Even more important than having that information is making sure it's accurate and relevant to the marketplace. San Francisco has very nuanced neighborhood and school data, so rather than licensing from a third party with no understanding of the area, we took painstaking care to ensure our content was both well presented and hyper-local."

Most sites offer market trends by zip code (there are 30 in San Francisco), which is less helpful in a city where there are 89 neighborhoods. Zephyr has fine-tuned the data so that the information is pertinent and genuinely valuable.

"We use the MLS neighborhoods designated and used by the San Francisco Association of REALTORS® and by property appraisers to generate our market data, not zip codes," said Matthew Borland, Managing Broker/Partner. "Our neighborhood-level market trends take you inside the real numbers to give our clients the insight needed to make informed decisions."

The new www.zephyrsf.com offers unprecedented and in-depth coverage of the 89 neighborhoods of San Francisco, featuring profiles, videos, maps, market trends, demographics, available properties and open homes. In addition, visitors who register have access to Multiple Listing Service (MLS) information previously unavailable to the general public. Visitors with a MyZephyr account can search sold properties, save favorites, track the value of their own property and receive email alerts on new matches and price changes.

"The site is built to be expanded and enhanced as new technologies and resources become available," stated Hud Bixler, Director of Technology. "We've launched it, but that doesn't mean we're finished. We are able to integrate new applications and content seamlessly into this dynamic site."

For example, public school selection in San Francisco is not determined geographically but by using a complex lottery system, which is organized, explained and made searchable on the Zephyr website. As the school district's system evolves, Zephyr's website will continue to provide the updated information to its visitors in a user-friendly environment.

"Our team set out to create a new site that positions Zephyr well ahead of anything else out there. We contracted with Marker Seven and put together an incredible in-house team to work together to build our vision," said Borland. "It's been a challenging, yet rewarding project."

About Zephyr Real Estate

Founded in 1978, Zephyr Real Estate is San Francisco's largest independent real estate firm with approximately $1 billion in annual gross sales in 2009 and a current roster of more than 200 full-time agents. Zephyr has six offices strategically located in San Francisco and serves a large customer base throughout the City. For information, visit www.zephyrsf.com.

By Meghan Barry

We recently hosted a Webinar for the members of our network; this opportunity was led by our partners Ron & Alexandra Seigel of Napa Consultants, International. Here is a video summarizing what was discussed in the Webinar:

Buzz-Worthy Luxury Real Estate Website Design from The Language of Luxury on Vimeo.

Ron & Alexandra Seigel are the managing partners of Napa Consultants, International and the Community Founders of Language of Luxury, the fastest growing luxury real estate professional networking community on Linkedln. The Seigels help luxury real estate professionals out-think (not out-spend) their competition and become the "breakaway" brand in their marketplace. With a 20 year background as broker/owners of a commercial real estate firm in Beverly Hills, CA, their expertise is providing strategic insight, creative instinct, and artistic flair to those professionals who are interested in gaining or sustaining market leadership. Their services include: Personal & Company Branding, Web Design, & Social Media Marketing.

Tuesday January 12th (Seattle, WA): LuxuryRealEstate.com unveils the new face of its award-winning website - the #1 online portal for global luxury properties and the professionals representing them.

The redesigned home page is the first phase of a complete re-launch of LuxuryRealEstate.com. The new website will include a completely revamped property, agent, broker and luxury community search, along with better international coverage of luxury communities and property listings around the world.

Beyond the more polished and improved look and feel of LuxuryRealEstate.com, the redesign introduces under-the-hood improvements that might not be obvious to the casual visitor, but will improve the user experience and increase exposure of luxury homes listed on the site. Features include - faster page loading, more search engine friendly, and more future safe with upgraded web browsers. Utilization of Twitter posts and Microformats as well as RSS and Atom feeds will allow for easier user subscriptions and syndication of editorial content.

“LuxuryRealEstate.com is the original - it sets that standard for websites directed at high net-worth real estate consumers. Our new website will take the user experience to a whole new level”, states CEO/Publisher John Brian Losh.

LuxuryRealEstate.com, a 2009 Webby Award Honoree, has been voted ‘Best of the Web’ by Forbes magazine multiple times, praised by the International Herald Tribune, Town & Country, the Wall Street Journal and has been ranked ‘Best Website’ by consumers according to surveys by the Luxury Institute. Since its debut in 1995, LuxuryRealEstate.com has remained the #1 portal for luxury properties on the internet, consistently driving more traffic to member websites and generating more qualified inquiries than any other website. LuxuryRealEstate.com has several times more $1,000,000+ content of any near-peer.

Also known in the industry as the Who’s Who in Luxury Real Estate network, a global collection of the finest luxury real estate brokers in the world, this group of more than 1000 brokerage firms and 95,000 professionals in more than 65 countries collectively sells in excess of $190 billion of real estate annually, with an average sale price of $2,450,000. Members sell homes for record prices and handle transactions of incredible complexity and magnitude with complete discretion. Every member is carefully selected by CEO/Publisher John Brian Losh, one of REALTOR Magazine’s 25 Most Influential People in Real Estate and broker of fine properties and estates through his Seattle-based brokerage firm, Ewing & Clark, Inc.

Michel Cruz of Rimontgo

2009 is proving a busy and exciting year for Rimontgó as the company follows up the success of its English-language realitysense.com blog site with the launch of three new, language-specific blogs.

English may be the international language, especially for Internet users, but the people at Rimontgó are not known for taking the easy way out or resting on their laurels. Instead, this autumn sees the foundation of independent blogs in German, Spanish and French.

Launched in quick succession, www.sinnvollerealitaet.de (German), www.demaravilla.com (Spanish) and www.sensdureel.fr (French) offer a personalised version of the lifestyle and real estate information that has made the original English version so popular.

Rather than rely entirely on English as a means of communication, the team at Rimontgó have put considerable efforts into creating blog sites aimed specifically at the potentially many millions of people who speak these three leading European languages. “It means native speakers do not have to make do with a ‘second hand’ service in what is not their primary tongue,” says company CEO José Ribes Bas, emphasising the international orientation of the firm.

“As a Spanish-based company we naturally include Spanish, but the French and German-speaking regions are also highly important in terms of the luxury real estate market, so we wished to offer a service aimed specifically at them.”

With the international market evolving and diversifying all the time, the possibility exists that more languages will be added in due course. “Of course, a move like this entails more than language issues alone,” says Mr. Ribes. “It would not be complete unless we include the relevant countries within the focus of our content, discussion and information, so expect an even broader orientation as the blogs evolve along with the market – and don’t forget, we would love to hear your feedback.”

July 2, 2009, HOUSTON, TX —John Daugherty, Realtors is taking their customers’ website experience to a whole new level with the addition of live chat. Now, anyone visiting the John Daugherty, Realtors site can chat with a real estate agent online if they have any home buying questions or if they need help in selling their home.

“Implementing live chat on our website provides potential home buyers and sellers an alternative way to communicate with us. In today’s fast moving world of technology, the real estate industry has been revolutionized and our multi-generational clients need options to communicate the way they prefer. With 87% of home buyers starting their search on the Internet, live chat was a natural progression for us. Our website is continuously evolving with the goal of making it as easy as possible for customers who are searching for homes and market information,” stated, Darren Moore, Web Marketing / IT Manager at John Daugherty, Realtors.

Live chat allows website visitors to connect instantly to a real estate agent at John Daugherty, Realtors and have their questions answered instantly from the hours 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. John Daugherty, Realtors real estate agents are excited about being on the forefront of cutting-edge technology, so visitors to the web site are very likely to find an agent available online as early as 6:00 am and as late as 11:00 pm to answer real estate questions. John Daugherty, Realtors will continue to take a forwarding thinking approach by providing their agents, clients and website visitors the latest use of technology.

John Daugherty, Realtors has been servicing the Houston Real Estate market since 1967 with the mission of providing superior service for their clients while encouraging maximum teamwork among the agents and staff. Today John Daugherty, Realtors is comprised of over 160 real estate professionals and over 85 highly trained administrative staff members. Their sales have grown steadily since their founding, surpassing $8 billion since the year 2000. Visit www.JohnDaugherty.com for more information.

By: Clémence Robin of RP3

Currently marketing Lionsgate in Bethesda, MD

RP3 has emerged as the next generation of Rosenthal Partners, originally The Dan Rosenthal Company, one of the most award-winning ad agencies in the DC-metro area. After 19 years of success, Rosenthal Partners will be closing its doors this month when President and Executive Creative Officer Dan Rosenthal retires. RP3 takes forward the legacy of great creative work and casts a new vision with new leadership and new resources specifically configured for today’s ever changing marketing environment.

RP3 will be led by former Rosenthal Partners EVP and 15-year agency veteran Beth Johnson who will serve as president of the new firm, together with Creative Director Jim Lansbury and Strategic Planner Scott Gold. This new management team combines fresh insight into today’s empowered consumer, mastery of the newest engagement tools and techniques, and a passion for powerful creative ideas that make marketing dollars work better and faster.

“The advertising industry has changed more in the last five years than in its entire history. Marketers are frustrated with yesterday’s agency models that can‘t effectively connect with customers and prospects today,” said Johnson. “We want to start fresh, rethinking and redefining the way we go about contributing to the business goals of our clients.”

Dan Rosenthal, a fixture in the DC ad community who has been recognized by Forbe’s Magazine as one of the top 100 creative directors in the country, sees RP3 as filling a void in the agency landscape. “Traditional agencies are struggling to embrace the new realities of the empowered consumer, while digital shops are playing catch-up when it comes to brand strategy. RP3 already excels at both,” said Rosenthal.

Rosenthal Partners closes its doors June 30, RP3 opens theirs on July 1. According to Johnson, “With our new structure and solid track record, we’re extremely optimistic. As we like to say, we’re the agency of tomorrow, since yesterday.”

About RP3

RP3 is a collective of forward-thinkers with a long track record of solving tough marketing challenges. Their expertise spans all communications disciplines including advertising, design, interactive, brand architecture, contact planning, social media and beyond. Curious by nature, nimble by design, creative to the core, RP3 generates powerful ideas that fully engage consumers and make every marketing dollar work better and faster.

Learn more soon at www.rp3agency.com.

Found on Zillow.com’s blog, LuxuryRealEstate.com member Sandi Phillip’s La Quinta listing is featured.

Frankie Avalon, singer and teen heartthrob actor opposite Annette Funicello in the 1960’s beach-themed movies (“Beach Blanket Bingo,” “Bikini Beach“) has listed his Spanish-style La Quinta home at 80373 Spanish Bay, La Quinta, CA for $1,180,000. It is listed by Sandi Phillips of California Lifestyle Realty.

Most recently, Avalon appeared on American Idol to surprise host Simon Cowell by singing “Venus,” the first of his two #1 hits from 1959 — the year Cowell was born. Avalon’s other #1 hit was “Why.”

Avalon’s home is located on PGA West, a “master-planned country club community” built in 1984 and the site of many PGA, LPGA, and Senior PGA tournaments. PGA West contains six golf courses and Avalon’s is on the 10th fairway of the Jack Nicklaus Tournament course. Avalon is an avid golfer and purchased the home in 2005 for $1,185,000, which is $5,000 more than its present listing price.

Whether you’re a golfer or not, the home looks to be a serene, desert getaway with views of the San Jacinto Mountains. It also has a popular “Quevedo” floorplan, which features open rooms with disappearing walls of glass that open the kitchen and family rooms to the outside. Also, if you like the furnishings you see in the photos, they can be purchased outside of escrow.

By Michael Edlund

I just received news that Luxury Real Estate is awarded 2009 Webby Award Honoree recognition in the Real Estate category, for excellent "content, structure and navigation, visual design, functionality, interactivity and overall experience"!

2009 Webby Award Honorees, Real Estate

The Webby Awards is the Internet's most respected symbol of success. The 13th Annual Webby Awards received over 9,000 entries from all 50 states and over 60 countries worldwide.

Luxury Real Estate was awarded Most Prestigious Real Estate Website by the Luxury Institute in 2008 and it is with great pride that we continue to lead the crowded online real estate space to stay ahead of our competition to become the only luxury real estate website that is recognized in the 2009 Webby's!

The Luxury Real Estate web department is a strong and creative group and with the prestige that accompany an Offical Honoree selection, have made Luxury Real Estate join the ranks of the Web's best and brightest, putting Luxury Real Estate in the esteemed group of industry leaders such as Amazon.com, eBay, Yahoo!, iTunes, Google, FedEx, BBC News, CNN, MSNBC, The New York Times, NPR, Salon Magazine, Evite, Meetup, Wikipedia, Flickr, ESPN, Comedy Central, PBS, and The Onion.

Judges incluce David Bowie, Harvey Weinstein, Arianna Huffington, Matt Groening, Internet inventor Vinton Cerf, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, Virgin Group Chairman Richard Branson, and R/GA Chairman and CEO Bob Greenberg.

Thank you team!

Michael Edlund Director of Technology

By Carina de Sousa of IRG International Realty Group

Portugal (March 2009) - As part of their continuous efforts to promote the absolute best in Portugal’s real estate, IRG International Realty Group is now introducing a new section on their website which focuses only on some of this country’s finest Estates and Manor Houses currently on the market.

Those that list their unique properties with this group have without a doubt a head start on the competition, since as a member of several exclusive, high profile networks IRG is able to provide the best international exposure. Among these International Networks is Christie’s Great Estates, the international real estate division of Christie’s, the oldest and leading auction house in the world, for which IRG is the exclusive affiliate in Portugal, EREN, The European Real Estate Network and Luxury Portfolio, an international network providing a unique platform for luxury real estate, just to name a few.

For inclusion in the Estates and Manor Houses program do not hesitate to contact Mrs. Sandra Évora on 21 0305022 or sandra@irgportugal.com or view IRG’s listings of Estates and Manor Houses on: www.irgportugal.com/properties/estatesandmanorhouses.

About IRG International Realty Group

IRG International Realty Group is one of the leading international brokerage companies in Portugal and specializes in sales of Portuguese high-end and luxury residential real estate. IRG is the exclusive affiliate in Portugal of Christie’s Great Estates, a worldwide real estate network and subsidiary of the world’s oldest auction house, Christie’s. IRG’s head office is located in the prestigious Avenida da Liberdade in the heart of Lisbon and there are also boutique offices in Quinta do Lago in the Algarve, Estoril and in Kensington, London, United Kingdom.

www.irgportugal.com

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By Web Support

We are pleased to introduce the LuxuryRealEstate.com Help Desk, your new resource for information about your LuxuryRealEstate.com membership, listings, and profile.

Please make http://helpdesk.luxuryrealestate.com/ your first stop when you have a question or need some tips for troubleshooting.

Its simple FAQ format divided into categories makes it easy to find the answer you need. If you do not see your topic of interest by browsing, use the keyword “Search Site” function in the upper-right corner of each page.

With topics ranging from mass data transfers to logging in, you will find answers to frequently asked questions such as:

How do I get a listing associated with a particular agent?

How can I search for other Luxury Lounge users?

Why are my inactive, expired, or sold listings still appearing on your website?

What should I do if I don't know my login username or e-mail address?

Can I advertise my Who's Who in Luxury Real Estate affiliation on all my properties?

Are my listings being syndicated?

The LuxuryRealEstate.com Help Desk will continue to grow and evolve, so check back often.

If you have additional questions or feedback, please send us an e-mail at websupport@luxuryrealestate.com.