New Features & Updates

We've recently added several features and search options to better serve our clients and customers and the general public too.  We continue to improve our websites using new technology, fresh ideas and suggestions from our customers and good old-fashion hard work.  In the past month, we've increased the types of available searches, added new information sharing options, increased listing info and added pages for local webcams.  We've also added Google mapping to all of our condo pages and most of the subdivisions displayed on our website with plans to completely finish all area subdivisions in upcoming weeks.  This has been a bit of an undertaking considering the sheer number of subdivisions in our area.  In this blog, we'll discuss our new features and additions and explain how they work and why they're beneficial for all who use this site.

The first updating we did utilizes aerial photographs purchased last year.  A local company specializing in aerial photography closed their doors to open the door of retirement and sold the CondoInvestment.Com team over 10,000 aerial photos ranging from Panama City, FL to the Eastern Shore of Mobile Bay in Spanish Fort, AL.  Initially, these pictures were used to display aerial photos of condominiums in the area including high-resolution shots in Perdido Key, FL, Orange Beach, AL and Gulf Shores, AL.  Most of these areas include sub-areas like Fort Morgan, Wolf Bay, Terry Cove and the Intracoastal waterways to name a few.  This has been well-received and used by many to better understand the area and how real estate is situated.  The next addition was to add aerial images with the condos labeled which helps to show which condos are contiguous and how they are situated in relation to local area attractions like the FloraBama, Gulf Shores Hangout and the Wharf Amphitheater.  This is another great tool well received and very helpful in understanding the area's geography.

Webcams are a great tool for visiting the beaches or Eastern Shore from anywhere in the world.  Users are able to leave a cubicle, lazy Sunday couch or kill time while watching the gulls fly over their favorite beaches all from their smart phone, tablet or desktop computer.  With plans to add more webcams in the near future, we started with pages and cameras in Perdido Key, FL, Gulf Shores, AL and Fairhope, AL.  All of the webcams are maneuverable allowing zooming, panning and investigating from afar.  This may not be our best real estate tool, but makes up for it with plain fun.  Everyone loves playing with webcams and checking out the area from their neck of the woods.

We have added a great tool for buyers with an extended listing information block which contains the listing history.  This info includes any price changes made over the duration of the listing, days on the market and any other changes made to the listing.  Details are displayed below the property details on the search results pages for all properties for sale listed on our website which includes any real estate currently for sale in all of Baldwin County Alabama and parts of Escambia County Florida.

Another great tool sure to be appreciated by those shopping for real estate is our new "Under Contract" status.  This feature displays a blue banner diagonally across any thumbnail that is pending and has an accepted contract.  Basically, there should be no more wondering whether or not a property is available.  If the home, condo or land has an accepted contract, it's plainly noted.  This greatly increases efficiency and that's sure to be okay with everyone.  The last thing people seem to want to do is waste time these days.

Finally, we've added some short video to our website explaining our supplemental condo rental network and how it works and why it's beneficial to clients interested in selling and those who just want to boost their rental properties performance.  We have a video discussing this network, how it started and a traffic counter.  We plan to continuously grow this network while it establishes itself as the cornerstone of our marketing efforts.  We will also continue to add more video as this is a more personal method of discussion and it's nice to be able to put a face with a name.  Also, reading and reading and reading can get a little monotonous, so we decided to spice things up. 

In closing, we've been jumping through some hurdles in an effort to provide "sold" info.  Apparently, it's against our local real estate boards policy to publish sales info for properties in the area.  We have checked in to this problem and found a solution.  The answer will be slightly difficult and require us to get creative, but the results should be effective.  In the next week or two, we will be able to provide "sold" info, so check back for the blog with "sold" in the title.  This should be up-and-runing by the end of August.  We hope that you enjoy our website, find it useful and continue stopping by for all of your real estate needs.  As always, please feel free to share any ideas to better our site and we greatly appreciate your input.