IRVINE, CA—RealtyTrac and its Homefacts subsidiary are striving to provide the tools homebuyers need in order to make a decision. To do so, as GlobeSt.com reported last week, Homefacts has launched a new mobile app for iPhone that enables homebuyers, homeowners and renters to view detailed property and neighborhood information and statistics on more than 100 million US homes. The new app enables navigation of neighborhood data based on user location and allows users to find information on any of these properties using the address, city and zip search tool. GlobeSt.com spoke with CEO Jamie Moyle about why this app is important and what the firm does to get the most relevant data possible in the hands of homebuyers.
GlobeSt.com: Why is the information the Homefacts app provides important to homeowners and homebuyers?
Moyle: We're in an age of more data transparency, not less. Our job is to provide as much data as possible, and this is based on our user feedback on our website and on which data they click. If people respond to the data, it keeps moving up the list; if they don't, it moves down the list. The more data they can access, the more homebuyers will feel confident in their transactions.
GlobeSt.com: At what point in the homebuying process do buyers generally seek this information?
Moyle: With our regular website, which they access through their desktop, they're generally still early in the process of seeking out a neighborhood in which to buy, and then at the end to do their final due diligence. With the app, it's different: they're standing in front of the house, and they've already chosen the neighborhood. The app is used as a quick due diligence took further downstream.
GlobeSt.com: What else do you see happening in terms of mobility in real estate to help users accomplish what they need to get done?
Moyle: I think that a lot of the developers right now are around the age of first-time homebuyers, so talking to them is a way of getting into the mind of a first-time homebuyer. This group uses mobile devices better than a lot of us used desktops years ago. They're very aware of the data and its existence. As they're looking at their phone 150 times a day seeking data, we're seeing more ways to give them that data. We have a very data-forward, data-first approach.
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Carrie Rossenfeld
Carrie Rossenfeld is a reporter for the San Diego and Orange County markets on GlobeSt.com and a contributor to Real Estate Forum. She was a trade-magazine and newsletter editor in New York City before moving to Southern California to become a freelance writer and editor for magazines, books and websites. Rossenfeld has written extensively on topics including commercial real estate, running a medical practice, intellectual-property licensing and giftware. She has edited books about profiting from real estate and has ghostwritten a book about starting a home-based business.
