Diamond Data Co.'s Kevin Guy

Kevin Guy is the first to acknowledge that there are existing online property data sites. But Guy says the one he and his partner, David Bass, are launching March 31 in Florida is different. Diamond Data Co. will consolidate commercial property data from all of Florida’s 67 counties, Guy says, adding, “Our goal is to provide the user the most robust and up-to-date data, without breaking the bank.”

Although the site will initially feature data only from Florida, Guy expects to expand into other states including California, Texas, New York and Massachusetts. Guy is the former owner of the Property Sourcebook and current owner of the Florida Investor newspaper. As the launch countdown continues, Guy took time out to tell GlobeSt.com his plans for the new business.

GlobeSt.com: You started developing the site about a year ago. What were yourobjectives?

Guy: Our objective was to create a consolidated database of all commercial real estate parcels , not just properties “for sale”. This type of data is difficult to find and can be even more difficult to use in a useful way.

GlobeSt.com: Why do you feel there’s a need for this type of data?

Guy: The current data is extremely fragmented across each county in every state. For example, when a real estate agent prospects for clients, they must either go door to door to find who owns the property or go to each individual county to research and find the data. With this site, all of the data is in a simple online interface.

GlobeSt.com: What kinds of information are you making available that’s not on existing sites?

Guy: We’re taking scattered, fragmented data, creating a consolidated database, and offering it in a searchable and useable format. Users will be able to download as much data as they want into a format that can be used for marketing or analysis. We will be adding additional features in the next few months including mapping, sales comp reports, property reports and photo uploading.

GlobeSt.com: How would you like to see the site used?

Guy: We’d like it to operate as a utility site for industry professionals to gain market intelligence. We want to give investors the ability to source properties and extract data on a particular parcel as well as surrounding properties. We want to give agents, brokers, finance companies, construction companies, insurance companies and all other professionals, the ability to gather data to market their service or product. They’ll be able to dig for data by territory, property type or other criteria and use a simple interface to download it. The other way we would like to see the site used is for research purposes. Many industry professionals, such as appraisers, agents and analysts, require up-to-date market data on sales comps and transactions by property type and geographic region. We’ll provide full access to this type of data.