Last Updated on March 29, 2024 by Luke Feldbrugge
A real estate website is essential for agents looking to grow their business. It must maintain the essential fundamentals of a well built and optimized website, but also establish the business as a local supporter, and you as a community expert and leader. This comprehensive guide covers the 12 essentials of a real estate website to stand out, engage clients, and acquire leads.
Table of Contents
1) Custom Domain and Web Hosting
2) Easy to Use Website Builders
3) Top Navigation and Pages
4) Footer Features
5) Brand Identity
6) Lead Magnets
7) User Engagement Tools
8) Local Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
9) Blogging
10) Mobile-Friendly Design
11) Site Speed (Load Time)
12) Website Analytics
Bonus: Niche Program for your business
Key Takeaways for a Real Estate Website
- Establishing a professional foundation for your website starts with a custom domain, hosting and an SSL Certificate, setting the stage for trust and credibility with your audience.
- A real estate website must prioritize easy navigation, mobile responsiveness, and engaging tools like IDX services, calculators, and lead magnets to keep visitors interested, engaged and completing lead forms.
- Regular content production and blogging, optimized for local SEO, presented with a consistent brand image and tone are key to improving visibility in search results and establishing recognized authority in the local market.
- Evaluating your website’s performance, load times and analytics allows for informed decision-making to continuously refine and improve your online strategy.
- Incorporating lead forms and effective call to actions can collect valuable visitor data and turn website visits into actionable leads.
What are the essentials for a successful real estate website? A good real estate website must be secure, optimized, fast, and responsive on all devices. The website’s architecture, flow and content needs to be well laid out, designed so visitors can easily find what they need, with engaging and informational content about how you provide the solutions they need.
If you are still on the fence about building your own website, check out our guide to websites for real estate agents. It provides more information about what it takes to build a website, it gives you some options to consider, including whether building a website is a good choice for your business right now.
1) Custom Domain and Web Hosting
When you’re in the thick of building your real estate business as a solo agent, particularly in the initial years, a custom domain may not be at the top of your essentials list. However, you will come to find that a custom domain is your brand online. It becomes your online footprint, that you own and control. At some point, you will want to own your brand online. Purchasing a custom domain, and a web host to support it is how you begin to build it.
What Are Custom Domains and Web Hosting?
- Custom Domain – This is your unique address on the internet (e.g., www.yourrealestatebusiness.com). It’s how clients find you online, and it’s a pivotal part of your brand identity.
- Web Hosting – This service stores your website’s files on a server, making it accessible to anyone online. It’s the foundation that supports your website, ensuring it’s available and fast for visitors.
- SSL Certificate – This is a digital certificate that encrypts information sent to and from your website, ensuring that sensitive data (like personal and contact information) is transferred securely. Most web hosting services offer SSL certificates as part of their hosting packages, sometimes even for free. Alternatively, you can purchase one from a third-party provider.
Securing a custom domain and reliable web hosting service with an SSL certificate should be one of your first steps, before you even begin building a website.
There are numerous reputable providers offering domain registration and web hosting services. Look for ones that cater specifically to real estate agents or small businesses for tailored solutions. A long time front runner that tends to make most ‘best web hosting” lists is HostGator. They tend to be one of the more affordable options as well. If you’re looking for more options, Neil Patel provides a great review of the top web hosting services in 2024, along with in-depth reviews of each.
It’s worth noting that many website builder services provide a free domain (for 1 year) and hosting services as part of their package price, so purchasing a domain and hosting services independently wouldn’t be necessary. But, we like to recommend keeping them separate and connecting them to your content management service (CMS) or website builder versus having all eggs in one basket.
Why Are They Essential for a Real Estate Website?
- A custom domain reinforces your professional image and brand, making you stand out in the local real estate market.
- Build your brand online by creating an identity that resonates with your target audience, helping them remember and find you easier.
- Custom domains typically rank better in search engine results than subdomains, making it easier for potential clients to discover you.
- With your own domain and hosting, you have complete control over your website and its content, enhancing both security and flexibility.
How to Get Started
- Choose a Domain Name – Select a name that reflects your brand and is easy to remember. Use your name, niche, or area to make it relevant and searchable.
- Select a Web Hosting Provider – Look for reliability, customer support, and scalability. Providers often offer domain registration with their hosting plans, making it easier to manage.
- Connect Your Domain and Hosting – Once you’ve purchased your domain and hosting plan, follow the provider’s instructions to link them together. This step is essential for making your website live and accessible to the public.
2) Easy to Use Website Builders
Easy-to-use website builders have revolutionized the way you can develop your own digital footprint. If you are a solo agent looking to build your brand online with limited technical knowledge or skills in building websites, then a website builder is where you want to start doing your research. Let’s take a look at why they are so effective and how you can use one to build your own website.
What Are Website Builders?
Website builders are platforms that allow you to create a website using drag-and-drop tools, pre-designed layouts, and templates. They’re designed for ease of use, enabling anyone, regardless of technical skill, to build and manage a website.
Using Design Principles for Your Real Estate Website
Understanding basic website design principles like; balance, contrast, emphasis, hierarchy, movement and white space is helpful in creating an appealing and effective real estate website.
- Simplicity – Keep your design clean and clutter-free. Make it easy for visitors to focus on what’s important to them; without losing sight of what is important to your business — listings, services, and proposed calls to action!
- Consistency – Ensure your site’s design is consistent throughout, with the same color schemes, font styles, and layout patterns. This enhances brand recognition and professionalism.
- Responsiveness – Your website must look good and function well on devices of all sizes, from desktops to smartphones.
Website Design Layouts and Templates
Website builders offer a range of layouts and templates tailored to different needs. Some website builders have templates available specifically for real estate agents, like WIX.com. Be sure to choose a theme and templates that include features like listing galleries, lead forms, and the other essentials listed in this article. And, the best templates should be easily customizable, allowing you to adjust the design to your style and feature what you want.
Why Use Website Builders for Your Real Estate Website?
- Cost-Effective – Using a subscription model, you are billed monthly or annually. Your cost will depend upon the package you purchase or the add-ons you require to build what you want. Most of the beginner, or mid-range packages for more experienced website designers are a good value for what you get.
- Ease of Use – The intuitive design and drag-and-drop functionality make it easy for you to update your website’s design, content, or blog without needing technical help.
- Quick to Market – You can have a professional-looking site up and running quickly, essential for agents eager to establish their online presence.
- Often All-in-One Package – Services typically offer a package deal that includes the website builder, custom domain, web hosting, SSL certificate, templates, plugins or apps, and some type of support service; allowing you to build your site to your liking.
3) Top Navigation and Pages for Your Real Estate Website
A website’s top navigation acts as a roadmap for visitors, guiding them through the site’s content efficiently and intuitively, enhancing their overall experience. A well-structured navigation also improves the site’s search engine optimization (SEO) by making it easier for search engines to crawl and index the site so they can catalog your content easier to determine what your site is about. An effective site navigation is foundational to a website’s usability and success.
Here are the typical types of navigation used by site designers:
- Classic Navigation – Typically located at the top of a website, offering straightforward access to main pages. Ideal for simplicity and ease of use.
- Sticky Navigation – This navigation bar stays visible at the top of the screen as a user scrolls down, making it easy to move to other pages at any time.
- Hamburger Menu – A three-line icon that opens up to reveal the navigation menu, commonly used for mobile versions of the site to save space.
- Dropdown Navigation – Useful for websites with multiple pages or sections, allowing users to hover over a menu item to see more options.
- Sidebar Navigation – A vertical list of menu items on the side of a page, offering a different aesthetic and sometimes more space for additional items. Commonly used for blogs or retail businesses to help categorize large amounts of content or products.
These are the essential pages to be featured in the top navigation of a real estate website:
About Page for a Real Estate Website
The About page tells your story. Some things to consider including on your About page could be; your journey as a real estate agent, your experience, your values, and what sets you apart from the competition. Think of it as your chance to make a personal connection with a potential client. The About page is essential because people want to do business with those they trust. The About page builds a preliminary connection, providing a glimpse into who you are, both professionally and personally and what sets you apart from others.
Contact Page
The Contact page is pretty straightforward. It should list your contact information including your phone number, email, and a physical address if you can meet with people at your office. In addition, be sure to add a simple contact form to ask you a question or request your services. The Contact page is essential because it lowers the barrier for potential clients to contact you. Make sure your Contact page is clear, concise, and the sign up form is easy to fill out and submit.
Home Buying Page with Lead Form
This would be a dedicated landing page for home buyers that provides valuable information about the home buying process, tips for first-time buyers, and search tools for listings. This page must have a lead form to capture interested visitors’ information. Maybe include a photo and client testimonial of a recent client purchase. This page is essential because it serves as a resource for buyers and a lead generation tool for you.
Home Selling Page with Lead Form
This page would be tailored to sellers and should highlight your expertise in the local market, home pricing, marketing, staging and showing, and negotiating the sale of homes. Maybe your most recent sale with a client testimonial. Highlight anything you may do differently that provides additional value to your clients that your competitors can not claim. Be sure to include a lead form that will capture all the details you need from a potential seller.
Client Testimonials or Reviews
Featuring client testimonials or reviews can influence the decision making process of potential clients. By getting exposed to real-life positive endorsements of your services, in the mind of a potential client you become more trustworthy and qualified to address their needs. Bottom line, testimonials build credibility. Use them, respectfully and tactfully, including a quote with name and picture if possible of a client and their transaction details (after receiving client’s written approval to share in a promotional way).
4) Footer Features for a Real Estate Website
The footer is not just the bottom of your website; it’s another navigation tool for site visitors. It’s also the place where common legal compliance and links can be applied to all of your pages for easy reference. Here’s why each element matters to a real estate website.
- Footer Navigation – A footer navigation menu should mirror your top navigation (unless you’re using a sticky top navigation) and highlight other important areas of your site, making it easy for visitors to explore your website thoroughly.
- Address and Contact Information – Include your business address, phone number, and hours of business. This helps to reassure clients of your legitimacy and availability. Also, including your address and contact info can improve your website’s local SEO.
- Copyright Statement – Protects your website’s content and establishes the site’s ownership.
- Legal Copy and Disclaimers – Ensures that your website follows industry regulations. Provides transparency about your content, advice, and services; and how you use the data you collect from your site visitors.
Equal Housing Opportunity Logo for a Real Estate Website
Displaying the Equal Housing Opportunity logo is not just about compliance with fair housing laws; it’s a statement of your commitment to fairness and equality in housing.
Social Media Integration
Include social media icons in your footer that link to your profiles to encourage visitors to connect with you on other platforms, increasing your reach and engagement. But, only include the profiles you actively use and post to frequently.
Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions
These are not just legal formalities; they are essential for informing visitors about the use of their data and the terms of using your website. Clearly stating your privacy policy and terms builds trust with your website visitors, showing that you value their privacy, and are clear about the terms of engagement.
5) Brand Identity
A website is your cornerstone for a strong brand identity online. It provides an important first impression that establishes credibility and trust with potential customers. It amplifies your brand’s visibility and reach by making it accessible to a broader audience, acting as the main hub for integrating and synchronizing all of your digital marketing efforts.
What Makes Up a Brand Identity on a Real Estate Website?
Brand identity brings together various elements to create a visual and emotional representation of your brand. For a real estate website, these elements would include:
- Style and Tone – What’s your brand’s personality? Easy going and casual, or fast-paced and motivated? This is what you’ll need to define and leverage across your website through the language, tone and images you use to communicate on your real estate website.
- Business Name and Logo – Typically in top, left corner of the site
- Brand Color Scheme (hint: know the hex codes for your colors) – Typically set as part of the theme so it is consistently used across the entire site. You will want to consider the color of your titles, body text, buttons and clickable links.
- Brand Text Typography – Use a web-friendly font. Don’t get crazy. Something easy to read that fits your style is best. The font(s) can be set up in the site’s theme as well.
- Images – Be consistent with what you use. Make sure people depicted in your images are your target customer. If you want to connect with people, show people in your images, not just homes. AI image creation is getting much better and can be a great tool. But be sure to closely review any image before putting it on your site, because something seen as “fake” can be an immediate disconnect for some people.
Why Is Brand Identity Essential?
- Differentiation – In the competitive real estate market, a strong brand identity helps you stand out from the crowd, making you more memorable to potential clients.
- Credibility – A professional and cohesive brand identity builds credibility and trust.
- Marketing Efficiency – The use of a clear brand identity allows your marketing efforts to become more efficient as people begin to recognize and remember who you are and what you do.
Use your brand identity elements consistently across all platforms, including your real estate website, social media profiles, and marketing materials, to reinforce your brand in the minds of your audience.
6) Lead Magnets for a Real Estate Website
In the competitive landscape of real estate, capturing the attention and contact information of potential clients is a must. This is where lead magnets come into play for your real estate website.
What Are Lead Magnets?
Lead magnets are valuable resources offered in exchange for contact information. They’re designed to attract potential clients by offering them something of immediate value. For a real estate website, effective lead magnets might include:
- Gated Access to Special Resources – May include exclusive market analysis, insider tips on navigating the buying or selling process, or a series of videos, webinars or courses on home buying, selling and taking care of a home.
- Downloadable Guides, eBooks, Checklists, Worksheets, Templates – Covering important home buying and selling topics, these resources should provide substantial value that your target audience wants to hold onto and keep referencing or using.
Where to Place Lead Magnets on Your Real Estate Website?
Ensure your lead magnets are easily accessible, ideally featured on your homepage or on a special landing page that fits the topic of the lead magnet. If you’re a bit more tech savvy, you could leverage a plugin that triggers a pop-up after a certain amount of time spent on the site or when the visitor attempts to leave the page.
Why Are Lead Magnets Essential to Real Estate Websites?
- Lead Generation – They are key to building a database of potential clients.
- Establish Authority – By providing valuable information, you position yourself as an expert in your field, and potential clients want to work with their local experts.
- Brand Loyalty – Lead magnets encourage potential clients to interact with your brand’s valuable resources that help them with a potential issue, building a stronger affinity with your brand versus your competitors.
Check out our article on 10 lead magnets real estate agents should try on their website to see what works best for their local market, specific target audience, and that also best fits their knowledge and expertise.
7) User Engagement Tools
User engagement tools are the interactive features that keep visitors on your site longer, encouraging them to explore, interact, and ultimately reach out to you. Here are some valuable user engagement tools that can be helpful for a real estate website to include:
IDX Service for a Real Estate Website
IDX (Internet Data Exchange) services allow you to display MLS listings on your website. This means visitors can browse available properties directly through your site. This keeps potential buyers on your website longer by allowing them to search through a wide range of listings without leaving your site, enhancing your chances of capturing their interest.
Advanced Property Search
An advanced property search feature goes beyond basic search criteria (like price range and number of bedrooms) to include filters for property types, features, and even school districts. This helps users narrow down their search efficiently, making your website a valuable resource for narrowing their home search.
Map Location (Google Maps)
Integrating Google Maps into your property listings allows users to view the property’s location directly on your website. This can include not just the property itself but nearby amenities and schools.
Calculators
Offering calculators on your website, such as a home value estimator or a monthly mortgage payment estimator, offers tools for site visitors to learn interesting information that applies directly to something they want to better understand. This may then trigger the visitor wanting to learn more about their particular situation, causing them to sign up on your website for more information.
Why These User Engagement Tools Are Important?
They empower site visitors by providing them with valuable information that can help them make informed decisions. By engaging with these tools, visitors are more likely to spend more time on your site and consider you as a valuable resource, increasing the likelihood of them reaching out for your services.
8) Local Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
It’s not just about being found online per se; instead it’s about being found by the right people in your local market. Let’s explore the essentials of local SEO for your real estate website.
Website Structure and Content Hierarchies
- Organized Flow and Intuitive Design – Your site builder’s theme and established templates will likely provide a lot of the site structure, but the URL structure and the hierarchy used will allow users and search engines to understand what is the most important content, what plays more of a support role, and that will offer a better user experience.
- Sitemap – A sitemap lists all your website pages, making it easier for search engines to crawl and index your site. It’s like a roadmap of your website that search engines use to discover content.
- Robots.txt – This file tells search engine bots which pages or sections of your site to crawl and which to ignore. Proper use of Robots.txt can ensure that search engines are focusing on your most valuable content.
- Use of H1, H2, H3 and H4 Title and Header Tags – This provides content hierarchy on a page, and helps readers and search engines to easily understand the relative importance and priority of the content. The H1 Title is the first and most important title on the page, down to the lowest number header title as the least important support title.
Use of Targeted Keywords
Use keyword research tools to find the terms your target audience is searching for and build them into your content. Don’t forget to use local keywords (like your city, neighborhood, or local destinations) into your website’s content, titles, and meta descriptions. This helps your site show up in local searches by people looking for real estate agents in your area.
On-Page SEO
Ensure your page titles, headers, and content include your target keywords. Quality over quantity is what matters most. Your content should always provide value to your audience. Here’s a quick on-page SEO checklist to use for your content:
- Short list of target keywords, with one primary keyword as the focal point of the content.
Title tag should include primary keyword - Use of H1, H2, H3 and H4 title and header tags provides content hierarchy on a page, and helps readers and search engines to easily understand the relative importance and priority of the content. The H1 Title is the first and most important title on the page, down to the lowest number header title as the least important support title. At a minimum, your H1 should include your primary keyword.
- Include a meta description for the page or post that is less than 159 characters long, and include the primary keyword
- URL slug or page name should include the primary keyword, keep it short, to the point, and separate words using hyphens.
- Include links to your own website’s pages or posts, these are called “internal links”.
- Include links to 3rd party resources that help to support or validate your content. These are called “external links”, and feature URLs from other websites.
- Be sure to include compelling visuals such as images, graphs, infographics, etc.
Local SEO is not a one-time task but an ongoing strategy that requires regular attention and adjustment. By focusing on these key areas, you can improve your website’s local search presence, and attract more targeted traffic.
9) Blogging for a Real Estate Website
Blogging is a strategic tool that can significantly enhance your website’s visibility, engagement, and authority. It takes significant time to do it well, but it is a long-term marketing strategy. It typically takes new blog content anywhere from 3-12 months to begin ranking in search engines. But, after a blog article begins to rank and generate traffic, it has the potential to deliver continuous organic traffic to your website with minimal upkeep.
What is Blogging?
Writing and publishing for a blog involves creating informative, engaging, and relevant articles (or posts) on your website.
Why is Blogging Important for a Real Estate Website?
- SEO Benefits – Regularly updated blogs with valuable and optimized content are favored by search engines, helping improve your site’s organic search engine rankings and site visitor traffic.
- Establish Authority – Sharing your knowledge and insights on real estate topics can position you as an expert in your local market and give you a competitive advantage.
- Content for Social Media and Email – Blog posts provide valuable content that can be shared across your social media and email platforms, driving traffic back to your website.
10) Mobile-Friendly Design
A mobile-friendly design is not just a feature – it’s a necessity for real estate agents looking to succeed in today’s digital landscape. The majority of property searches begin on mobile devices. Mobile-friendly design means your website looks great and functions well across all devices, particularly on smartphones and tablets. It includes easy navigation, fast loading times, and accessible information without needing to zoom in and out.
By embracing either an adaptive or responsive mobile design, which is typically built into most website builders, CMS platforms and theme templates; your website will provide a must-have mobile-friendly user experience.
11) Site Speed (Load Time)
Attention spans are short, and competition is fierce, so the speed of your real estate website can significantly impact your online success. Site speed, or load time, refers to how quickly a webpage loads and becomes fully functional for the user.
Website speed optimization is an ongoing process. As you add new content or update your site’s design, you should always consider how these changes affect your site’s load time. A great way to test your website’s page speed is to use Google PageSpeed Insights analyzer and it will show you ways to improve your page’s load time.
Why is Site Speed so Important?
- User Experience – Site visitors expect fast, responsive websites. Slow load times can lead to frustration and high bounce rates, meaning potential clients may leave your site before seeing what you have to offer.
- SEO Rank – Search engines like Google use site speed as a ranking factor. Faster websites are more likely to rank higher in search results.
- Conversion Rates – When users can quickly access the information they need, they’re more likely to take action, like filling out a lead form.
12) Analytics for a Real Estate Website
Website analytics provide you with data that can guide your online strategy, ensuring you’re reaching your target audience effectively.
Why Website Analytics Are Essential?
- Informed Decisions – Analytics data helps you understand what’s working and what’s not, allowing you to make informed decisions on content, design, and marketing strategies.
- Understand Your Audience – Learn where your visitors come from, what devices they’re using, and what content they find most engaging.
- Improve User Experience – By identifying patterns and potential pain points on your website, you can make necessary adjustments to improve the overall user experience, keeping potential clients engaged longer.
- Measure Success – Set and track specific goals, such as lead form submissions or newsletter signups, to measure the success of your marketing efforts and adjust as needed.
Google Analytics is a popular, free tool that provides many helpful insights. Some website builders and CMS platforms may include an analytics dashboard for your site, or maybe a plugin or app you can add to view your website’s data.
By understanding and acting on the insights provided, you can tailor your website to meet your audience’s needs better, optimize your marketing efforts, and continue to grow your real estate business. In a competitive local real estate market, having data-driven insight gives you a distinct advantage.
In Conclusion
As you can see, building a successful real estate website requires more than just listing properties. It demands strategy, with a focus on the user’s experience and engagement, and providing useful, valuable locally focused information and insight that hopefully generates leads for your business.
Remember, your website is the digital face of your business; investing time and resources into these important areas will pay dividends over the long-term in your ability to connect with clients and grow your real estate business.
Niche Program to Helps Grow Your Business
We hope you found this article helpful. Since you’re in the growth mindset, if you have not spoken with a member of our team about the niche program we provide and the benefits it can offer your business, now might be the right time as you’re thinking about ways to grow your business online.
Homes for Heroes can help you specialize in your market and grow your real estate business by focusing your services on helping your local heroes buy, sell or refinance a home. You can offer them something special, something beyond the transaction, by saving them significant money as a way to thank them for their service.
Simply register online and schedule a time to learn more about the benefits of being a Homes for Heroes local market specialist, and become the agent or lender your community heroes want to work with for their home and mortgage needs.
